Leisure Centre Pool Set to Save with ABB Drive
A leisure centre in Sittingbourne, Kent, is set to save GBP4,000 a year on the costs of air handling for its swimming pool following a trial with an ABB low-voltage AC drive. The Swallows Leisure Centre is operated on behalf of the local authority by Serco Leisure, which was concerned by the energy use of the air-handling unit (AHU) in the upper pool area. To deal with a condensation problem in the pool hall, this AHU was being run 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, with no control over its output.
To improve this situation, Serco asked ABB Drives Alliance member Mid Kent Electrical (MKE) to investigate the application and determine any savings that could be made. To assess the application, MKE monitored the power being consumed by the existing 22kW supply fan in the AHU over a period of one week, revealing that the average power consumption of the fan during the period was slightly more than 19.5kW. The second stage of the trial involved replacing the star/delta starting system with a 22kW ABB standard drive for HVAC. Running at full speed during the day, this was set to run at 30Hz between 10.20pm and 6.20am. This was monitored over the same period as the direct-online system, giving an average power consumption of 14.84kW. With an electricity cost to the leisure centre of GBP0.10/kWhr, running the AHU fan unregulated would cost slightly more than GBP17,000 per year and be responsible for around 92 tonnes of CO2 a year.
By contrast, operating it with the ABB drive would cost GBP13,000 a year, a saving of slightly more than GBP4,000 per annum. It would also cut equivalent CO2 production to 70 tonnes a year. This would give a payback period of less than one year. As well as the upper pool hall AHU, there is another AHU in the lower pool hall and one in the gymnasium that could also potentially benefit from ABB drives.
To improve this situation, Serco asked ABB Drives Alliance member Mid Kent Electrical (MKE) to investigate the application and determine any savings that could be made. To assess the application, MKE monitored the power being consumed by the existing 22kW supply fan in the AHU over a period of one week, revealing that the average power consumption of the fan during the period was slightly more than 19.5kW. The second stage of the trial involved replacing the star/delta starting system with a 22kW ABB standard drive for HVAC. Running at full speed during the day, this was set to run at 30Hz between 10.20pm and 6.20am. This was monitored over the same period as the direct-online system, giving an average power consumption of 14.84kW. With an electricity cost to the leisure centre of GBP0.10/kWhr, running the AHU fan unregulated would cost slightly more than GBP17,000 per year and be responsible for around 92 tonnes of CO2 a year.
By contrast, operating it with the ABB drive would cost GBP13,000 a year, a saving of slightly more than GBP4,000 per annum. It would also cut equivalent CO2 production to 70 tonnes a year. This would give a payback period of less than one year. As well as the upper pool hall AHU, there is another AHU in the lower pool hall and one in the gymnasium that could also potentially benefit from ABB drives.
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