Selecting Air Conditioning

Benefits of Air Conditioning

Air conditioning is a system to cool and distribute air into a space, thereby improving the environment for people or equipment. Modern air conditioners also filter and dehumidify the air. This further enhances its quality and improves the comfort of the occupants and the performance of heat or humidity-sensitive equipment.

Research shows that there is a close correlation between temperature and a person’s productivity. Accidents, mistakes, low morale and increased absenteeism all occur more frequently in extremes of temperature, with most people feeling comfortable in a temperature of 18-21°C and a relative humidity of 40%-60%.

Andrews Air Conditioning Services installs and maintains a wide range of designs to suit all applications and budgets. The most appropriate solution depends on a range of factors, including :

• The primary uses of the spaces to be cooled
• The heat being produced in the space due to people, equipment and solar gain
• Where the air conditioning equipment can be located, both indoors and outdoors
• Whether individual control of the temperature in various rooms is required

Split-type Air Conditioners

With split-type air conditioning, the condenser unit (housing the compressor, cooling fan and condenser) is located outside the building or the area being cooled, ensuring quiet operation for the indoor fan-coil unit.

The indoor units can be discreetly wall-mounted, fixed under the ceiling or recessed into it. This latter type is often called a 'ceiling cassette'.

Because split-type ranges include lower capacity units, they are ideal for smaller rooms and locations. However they extend up to larger more powerful models for commercial applications. All provide quiet operation, smooth air distribution and clean, modern designs.

'Multi-split' systems enable a number of indoor units to be connected to one outdoor unit. This arrangement can, in some applications, reduce cost and installation time.

With heat-pump technology, split systems are capable of providing room heating as well as cooling, often an economical alternative to other types of heating.

Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) Air Conditioning Systems

Such systems (also known as Variable Refrigerant Volume, VRV) consist of a number of air handling units connected to a single external condenser. They enable refrigerant flow to be adjusted through sophisticated controls, using either an inverter-controlled variable speed compressor, or multiple compressors of varying capacities.

These more sophisticated systems are best-suited to larger, commercial applications. They are capable of responding quickly and efficiently to changes in the cooling or heating requirements in a number of separate spaces, and each indoor unit can provide independently-controlled room temperatures.