Businesses are bracing themselves for an economic downturn with the focus on retaining customers while cutting costs.
The low hanging fruit will be the first to go which puts heating and cooling costs on the chopping block.
Heating and cooling typically consumes at least 35% of energy in a commercial building which is why energy efficiency has become the cost cutting mantra in HVAC today.
The situation is even more acute in Australia where power prices have risen more than 60% in 10 years, according to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).
At the same time, figures from the Energy Efficiency Council (EEC) show that wholesale gas prices doubled during the period May 2014 to April 2019.
EEC published a report entitled “Navigating a Dynamic Energy Landscape” which recommends getting the most from your assets, reducing operational costs and optimising procurement.
It all points to getting more bang for your buck.
For HVAC that means finding a solution that can provide operating efficiency and energy efficiency while still delivering commercial capacity with a small footprint for reduced environmental impact.
Finding a solution that delivers on all these fronts hasn’t always been possible but recent advances in HVAC technology have made it a reality.
At the same time the world’s biggest equipment manufacturers have strengthened their regional footprint recognising that the Asia Pacific is set to lead growth over the next decade.
This has opened up Australian shores to investment by multinationals keen to establish a solid presence in the local market. A prime example is Midea, a Global 500 company with revenue totalling $39.47 billion.
For the first time ever Midea has introduced its Commercial Air Conditioning range to the Australian market. This is a company that has decades of experience in commercial HVAC systems for major projects globally, but until now Australia only had access to its residential air conditioning range.
Midea CAC will be represented by its Australian distributor, Klima Australia, which has a well established presence locally. Klima is also the local representative for Clivet, an international provider of highly efficient heat recovery and heat pump chillers and systems from Italy.
Midea recently acquired 80% of Clivet which led to the current distribution deal.
Klima Australia Director & CEO, Gavin Appleby, said the deal means Australia now has access to some of the most advanced HVAC technologies in the world especially for high rise or large area buildings.
Pointing to Midea’s new generation Centrifugal Magnetic Bearing Chiller, Appleby said it features its very own inhouse developed technology such as the patented Full Falling Film Evaporator and the highly efficient Direct Drive Chiller with back to back compressor technology.
“Midea’s arrival means that chiller solutions have reached a whole new level in the Australian market,” he said.
Coupled with its Full DC Inverter V6 Series and VR Heat Recovery VRF system, Appleby said Midea has the largest capacity among all HVAC manufacturers to adapt to these changing market conditions.
This is in addition to an integrated energy management system that can adjust evaporating or condensing temperature to maximise comfort and energy savings automatically.
While it can provide constant comfort within a wide operating range from -5 degrees C to 54 degrees C, Appleby said Midea’s VRF has smarts that really set it apart from the rest.
“The new IMM pro platform allows a maximum of 2,048 indoor units to connect to the intelligent control system using Cloud infrastructure,” he said.
Another smart feature is the Mr Doctor button which allows built-in diagnostics software to monitor all operating parameters.
“This is a one button commissioning function which will automatically test, self-diagnose and display error codes,” Appleby said.
“The V6 allows pipe length up to 200m between the outdoor unit and indoor unit with a maximum height difference of up to 110m which is equivalent to 30 floors.”
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