Major Toshiba VRF Project Nears Completion at Manchester’s New Landmark

One of the largest UK installations of Toshiba’s award-winning Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) air conditioning is nearing completion at Landmark Manchester, a new 180,000-square-foot multi-storey Grade A office development in the heart of the city. Toshiba Carrier UK Ltd (TCUK) is a joint venture between Toshiba Carrier Corporation and Carrier in the United Kingdom, and is part of Carrier, a leading global provider of innovative heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC), refrigeration, fire, security and building automation technologies.

The installation, led by mechanical and electrical contractor Castle Building Services with main contractor Bowmer + Kirkland, includes multiple high-performance Toshiba in-ceiling fan coil units (FCUs). The FCUs are connected to Super Heat Recovery Multi Enhanced (SHRM-e) VRF outdoor condensers with intuitive control provided by TCUK TouchScreens and Black Pear Building Management System (BMS) interfaces.

“It is a magnificent building and a superb example of a Toshiba heat recovery VRF installation,” said Andrew Bradison, specification manager for Toshiba distributor Cool Designs. “With its best-in-class energy performance, the system operates with significantly reduced running costs, with savings continuing to accrue over the life-time of equipment. Flexible zoning enables the complex requirements of tenants to be accommodated, ensuring very high comfort and satisfaction levels.”

The client required the highest efficiency combined cooling and heating system possible for the premium quality building, incorporating heat recovery, in order to achieve a Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) standard of “Excellent”. The design is based on Toshiba’s 3-pipe heat recovery SHRM-e VRF air conditioning, which in addition to class-leading energy efficiency delivers an outstanding kW / kg refrigerant ratio, as defined in POL 01 of BREEAM.

The design, which follows the British Council for Offices standard BCO 2014, required each storey to be divided into separate dual systems to accommodate two potential tenants per floor. The system’s detailed zoning capabilities enable it to be adapted to the diverse requirements of occupants.

External plant for all floors – including the ground floor – is located on the roof, utilising the Toshiba system’s maximum drop of up to 90 meters from condensing units to fan coils on the floors below.

“This is a major VRF project and required close collaboration between all parties,” said David McSherry, Toshiba sales manager. “Due to the Toshiba SHRMe’s high specifications, it meets all the client’s requirements on energy, comfort, control, noise and on-site space utilisation. Most importantly, it delivers a comfortable, productive and efficient indoor environment for occupants.”

Due to the tight installation timetable and city centre location, Toshiba distributor Cool Designs carefully managed delivery slots throughout the project. This involved timing equipment arrival to coincide with a 30-minute window, which required taking into account transportation through Manchester’s busy shopping and business district. All delivery slots were achieved.