Very "High Rise" HVAC Installation
The building, while architecturally pleasing, created a logistical nightmare for the repairing contractor. The building is over 400 feet tall (which is just beyond the reach of a normal ground crane) and in addition it has a 50 plus foot tall metal superstructure sitting on top of the roof that is intended to add aesthetic appeal to the building. This made the task much more difficult.
The building has three MAU’s; two located on the roof level and one on the mezzanine roof. The roof, with it’s superstructure is too congested to be able to move anything horizontally across the roof. The only way to get new equipment in place is to crane each piece to the specific location where it is to go, and cut way enough of the superstructure skin to permit placement. That was not possible in this case as the building was too high.
The building has three MAU’s; two located on the roof level and one on the mezzanine roof. The roof, with it’s superstructure is too congested to be able to move anything horizontally across the roof. The only way to get new equipment in place is to crane each piece to the specific location where it is to go, and cut way enough of the superstructure skin to permit placement. That was not possible in this case as the building was too high.
100,000
Project Date: November 2015
The Challenge
Condominium One Park Tower in Mississauga was faced with a major technical problem. Their building was relatively new (seven years old) and the mechanical maintenance provider they had just contracted shut down and locked off their building make up air systems because they deemed them to be unsafe to use. The equipment needed to be repaired or replaced.
The Solution
The conventional method of changing a heat exchanger is to hoist it onto the roof, open the unit, remove and replace the existing heat exchanger, and close the unit. In this case the height of the building required a 500 ton crane (to reach the height) with a lift cost of $125,000 and three days of closing a major city street. In addition, this would only replace one of the two units that needed repair. Once the first was finished, the crane would need to be moved around the building and done again. Based on this, the maintenance contractor offered an alternate solution of installing heating boilers on the roof, and heating coils in the duct work. A much cheaper solution.
Armed with a scope of work and a mandate to get competitive bids from the board, the property manager contacted Climatech and asked us to provide a quote for a similar installation. We elected to go the extra distance. We contacted the original equipment manufacturer to understand the reason for the early failure, and the chance of a repeat. We found that the equipment had not been commissioned at the time of installation, (shipping blocks left in the unit which did not allow expansion; the burner assembly had not been calibrated which led to a bad burn causing harmful effluents which in turn allowed the unit to rust out prematurely.
An innovative approach to hoisting equipment. Not for the feint of heart, but for trained professionals this method can offer substantial savings.
With the cause or failure determined, and ensured that there would not be a repeat if we did our work properly, we then needed to find a way to make it happen. We contacted an industry partner and devised a plan to crane the equipment with a helicopter. This is a specialized field, and the safety requirements are quite detailed. We were required to jump through many hoops including but not limited to the federal government regulations around flying in the city, air traffic control, city permits for street closures, paid duty police, signage, H & S training for aircraft, emergency Protocols for the lift, insurance and legal agreements for all involved and many more details.
In the end we were able to replace two damaged heat exchangers (80” x 60” x 48” – 1000 lbs) with new, original equipment heat exchangers. In addition we recommissioned both units, repair a flue deficiency and calibrated the burners. All of this was done with a significant cost savings over the alternate proposal that the building maintenance contractor said was the best option.
Armed with a scope of work and a mandate to get competitive bids from the board, the property manager contacted Climatech and asked us to provide a quote for a similar installation. We elected to go the extra distance. We contacted the original equipment manufacturer to understand the reason for the early failure, and the chance of a repeat. We found that the equipment had not been commissioned at the time of installation, (shipping blocks left in the unit which did not allow expansion; the burner assembly had not been calibrated which led to a bad burn causing harmful effluents which in turn allowed the unit to rust out prematurely.
An innovative approach to hoisting equipment. Not for the feint of heart, but for trained professionals this method can offer substantial savings.
With the cause or failure determined, and ensured that there would not be a repeat if we did our work properly, we then needed to find a way to make it happen. We contacted an industry partner and devised a plan to crane the equipment with a helicopter. This is a specialized field, and the safety requirements are quite detailed. We were required to jump through many hoops including but not limited to the federal government regulations around flying in the city, air traffic control, city permits for street closures, paid duty police, signage, H & S training for aircraft, emergency Protocols for the lift, insurance and legal agreements for all involved and many more details.
In the end we were able to replace two damaged heat exchangers (80” x 60” x 48” – 1000 lbs) with new, original equipment heat exchangers. In addition we recommissioned both units, repair a flue deficiency and calibrated the burners. All of this was done with a significant cost savings over the alternate proposal that the building maintenance contractor said was the best option.
Project Gallery
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- Hoisting helicopter hovering above the building after dropping off a heat exchanger. The brown angled roof is strictly for aestetic value.
