BCIT Gymnasium
Keeping Cool Under Stress
For over fifty years, BCIT has been educating career-ready graduates. Today, they’re one of British Columbia’s largest post-secondary institutes. The BCIT gym, building SE16, houses exams every year for a week at a time, and they needed a solution to control both temperature and humidity while students wrote their exams.
The Challenge
Previous years had been a challenge with hot weather and hundreds of nervous students writing exams, leading to elevating temperatures and humidity. Cool Air was brought in to provide cooling and fresh air to the students which allowed for a more comfortable environment to write their exams.
The Solution
On site power generation allowed for two 20 ton air cooled units to run independently of the buildings power. Units were brought towards the outside at the back of the gym and craned down to the emergency exit stairwells 15 feet below. Proper egress was maintained as the exits had 2 sets of large double doors. Supply air was ducted into one door with affixed security duct collars, which drove into 12’ vertical supply towers; so cooling wouldn’t be aimed directly at students. Thermostats were positioned in the middle of the gym to achieve the most ideal average temperature. This also meant Cool Air units would run with no necessary intervention from staff.
The Result
With our equipment in place, the desired temperature and humidity levels were satisfied. The gym was transformed into a more comfortable environment, which allowed students to write their exams with more focus. Frequent sampling of the site conditions allowed us to log temperature and humidity levels to ensure we were achieving the results we were after.
Equipment Used
- Two ACI20V23 – Air cooled industrial 20 ton units
- 220 KVA generator and power distribution panels supplied by BCIT
- 240’ of pin and sleeve electrical cable
- Pin and sleeve to Cam Lok transitions
- 90’ of industrial flex duct
- Newly constructed vertical supply air towers with accompanied security duct collars/grill for door fillers
- 275’ of communication cable
- Remote cooling-only thermostats
Brennan Park Recreation Centre
A Project Management Case Study
Keith Plumbing and Heating has been providing plumbing and mechanical services throughout British Columbia and the Yukon since 1911. They have trusted Cool Air with their temporary temperature control needs for various projects from banks to airports and beyond.
The Challenge
The dedicated HVAC and air handling equipment at Brennan Park Recreation Centre was scheduled to be replaced. Cool Air was involved in the planning stages of providing a reliable temporary heating system that would allow the pool to remain open maintaining all programs. Careful consideration was given to unit sizing, positioning and effectiveness.
The Solution
The scope of the project led Cool Air into a proposal for a turn-key solution. We provided and managed all services for the supply and installation of four indirect gas-fired heating units. This included glazing removal, gas hook-up, security fencing and power distribution. By taking responsibility of planning and managing the temporary system off of Keith Plumbing, it allowed them to focus on the removal and replacement of the dedicated units.
The Result
Providing a viable heating package to replace the existing units allowed the municipality to maintain operations of this important community asset. Seamless function by our equipment meant no downtime for the pool and all lessons and planned activities continued as scheduled. Keith Plumbing was able to use their resources to ensure that the replacement of the permanent units was completed as planned. Cool Air specializes in providing equipment for temporary applications. Working jointly with the main contractor allows each company to focus on their strengths.