Technology of the future – heating of the future

Innovative, open to new things and always state-of-the-art. Words that perfectly describe the IT company from Wiener Neudorf. Due to its expansion over recent years a bigger office was needed. For the technophile client, one thing was certain: it did not only want cutting-edge IT but also the installation of a heating and cooling system of the future.

A new location was found: a charming old tenement building in the heart of Baden, a city of culture. The client loved the combination of the historical construction, modern technology and last but not least the light-flooded attic. Therefore, the complete upper floor was refurbished and 145 m² office space was modernised for the IT company.

Sun-filled rooms provide a comfortable indoor environment. However, during summer the temperatures climb high on account of the sunlight. In addition, the numerous IT devices and large server systems heat up the room, which makes working there uncomfortable primarily in the warmer months. The condition for purchasing the new office was therefore a comfortable cooling system that is free from forced air and dust turbulence. Therefore, the installer, Hans Nosek from Baden, worked together with Variotherm specialist, Mario Baumgartner, on a sophisticated cooling system via the wall and ceiling.

Key phrase: cooling technology

Verlegeplan einer Deckenkühlung und -heizung von Variotherm

The aim was to comfortably cool the rooms during the summer months; the client wanted to avoid cold shocks as are felt with air conditioning systems. A cooling ceiling does not blow cold air into the room but cools by way of thermal radiation exchange. Water with a temperature between approx. 16 and 20°C is pumped through the heating and cooling pipes. This process lowers the temperature of the wall and ceiling surfaces. The cooled surfaces absorb surplus heat from the human body and the body temperature regulates itself automatically. With surface cooling, the room stays free of forced air and the risk arising from dust turbulence and bacteria is minimal.

The larger the cooling surface in the room, the more effectively the room is cooled. In order to temper a room with a high cooling requirement, an active cooling area of 70 to 80 percent of the room’s floor area is needed. This presented a challenge due to the innumerable pitch roofs and large glass surfaces in this construction project. In order to cover the cooling load with the required cooling surfaces, the project team fitted the majority of the wall space with gypsum fibre boards in order to heat and cool. Now the team can look forward to a pleasant summer.

Heating and cooling?

But what is the client using to heat? The same system that comfortably cools the rooms in the summer. Because: Variotherm products that cool can in the summer also heat in the winter.