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After 50 years, Carrier Enterprise’s Southeast Charlotte Headquarters Office, Showroom, and Training Room have been renovated. Carrier’s older rooftop units were replaced with cutting-edge Toshiba/Carrier Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) systems that deliver much needed energy efficiency.
The overarching goal of the renovation was to improve the facility’s overall impact on the environment through an impressive reduction in the energy it uses on a day-to-day basis. With a total investment of $330,000, Carrier Enterprise has taken important, necessary steps to reduce its carbon footprint in a location where 72 employees work everyday.
“Carrier Enterprise is focused on leading the HVAC industry with high efficiency product sales,” Carrier Vice President of Operations and Supply Chain Eric Benishek said. “Utilizing our Toshiba/Carrier VRF products for our renovation was one way to demonstrate our commitment while exposing our customers directly to the project by leaving our ceiling open to view the installation. Our expectation is to use the Charlotte VRF application to initiate conversations with our customers about it, as well as our other high efficiency HVAC options.”
Customers entering the showroom or the office space will be able to see 58 tons of VRF systems installed, including 40 Air Handlers that distribute air from outside the facility as well as a state-of-the-art Heat Recovery System. Initial estimates indicate an annual savings of 40% costs compared to the original rooftops on the building. The energy being utilized by the facility overall will drop by more than 33% as a result.
Providing employees the right to work at their own comfort level was another big initiative for undertaking this renovation. Instead of having uniform controls dictating the temperature of the entire facility, now each individual office and conference room houses its own Ceiling Cassette and thermostat. This gives every individual who works in the building the ability to adjust the temperature to their own personal comfort level, allowing them to be more comfortable and more relaxed in their work space.
Using smart technology and Internet of Things (IoT) sensors, a Central Control System will be able to designate specific setpoints throughout the workday where energy can be conserved by shutting down unused air handlers during the work week. The overhaul also employs a Toshiba / Carrier Heat Pump System to distribute air to the common areas.
The VRF System is a modern overhaul to traditional rooftop units which run either 100% on or 100% off at all times. Imagine having a car that could only go 100 miles per hour or 0 miles per hour. It might be great driving across the country, but a terrible use of fuel when you just have to go down the street to the grocery store.
The VRF system has the power to modulate refrigerant flow to each designated area as needed, meaning in a given run cycle it can start at 100%, taper down to 80% and then modulate all the way down to 20% as the needs of that section of the facility change. This ability also means the system only draws the necessary amperage to run at the specific energy level it needs. This allows for both true modulation on refrigerant demand as well as savings on compressor usage.
With this renovation, Carrier Enterprise continues to lead by example reducing its energy use and providing its employees the comfort they need to perform at their best.
