Project: Tuwaiq Palace
Location: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Products: Armstrong Design Envelope Pumps
Energy International – Riyadh upgraded Tuwaiq Palace Chiller pumps to efficient, energy-saving Armstrong Design Envelope units
The Royal Commission for Riyadh (formerly known as the Riyadh Development Authority established by a royal decree in June 1974) is responsible for the urban, economic, social, and cultural development of the Saudi Arabian Capital city.
Currently, The Royal Commission is overseeing the implementation of the King Abdulaziz Project for Riyadh Public Transportation, Riyadh’s 176-kilometer metro railway system.
The Royal Commission is headquartered in Al Safarat, also known as Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter. As the name suggests, the Diplomatic Quarter is home to many foreign embassies as well as residential compounds, fine dining and the Tuwaiq Palace.
The Palace, built in 1985 as a joint venture with Frei Otto, Buro Happold and Omrania, won the Aga Khan Award for Architecture for design in 1998.
The much-celebrated design features an 800-meter long sinuous “Living Wall” that winds back on itself and wraps around a lush garden. The 24,000 square-meter facility offers recreational, social, dining, banqueting, conference, and accommodation functions, and hosts government functions, state receptions and cultural festivals that introduce Saudi arts and customs to the international community.
Energy International Controls was chosen to supply Armstrong Fluid Technology smart pumps for the HVAC systems for the Tuwaiq Palace, Royal Commission Headquarters Building and the 9,500 square-meter fire station that services the Diplomatic Quarter.
Energy, working with contractor Masgulf and Armstrong engineers, replaced the old chiller pumps with Armstrong Fluid Technology Design Envelope Model 4200 and Model 4030 End Suction Pumps. Energy supplied one Armstrong 4030 end suction pump to the fire station, three model 2400 pumps to the Royal Commission headquarters and one model 4200 end suction pump for the Tuwaiq Palace.
Design Envelope technology replaces mechanical components with electronics and software intelligence to boost efficiency, downsize equipment and optimize part-load performance. An Armstrong Design Envelope pump combined with Active Management can reduce energy costs by 40 cents a square foot every year.
Retrofitting can also be an inexpensive way to boost HVAC system efficiency and reduce operating cost.
Pratik Sharma, Armstrong’s Global Director for Services and Performance Management interviewed building owners and found that in an effort to improve efficiency, many owners were focusing on replacing the chiller, the most expensive component of the HVAC system.
Armstrong recognized the better approach was to focus on one of the smallest system components: the pump.
Sharma explains fluid flows through the HVAC plant, which is controlled by the pump. So the pump, in essence, is the heart of the building. But building owners did not see the pump as that important. For them, it’s a motor. If it’s pumping water, it’s fine. Pumps are mechanical devices — they’re not intelligent or haven’t been intelligent.”
Armstrong Design Envelope smart pumps can be linked into the building management system monitoring operating data, such as pressure levels, flow rate, energy use and vibration can now be monitored in real-time to help owners operate and maintain their HVAC systems, greatly reducing operating costs and CO2 emissions.
Energy International Product Manager Shadi Qazza along with Armstrong representative Eyad Baarakat were on hand to oversee the installation, testing and commissioning of the Armstrong Design Envelope pumps at the Tawaiq Palace and Royal Commission Headquarters.
