KoolDuct System
Advanced, lightweight pre-insulated ductwork system.
Phenolic ductwork fabricated from The Kingspan KoolDuct System has been installed as part of Island, a 100,000 sq ft. office development in central Manchester, which has been designed to leading standards, including NABERS 5* and BREEAM ‘Excellent’, and to achieve net zero operational carbon performance.
The Kingspan KoolDuct System was fabricated and installed by EcoDuct on the property, which is situated on John Dalton Street in the heart of the city. The development has been designed by architects Cartwright Pickard, and is a joint venture partnership between HBD, part of Henry Boot, and Greater Manchester Pension Fund (GMPF). In addition to a range of Grade A office spaces, the 10-storey building also features a rooftop terrace, break-out spaces and a wellness room. The Island is smart technology-enabled, with its building management system linking to sensors throughout the office and displaying live energy performance data to occupants via screens across the building.
In addition to targeting net-zero operational carbon, the project team also looked to integrate healthy building principles in its design. To achieve both these aims, they settled on a highly airtight design — with leakage rates better than 3.0 m3/(hr.m2) — using central air handling units (AHUs) to provide ventilation. These units help to filter the city centre air to maintain internal air quality, feature variable speed drives to reduce energy demand and use heat from outgoing air to warm incoming fresh air. To further support air quality within the office space, CO2 sensors have been placed throughout the building. These link to the AHUs via the building management system, allowing fan speeds to be modulated in targeted areas based on occupancy and air quality data.
EcoDuct fabricated all fan coil ductwork within the building from the Kingspan KoolDuct System to further limit energy demand.
Images by Mark Newton Photography.
ProductsKingspan KoolDuct System
The innovative KoolDuct System is formed from panels with aluminium foil facings and a rigid thermoset phenolic insulation core. This pre-insulated design avoids the need for a separate lagging stage and can weigh up to 70% less than ductwork constructed from galvanised sheet steel and then insulated with mineral fibre. This allowed EcoDuct to rapidly fabricate and install the insulated ductwork in long-lengths with a single operation. As the phenolic boards can be easily modified with hand tools, EcoDuct were easily able to modify the runs where required – avoiding potential delays from design alterations.
Alongside these practical benefits, testing has also shown that air-leakage rates from The KoolDuct System can be reduced to a fraction of those of conventional galvanised steel ductwork. This airtight design should help to lower energy demand for the Island by allowing system fans to operate at a lower rate than might otherwise have been needed.
The use of The KoolDuct System supported the project’s aim of achieving a BREEAM “Excellent” rating.
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