4 min read

Feeling Restricted? 

Small plantrooms are hardly an engineer’s best friend. 

Having to accommodate service access, configuration, additional need for riggers and additional man hours are just some of the struggles associated with limited plantroom space. 

A mechanical engineer’s job is already difficult without the new headaches created by the demands of working with limited plantroom size, and limited access space.  

Bulky components are the enemy of small plantrooms. Heat pump chillers are often among the most spacious objects in an HVAC plantroom, but thankfully, there are purpose-designed solutions designed to accommodate their use in tight spaces. 

3 Solutions

Masterflow is proudly partnered with Clivet, an innovative HVAC manufacturer in Italy that has engineered for maximum efficiency and continuously contributed to revolutionising the HVAC industry since 1990. Their heatpump chiller range includes 3 solutions that Masterflow has had repeated success in integrating despite spatial restrictions: 

Modular Solutions 

Regardless of plantroom restrictions, your project has a set demand for its heat transfer. A common issue that plagues many sites is the need for very powerful heatpump chillers that can’t actually make their way into the plantroom because the access point is too narrow. 

This is where the benefits of modular units are miraculous. The use of modular solutions, such as the Clivet Storm Unit (WSAN-YSE), reduces the dimension of each individual unit, allowing a series of smaller units to be combined and run on the same Ecoshare software. 

This means that 4x 100kW units can be used in place of a single 400kW unit, affording you far more viable components for accommodating limited entry spaces, as well as adding flexibility to finalising your plantroom’s layout. 

Meanwhile, there are no additional demands for duty-standby management, as all units are mapped to the same Ecoshare software and can be managed simultaneously through it. Creating the ability to navigate challenging spatial restrictions without compromising on performance, efficiency or management demands is what makes this solution so effective. 

Remotex 

Normally, a heatpump chiller with contain both a cooling plant and an energy exchanger. As these components are packed within one unit, they can often be spacious and difficult to negotiate within a restrictive plantroom. 

Clivet’s Remotex separates the cooling plant (which is stored indoors) and the energy exchanger (stored outdoors), connecting them with refrigerant lines. This means that the plantroom space is completely saved from having to cater for the energy exchanger. 

Remotex also offers fantastic energy efficiency, as the cooling plant and energy exchanger are specifically designed and engineered to work with one another, rather than sourced from separate suppliers. It also boasts noiseless operation, as the internal section is soundproofed.  

ELFOEnergy Duct 

Clivet’s ELFOEnergy Duct is a modular system that offers domestic hot water management in a compact package, with excellent system efficiency, the scalability afforded by modularity, and excellent reliability thanks to the ducted design making cooling circuits and compressors redundant. 

This omission of cooling circuits and compressors also saves space, and the unit was designed by Clivet with the intention of making it easy to transport through narrow doors and elevators. Further spatial flexibility is added by the ELFOEnergy duct’s quick and easy maintenance – as all main components can be reached from the front of the unit. 

This solution is not limited to small jobs, either – it is possible to connect up to 16 units on a local network, reaching a maximum power of 1360 kW and up to 4 units connected hydraulically. The combinations can also occur with units with different power.

As is the case with the Storm Unit, thanks to the ELFOEnergy’s modular design, this allows a series of smaller units to be used whilst achieving the performance of a much larger unit, enabling the obstacle of narrow access points to be circumvented, all while enjoying the reliability, efficiency and simple maintenance offered by these ducted units. 

Spreading your Wings 

Whether you’re struggling with a narrow access point or a plantroom that makes fitting all necessary machines in your HVAC system difficult to do in a way that remains practical and serviceable, Masterflow and Clivet are here to help. 

By providing modular solutions, split systems and ducted units that omit components typically required on a heatpump chiller, your dimension-induced stress can become a thing of the past. 

If you’re ready to have our engineers examine your project and identify the best products for you, reach out to us with your project details and we will be in touch.