The Vancouver Regional Construction Association (VRCA) has announced the Silver Award winners for the 25th annual Awards of Excellence, a premier industry event honouring the region’s construction leaders. In this year’s competition, there were 42 total entrants and 38 projects considered. Over the 25 years the competition has been in place, the value of the projects has grown tremendously, and the total value of projects considered in this year’s competition represented $1.1 billion of construction throughout B.C.1.
Under the Mechanical Contractor over $3 Million Category, Alpha Mechanical Contracting Ltd. has accepted the award for the UBC Earth Systems Science Building (ESSB). During the design phase, HVAC Systems worked closely with Stantec Consulting to address many of the design challenges on this project such as space constraints combined with redundancy requirements. HVAC Systems also worked closely with the designers of Thermenex TM which helps to minimize the total building energy consumption.
Photo courtesy of Alpha Mechanical Contracting Ltd.
Under the Mechanical Contractor up to $3 Million, Trotter & Morton Building Technologies Inc. has accepted the award for the Transportation Management Center. HVAC Systems worked closely with the AME Consulting Group Ltd, as the project’s Mechanical Engineering Firm.
For both projects, the facilities represent an achievement in the following categories:Space Savings– Using FANWALL Technology (FWT), we were able to greatly reduce the size of the Air Handling Units (AHU) which allowed for proper service clearance in a very tight mechanical room. Redundancy – Ensuring airflow for this scientific building was a client requirement. FWT allowed us to build redundancy within a single AHU rather than to provide a standby AHU, which also resulted in space savings. Sound Levels- Quiet operation of the mechanical equipment was a must for this project. FWT utilizes a silencer package which does not add any length to the AHU or induce any static pressure loss.
Another first for the ESSB Project was the use of a centrifugal compressor chiller/heat pump. HVAC Systems has long been the leader in BC for large tonnage chillers. We’ve built upon our success by introducing one of the first large tonnage centrifugal heat pumps in North America. This allowed for substantial energy savings over competing technologies.
For the Transport Management Centre Project, HVAC Systems provided precision cooling systems for temperature and humidity control for computer rooms and other critical areas where continuous 24/7 operation is required. Also, an air source simultaneous heating and cooling heat pump was utilized for optimizing building efficiency.
Considered to be one of the most prestigious events in BC’s construction industry, the 25th Annual Awards of Excellence ceremony will be held on Thursday, October 17, 2013. This event will be a celebration to recognize the leaders in the construction industry and their excellent projects.
Congratulations again, Alpha Mechanical Contracting Ltd., Trotter & Morton Building Technologies Inc. and the rest of the project team!!! HVAC Systems and Solutions take pride in winning partnerships to achieve the best design and products for our customers.
Information on the UBC Earth Systems Science Building – click here
1VRCA Website