Top names beat R22 deadline

UK: With R22 banned from use in Europe from January 1, a number of high-profile users, including Debenhams and UVEX Safety, have acted to beat the deadline.

Retail store Debenhams PLC are in the process of phasing out refrigerant R22 from their stores in line with current UK legislation.

Award-winning contractor Borahurst was involved in recently completed work at the retailer’s Reading department store, where nine roof-mounted air handling units, with R22 outdoor units attached, provided the heating and cooling.

The task was to keep the existing AHU’s, which were still fully serviceable, but to go on and remove the R22 coils and outdoor units and then to supply and fit new R410A replacements.

The initial work was designed and overseen by building services consultant EM Tecnica who came up with a design brief.  The brief was the result of collaboration between EM Tecnica and Portsmouth-based equipment supplier Hushon (UK) Ltd.

Following site surveys and ongoing discussions the equipment to be changed became focused on new outdoor units manufactured by Toshiba together with new matched bespoke direct expansion heat pump coils for retro fitting into the AHU’s.

All this equipment was supplied by Hushon (UK) Ltd with installation carried out by Borahurst over a 12-week period on site.

The main focus was to carry out this work with minimal disruption to the operation of the store and the Oracle Centre. Borahurst planned the works into three phases ensuring only three AHU’s were off line at any one time (one per floor). At each phase it was necessary to decommission and dismantle into small sections the existing 2000kg heat pumps and casing so they could be removed from the roof. Nine new 250kg cooling coils were installed in the existing air handling units.

Forty-five Toshiba heat pump condensers were installed, five to each air handling unit..

Practical completion was achieved on time at the end of November.

Cold Control prepares UVEX for R22 refurb

Surrey-based personal protective equipment manufacturer UVEX Safety (UK) recently upgraded its R22 air source heat pumps and air conditioning equipment with the help of Cold Control Services.

Cold Control, supplied a Daikin R410A heat pump system to replace the existing 20-year-old R22 system over two floors of the company’s offices.

While there are a number of solutions available for businesses that use equipment still running on R22, Cold Control md Mark Grant advises replacement. “Our advice is that the most cost effective course of action is to upgrade ageing equipment to units with higher efficiencies, and which don’t use R22.”