CPD Courses

The data center industry is essentially a race for land and power, with scalability, efficiency and speed of deployment all key to success. Within this maelstrom of growth, the choice of cooling equipment within the data center building is a key consideration; Aisle containment or open aisle? Ceiling plenum or floor void? Equipment in a plant corridor or within the white space? High velocity air flow or low velocity? The decision often boils down to two choices: CRAH or fan wall? This short CPD course (approx. 45mins – 1 hour) explores data center design trends and offers a comprehensive comparison of the two technologies.

Topics covered:

• Industry trends
• Overview of Technology
• Architecture
• Comparison of each product
• System considerations
• Cost analysis

In any data center cooling system, the cooling coil is the most important component. Whether in a computer room air handler (CRAH), fan wall, chiller or air handling unit, the coil’s position and design determines heat exchange effectiveness and efficiency. Understanding the cooling coil’s role is key for anyone involved in designing and specifying data center cooling systems. As one of the leading global manufacturers of cooling coils and providers of data center cooling solutions, our experts have put together this CPD to give an in-depth overview.

Topics covered:

• Heat Transfer Principles
• Coil Construction
• Coil Circuiting
• Data Center Fluid Systems
• Evolving Data Center Industry
• System Variables & Optimisation
• Coils in CRAHs / Fan Walls
• Coils in Chillers
• Free Cooling

BS EN 1886:2007

This CPD will assist attendees understand the difference between model box and real unit testing and cover the testing and classification criteria of BS EN 1886:2007, before going into greater detail on mechanical strength, casing and filter bypass leakage, thermal performance, acoustic performance and fire & safety recommendations. This course is aimed at consultants and facility management teams, involved the specification, testing and/ or maintenance of air handling units in public buildings and commercial spaces.

Topics covered:

• Introduction to BS EN 1886:2007
• Mechanical Strength
• Casing and Filter Bypass Leakage
• Thermal Performance
• Acoustic Performance
• Fire and Safety Recommendations

Energy Efficiency

A short course (approx. 45mins – 1 hour) exploring newly released data that shows energy savings of up to 44% (or 800 tons of CO2) can be achieved by applying advanced technologies to traditional air-cooled systems.

Topics covered:

• How to cool the internet without warming the planet
• Introduction to study & methodology used (baseline, figures)
• Full load analysis - energy use, PUE, CO2, free cooling ambient
• Part load analysis - energy use, PUE, CO2, free cooling ambient
• Analysis of results - CRAH, chiller & controls enhancements
• Cost benefit analysis

Pressures on natural resources are driving data centre cooling system designers back to the drawing board in order to maintain resilience and redundancy at the lowest possible energy cost. All this is happening in the face of pressures from Governments, communities, clients and the planet itself as weather becomes more extreme and unpredictable. Find out more about the evolution of data centre chillers, and best practice DC chiller design:

Topics covered:

• Introduction to data centre chillers
• Evolution of DC cooling
• Chiller fightback
• Designing a data centre chiller
• Compressors
• From the ground up
• Glycol
• Enhanced free-cooling
• System

Ecodesign: Chillers and Tier 2

Airedale’s popular Ecodesign CPD has been updated for 2021, taking into account the move to Tier 2 for Lot 21 products. This presentation focuses on chillers.

Topics covered:

• Ecodesign overview
• Ecodesign in HVAC
• Phasedown issues
• Ecodesign metrics and minimum standards
• Tier 2 and required manufacturer data
• Ecodesign enforcement: What to look out for

The high social impact of carbon emissions, leading to short term deterioration of air quality and long term climate change issues, keeps energy efficiency high on the agenda of most organisations. Globally, we continue to address the need to be more sustainable and this CPD considers the implications on efficiency of AHU design, the external factors that will influence AHU performance and offers detailed insight and understanding on how to maximise efficiency whilst minimising the impact on performance.
This course is aimed at consultants and facility management teams, involved the specification, testing and/ or maintenance of air handling units in public buildings and commercial spaces.

Topics covered include:

Introduction

Definitions

AHU Design

Installation

Operation

Maintenance

Course objectives:

To understand the main energy efficiency metrics for air handling units

To understand the main challenges and solutions for the energy efficient design of air handlers

To understand the impact of proper installation, operation and maintenance throughout the equipment lifecycle

Fee: Free of charge

F-Gas

A short course (approx. 30mins – 1 hour) providing a full introduction to F-Gases and the legislation and issues surrounding them, updated for 2022. Gain an understanding of flammable refrigerants and the future of F-Gas.

Topics covered:

• An introduction to refrigerants and Global Warming Potential
• Phasedown legislation
• PFAS legislation (proposed)
• A2L refrigerants
• EN378 changes
• Supplier challenges
• Technical considerations

F-Gas

A short course (approx. 30mins – 1 hour) providing a deeper dive into F-Gas legislation, including PFAS and the alternative refrigerant landscape.

Topics covered:

• Global refrigerant legislation
• Proposed PFAS legislation
• Legislation in Europe, North America, APAC
• Closer look at alternative refrigerants
• Impacts and next steps

An entry-level CPD aimed at consultant engineers with some mechanical engineering background who want an introduction to the drivers, technologies and specification considerations involved regarding commercial heat pumps.

Topics covered:

• Heat Pump Drivers
• Heat Pump Operation
• Comparisons
• Multifunction Heat Pumps
• Modular Systems
• System Design

In the evolving commercial HVAC market, the simultaneous heat pump is emerging as a potential solution to the need for complete year-round thermal management of buildings and the replacement of fossil fuels as a source of heat. This CPD follows on from our introductory heat pump course and provides a deeper dive into simultaneous / 4-pipe machines.

Topics covered:

• Heat Pump Drivers
• Recap on heat pump principles and physics.
• Legislation.
• Refrigerants.
• Heat pump application.
• Simultaneous heat pump working principle.
• Case study on IES VE comparing simultaneous heat pump vs chiller and boiler.
• Example of a typical control strategy with cascade.

HTM 03-01 (2021)

A one hour CPD summarising the revisions and offering information for mechanical AHU design, whilst considering the implications, shortcomings and potential value engineering solutions. This course is aimed at consultants and facility management teams, involved the HVAC supply chain.

Topics covered:

• Introduction to HTM’s and the tenets of healthcare ventilation
• Analysis of the HTM 03-01 requirements for AHU’s
• Review of the revisions from the previous standards
• Consideration of value engineering options

Global data use is exploding, with projected CAGRs of over 23%. The growth in data use / consumption, coupled with the emergence of new data-hungry applications like AI, means that data centers are getting more power-dense, bigger in size, hotter and more expensive to deploy. This lends itself to a cooling innovation shift, transitioning from air-cooling, to liquid cooling and a combination of the two.

Topics covered:

• The drivers influencing the shift to liquid cooling.
• A comparison of the various technologies looking to gain traction in the evolving market
• Direct to Chip – Single and Two Phase
• Immersion – Single and Two Phase

The question of which cooling technology will prevail and when is now largely over, as densities continue to rise and liquid cooling technology moves from theory to reality ever more quickly. The “one or the other” debate is also settled as it is clear that in many cases, air cooled systems will co-exist with liquid ones, supporting mixed density loads and dealing with heat rejection at both the chip and peripheral levels.

Topics covered:

• Some of the key considerations when it comes to designing and operating hybrid cooling architectures.
• Which technologies will be needed to support higher densities.
• Best practises when it comes to schematics, system temperatures and operational management for hybrid cooled data centers.

Most large data centres now operate using chilled water cooling. Much of the improvement focus over the past decade has been on the equipment itself, but the chilled water system as a whole is now under the spotlight. As data centres get larger and the industry becomes globalised, one of the things we’re seeing is a move to variable primary-only chilled water systems. The challenge with these systems is the robust controls loop protocols to ensure the system delivers resilience and redundancy at the lowest possible energy output. Often a BMS is used to manage the system, but the level of built-in modification, control and protection of the system that we believe is required is not something that a BMS provider could achieve alone. This CPD introduces the idea and recommended specification of a dedicated real-time decision making tool. One that delivers the required cooling, maintains redundancy levels and increases resilience - all at the lowest possible energy outlay - while maintaining the system within the cooling equipment’s stated operating envelopes.
This course is aimed at anyone involved in specifying chilled water systems and associated controls in large data centres.

Topics covered include:

The trend towards variable primary rings and what they look like

The evolution of controls systems and the role of the BMS.

The requirement for an additional control system and what this should look like.

How CRAHs, chillers and the system as a whole should be programmed to behave.

Resilience and security implications.

Fee: Free of charge

This CPD examines the latest developments in R290, with a focus on regulatory frameworks in Europe, technical characteristics and safety regulations and considerations.

Topics covered include:

Understanding the need and use for R290

Understanding PFAS regulations and the impact of global warming and how this relates to R290

The technical characteristics of R290

Legislation around the use of R290

Understanding the safety regulations and guidelines around the use of R290

Understanding the application of R290 in heating and cooling applications

Fee: Free of charge