Overview
When Shaw Industries built Plant T1, located in Adairsville, Georgia they recognized the need for a balanced air solution to keep their factory clean and their employees comfortable and happy. Using HREB-C & HRSB hooded roof exhaust and supply fans, S&P USA Ventilation Products provided a system that brings fresh air in while creating a balanced system inside the warehouse.
Approach
Shaw Industries is a global flooring provider, offering carpet, hardwood, resilient, laminate, tile and stone, synthetic turf and specialty products domestically and internationally for residential and commercial applications. Headquartered in Dalton, GA, Shaw Industries has offices throughout the US, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, France, India, Mexico, Singapore, United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.
When Shaw Industries built Plant T1, located in Adairsville, Georgia they recognized the need for a balanced air solution to keep their factory clean and their employees comfortable and happy. This 2.2 Million Sq.Ft. warehouse, the largest warehouse in the United States in 2015, would need six full air exchanges within an hour determined by ventilation codes. (Fig.1) Creating this full air exchange is important because it helps keep employees cool and comfortable increasing productivity. A clean warehouse is created by introducing fresh air, which helps maintain the overall building's health by replacing stagnant, humid air; typical for the region.
Solution
S&P USA Ventilation Products worked with Georgia Air to determine that HREB-C belt drive hooded roof exhaust fans and HRSB hooded roof supply fans were needed to create balanced air flow. HREB-C fans focus on exhausting the air that is contaminated from the machinery used within production. HRSB fans bring in fresh air that helps the staff stay comfortable, and they provide the positive pressure inside the warehouse to keep it clean.
Fans help with the comfort of employees in three ways:
- Evaporating sweat
- Providing convection of body heat
- Keeping the warehouse clean
Air flow replaces hot and humid air with cooler, drier air resulting in the evaporation of sweat. Evaporation is a cooling process that absorbs latent heat away from the body, making the person feel cooler.
Convection of body heat is another way that a person may feel cooler. Heat is expended into the air when the internal temperature is higher than the outside air. This air remains stagnant around the employee without air movement. Creating air movement helps remove this heated air and replaces it with cooler air.
Warehouse Ventilation Requirements
Warehouse ventilation requirements differ throughout the United States. The typical accepted requirement is a minimum of 6 air changes per hour but can go up to 30 air changes per hour. To determine the requirement for this project, S&P USA Ventilation Products used the International Mechanical Code Table 403.3.1.1. To determine the ventilation load please use formula:
LxWxD / 6
Example: 100x200x25 = 500,000/6=83,333 cfm.
Conclusion
S&P USA Ventilation Products' HREB-C belt drive hooded roof exhaust fans and HRSB hooded roof supply fans offer a solution to create balanced air flow. HREB-C units focus on exhausting the air that is contaminated from the machinery used within production while HRSB brings in fresh air that keeps the staff comfortable and provides the positive pressure inside the warehouse to keep it clean and their employees comfortable.
Sources
- How Does a Fan Work to Cool You Off? Mental Floss.
