|
The Building
Technology Platform®
comes complete with an access floor and equipment
suitable to provide for a flexible underfloor wire/cable
and air delivery distribution solution – all
within an optimized slab-to-slab building height!Modular
Plug & Play power wiring, cabling and HVAC components
provide complete flexibility. As your business needs
change so too can your service distribution system
– quickly, easily and cost-effectively!
World Class
Hunt Center Encourages Collaboration,
University of Arkansas Daily Headlines,
September 2007
The flexible
components of the building are not only
evident in the energy the space communicates
but also in the physical capabilities
of the structure. The Hunt Center is
the largest raised floor academic building
in Arkansas. This means that all electrical
data and HVAC is located under removable
panels in the floors allowing for simple
reconfiguration of outlets and other electrical
access as educational or research needs change.
Dan Street, construction coordinator in the
office of Facilities Management, said, "having
raised floors and movable walls added somewhat
to the initial cost, but the flexibility
will more than pay for itself by saving on
reconfiguration costs in the future." |
| Good
Sense: Underfloor air
distribution is gaining popularity
in today's built environment,
Consulting-Specifying Engineer,
January 2007
While
raised floors are not a new
concept, the move to the
digital environment is making
UFAD an increasingly popular
concept. Unlike data centers
that use raised floors as
high as 3 ft., UFAD raised
floors range from 10 in.
to 18 in. The raised-floor
plenum also is used for power
and data cabling. Buildings
implementing UFAD are gaining
in popularity for a number
of reasons: |
| 1.
Interior comfort in buildings is higher
than buildings with conventional overhead
cooling.
2. Cost for interior reconfigurations
is much lower than non-UFAD buildings.
3. Air devices, as well as power
and data floor boxes, can be easily moved
to accommodate new furniture modifications.
4 . The effectiveness of the ventilation
system is better as the supply air is
introduced at the floor and returned
at the ceiling, more effectively removing
contaminants from the space. |
HP's
data center consolidation provides management
insights,SearchDataCenter.com, August 2006
Hewlett-Packard Co.
(HP) has a vision for the data center of
the future, and it is using its own massive
data center consolidation project as the
proving ground for its ideas.....Despite
the smaller footprint and higher server density
for its new facilities, HP plans to stick
with basic raised floor air cooling. According
to Sharad Singhal, distinguished technologist
at HP, delivering air flow properly will
prevent HP from having to go with high-density
cooling technologies. |
Wiring
Underfloor - Not Underfoot, www.betterbricks.com
M/E Roundtable Discussion with:
Thomas F. Flickinger,
P.E., managing principal, Durrant Engineers,
Madison, Wis.
Tim
Koch, P.E., electrical project engineer,
HDR Inc., Omaha
Kenneth L. Lovorn, P.E., president, Lovorn
Engineering Associates, Pittsburgh
Scott Siddens, moderator
Raised floors are the
ideal multi-tasking system, serving both
as a plenum for HVAC and conduit for electrical
wiring and data cabling. Proper implementation,
however, should involve a closely coordinated
effort by the design team to guarantee that
specifications meet the needs of all systems. |
Growing
Commitment in Health Care, Debra Wood. March
2006, McGraw Hill-Southeast Construction
"All you have to
do is remove square planks that make the raised
floor, and you can reroute the electrical,"
Garcia-Huidobro said. "You won't see
any wires. |
New
Construction Awards 2004: Technology Leaps
Public/Government Winner: FedEx Institute
of Technology, Regina Raiford Babcock, Oct
2004, Buildings Magazine, Article
"The underfloor
ductless distribution system for HVAC is
the second of its kind in Memphis, and the
first in a state-owned building. Because
of site restraints, the institute was outfitted
with a remote chiller and boiler facility.
Projects held at the institute can last anywhere
from 1 semester to 2 years. The use of the
underfloor HVAC system makes it much easier
to reconfigure walls to accommodate different-sized
classes." |
New
Construction Awards 2004: A New Dimension
- Private/Corporate Winner: ABN AMRO Plaza,
Jana Madsen, October 2004, Buildings Magazine,
Article
"Flexibility was
a big priority for the bank. Analysis revealed
the cost and frequency of reconfigurations.
Systems and strategies to increase flexibility
and adaptability were extremely desirable.
Recognizing that groups would need to reorganize
and reconfigure spaces to adapt to new business
practices, the project team selected modular
furniture and a raised floor system." |
Airway
Systems, Joseph Halza, August 2004, Buildings
Magazine, Article
"Duct systems
require careful design. The challenge is
to maintain relatively straight runs while
accommodating all building structural elements
and aesthetic requirements. Changes in the
floorplan during construction can impact
duct-system layout and increase installation
cost. Once installed, changes to a duct system
are impractical, meaning comfort and energy
costs may be compromised if office space
is rearranged or building-use patterns change.
In airway systems, diffusers can be located
anywhere in the floor or ceiling grid, simplifying
air-distribution design and layout." |
Energy
Efficiency Generated Beneath the Floorboards,
Steve Hritz, July 2004, Denver Business Journal,
Article
"Originally introduced
to cool relatively small spaces with higher
heat loads like computer rooms, raised floors
have become a standard in many of today's
open and flexible office spaces..... Underfloor
air distribution borrows from this technology
by housing a building's heating, ventilation
and air conditioning (HVAC) systems under
a raised floor along with power, voice and
data cabling. Just having all these systems
located in one easily accessible location
can improve operating flexibility and reduce
the cost of reconfiguring the associated
building services." |
Adaptable
Workplaces, Jim Gelis, August 2003, FacilitiesNet,
Article
"Enclosure systems
offer multiple options in the form of demountable
walls, raised floor systems, acoustical ceilings
and furniture systems. All these enhance
adaptability." |
The
Air Down There, January 2003, NAIOP, Article
"Say goodbye to
conventional overhead ventilation systems
— air circulation has taken on a whole
new look...and feel.......As shown in the
accompanying graphic, underfloor air systems
use raised flooring (eliminating the need
for complicated ductwork) and don't rely
on the heat generated by overhead lighting
to warm the circulating air......An additional
benefit of underfloor air distribution systems
is flexibility. If a workspace is reconfigured
to accommodate additional people or a different
industry, conventional systems usually require
extensive alteration before the space is
ready for occupation. With an underfloor
system, floor vents can easily be moved to
work with the new office design." |
10
Trends Affecting The Corporate
Environment, Jeff Waters,
December 2000, Facilities
Design
& Management
"The emphasis on
flexibility will not be limited to campus
planning; it will impact the configuration
of the buildings as well. Reducing the elapsed
time and simplifying the process of reconfiguring
office space will be critical as corporations
reengineer, reorganize, and restructure while
seeking to get products to market faster.
Turning the building "upside down"
is one way to accomplish this. While voice,
data, and electrical distribution systems
often are distributed above the ceiling,
installing these systems under raised flooring
will simplify and speed space-planning changes." |
|
