With longer days and warmer temperatures, the chill of winter is behind us this time of year. While your HVAC system heating performance is likely not on your mind right now; this is the time to consider any changes your heating coils need in order to work next winter. Like the people who use them, … Read more
When evaluating the design criteria for an electrical distribution system in a facility of significant magnitude, vast complexity, or of critical operations, such as a hospital, a centralized uninterruptible power supply (UPS) system backed up by the emergency standby power source should be considered. There are numerous benefits associated with utilizing a central UPS system … Read more
Central utility plants are traditionally used in campus settings to generate and distribute steam to multiple buildings. While central steam plants are an effective way to provide heat for a campus layout, these plants are also complex and can be expensive to operate. Some owners are finding that investing in and employing advanced steam plant … Read more
Energy/utility savings are becoming more prevalent in building managers’ roles in reducing their facility’s operational costs. Water consumption savings are attractive with the latest in low-flow plumbing fixtures, and the consumption savings trickle into reduced water heating capacity too. Although it may seem like a simple task in specifying low-flow fixtures or even replacing plumbing … Read more
Why Do I Need To Be Concerned With Arc Flash Hazards? An arc flash is a sudden, massive release of energy from a piece of electrical equipment caused by a fault in the system. The fault can be caused by anything from failing insulation to moisture in equipment to a worker accidentally dropping a screwdriver … Read more
Wesley Stiles, PE, Director of Electrical Engineering for the York office, is featured in the December Issue of Consulting-Specifying Magazine for the article below. NFPA 37: Standard for the Installation and Use of Stationary Combustion Engines and Gas Turbines, 2015 edition, is an important yet often overlooked player in NFPA’s extensive lineup of codes and … Read more
The coming of winter requires building owners and managers to review their buildings and systems for protection against freezing. However, there is one building system that may already be freeze protected and should be reviewed due to recent developments — sprinkler antifreeze systems. Based upon reports of a fire incident involving a sprinkler system that … Read more
Many existing chilled water plants are designed using primary-secondary pumping where one set of pumps circulates water at the chilled water plant and then another set of pumps circulates water to the building or buildings. This is common in larger buildings or campuses where the many spaces or buildings are served by one system, and allows … Read more
Barton Associates recently retro-commissioned an air handler for a hospital client. The retro-commissioning process typically starts with a review of the Building Automation System (BAS). A graphic screen shot from the subject air handler is shown above. There is a lot of information on this screen, but focus on the basic information circled in red … Read more
Traditional air conditioning typically conditions an entire room or space, such as in an office space or classroom. Air is supplied from the ceiling and distributed throughout the space. This is a cost effective method but is not well suited for some applications due to the limitations in efficiency in cooling the entire space including … Read more
For many years the conventional operating room ceiling consisted of a gypsum board or plaster ceiling with openings framed out for lights and diffusers. Openings would be field cut in the gypsum board for overhead surgical light supports, diffusers, general lighting and medical gas columns. With the advent of hybrid operating rooms, the construction of … Read more
Controllability is an important aspect of design for lighting in healthcare facilities. The healthcare industry is seeing an escalation in demand for lighting designs that create calming environments and offer flexible lighting options to increase patient comfort. To meet the demands of the industry, lighting designs often include complex controls and specialty lighting fixtures to address … Read more
Age and Condition When considering improvements to your Hemodialysis unit, you may want to modernize furniture, finishes, lighting and equipment in order to improve the patient environment. While planning the upgrade you will also need to consider the age and condition of the water treatment system that provides either distilled or reverse osmosis water to the … Read more
Successful outcomes from surgical procedures in a hospital rely, in part, on the ability of the central sterile processing suite to provide equipment and materials in an efficient, reliable, and sterile manner. Similarly, the central sterile processing suite relies on the mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems serving the area to be reliable and to meet all … Read more
Fueled by the adoption of the Affordable Care Act, the healthcare industry is undergoing a shift from inpatient to an outpatient based model of care. The emergence of “retail healthcare” facilities across the country is evidence of this shift in patient care delivery. This shift, along with growing competition in the market place, has created … Read more
With constantly increasing capabilities of IP-based communications, integration of communications systems in building projects is a major topic of discussion today. Whether it’s as simple as controlling lights and room temperature by using occupancy sensors in a room or as extensive as collecting patient medical information throughout a medical facility into a common database or coordinating … Read more
Regardless if you are a healthcare facility, school or university or a consulting engineering firm, we are all looking for ways to reduce cost, increase quality and drive employee engagement. Lean concepts and principles have long been a part of industry but how can they be applied in a service industry? Some of these principles … Read more
One of the most important times in a project’s lifecycle is the concept design phase. During this phase, the clinical program and project space requirements are defined. One item that is often overlooked during this phase is the mechanical and electrical system requirements. While they may seem insignificant in terms of clinical process, mechanical, electrical … Read more
The Joint Commission is increasingly placing emphasis that hospital facilities meet the requirements of The Joint Commission Standard EC.02.05.01, specifically the control of airborne contaminants through proper air pressurization of critical spaces. The Joint Commission reports that 47% of all hospitals in 2013 and 53% of all hospitals in 2014 have received non-compliance scores for … Read more
The 2014 Guidelines for Design and Construction of Hospitals and Outpatient Facilities (published by The Facility Guidelines Institute) is on the street. Starting in December, the Pennsylvania Department of Health Division of Safety Inspection and Division of Acute and Ambulatory Care will be referencing this edition for all project plan and occupancy approvals. The 2014 … Read more