The design and construction of central plants for heating and cooling is one of the most challenging and interesting aspects of the HVAC design profession. Central plants range in size from small to very large, from residential to industrial utility scale. There are many areas of individual expertise and many levels of competence among designers. | Source HVAC Systems Design Handbook Chapter 7 Design Procedures Part 5 Central Plants Introduction The design and construction of central plants for heating and cooling is one of the most challenging and interesting aspects of the HVAC design profession. Central plants range in size from small to very large from residential to industrial utility scale. There are many areas of individual expertise and many levels of competence among designers. In this chapter we discuss several fundamental types of plants and aspects of plant design still leaving much detail to literature and experience beyond the scope of this book. See Ref. 1 for additional discussion of the topics treated here. General Plant Design Concepts Independent of the service being produced some concerns are common to central plants. 1. Siting. Central plants preferably are located in the middle of or adjacent to the loads they serve. Distribution piping costs may loom large if primary piping runs long distances to get to the service point. On the other hand the combining of multiple service units into one plant is the act which achieves the economy of scale and the convenience of operation so distance is a tradeoff but the central location is still a favored point to start. For large plants serving congested campuses a remote or peripheral location may be preferred. This allows better access to the plant and removes plant traffic noise and emissions from the more densely populated areas. 191 Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill Copyright 2004 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website. Design Procedures Part 5 192 Chapter Seven For high-rise buildings there is the question of the basement roof or in between. On-grade locations have the best access. Sometimes buildings are occupied from the ground up during extended construction suggesting a low-level site. Where water systems
