Some of the highest energy savings in healthcare facilites can be found in analyzing systems controls and airflow management, according to an article on the Medical Design & Construction website.
For instance, during a study of a San Diego, Calif., area hospital’s central plant, it was determined that simultaneous heating and cooling was occurring during ambient conditions above indoor temperature setpoints.
The facilities team looked at its entire system to determine how much reheating was happening.
What they found is that the supply air temperature control of air handling units was generally set to a constant temperature in the low 50s, with a reset function based on zone demands. This resulted in the maximum reheating of all airflow in the hospital at all times.
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