Chilled beams from Trox have been installed in the new headquarters building for Three Valleys Water built on the site of the legendary De Havilland aircraft factory.
The impressive 86,000 sq ft structure is clad in clear-glazed curtain walling, interspersed with smooth-faced precast concrete panels extending the full height of the building. Solar shading is provided by horizontal and vertical brise soleil independently supported by an elegant framework of tubular steel.
The active chilled beams are installed flush with the ceiling and include a fresh air duct to induce secondary air via nozzles over the cooling coils. The energy credentials of this type of system are very good plus they can achieve very high comfort levels in the occupied space with low velocities and sound levels.
Whole life costs are another important consideration and with no moving parts, no filters, no drip trays and associated pipework, chilled beams score highly since they are virtually maintenance free and only require the coils to be cleaned every 3-4 years.
To control and balance the primary airflow iris dampers were fitted to the chilled beam by Trox – this enabled the beam to be commissioned and provided greater flexibility in the positioning of partitions.