The Problem

Coventry Hospital needed to install a new HVAC system to control airflow throughout the site, ABB was chosen to supply the VSDs on a just-in-time basis in order to meet the installation time table of the suppliers of the ventilation system.

The new 1200-bed hospital will replace the existing Walsgrave Hospital plus the majority of Coventry and Warwickshire Hospital, and is built on the Walsgrave Hospital site.

Sentridge’s Solution

Ranging in size from 0.55 kW to 45 kW, the 230 drives and motors packages are being supplied on a just-in-time basis by ABB, being produced and delivered to meet the installation time table of suppliers of the ventilation system.

Using VSDs to control the flow of air and water in the HVAC system can save well over 50 percent of the energy,
compared to using traditional control methods such as throttling valves and vanes. On a large site like Coventry
Hospital, this can have a significant impact on running costs. Matched pairs of ABB high efficiency motors and VSDs will reduce energy consumption at the new Coventry Hospital by over 1,400 MWh per year for the ventilation system in block A.

Similar savings are expected for the planned blocks B and C.

The Full Story

ABB supplied a range of VSDs and motor packages ranging in size from 0.55 kW to 45 kW. Because the 230 VSDs and motors packages are matched to each other, the site benefits from extremely efficient power consumption. ABB also provide a 24-hour support service to keep the installation up and
running should anything go wrong.

The drives will be mounted on the side of the air-handling units and are enclosed to IP54. The ABB drives were  commissioned  to make sure they are optimised for the applications and that the energy optimisation programme contained in the direct torque control is activated.

Local warranty support and after sales service will be provided by Sentridge Control, ABB’s local Drives Authorised Value Partner located in Coventry, offering a 24-hour service.

The hospital is being built under the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) by a consortium led by Skanska, Europe’s second largest construction company. The consortium will build the new acute hospital, a new mental health facility, a new clinical sciences building and a number of other ancillary buildings, as well as keep those buildings fully serviced and maintained to agreed standards for 35 years from the end of the construction period.

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