Havtech Critical Environments

Antec Controls is dedicated to giving everyone an advantage in critical environments. They provide: • Owners: A diverse product line featuring safe and cost-effective solutions, backed by a 5-year warranty on all products. • Contractors: Technician training classes covering startup and commissioning of products, along with a 4-week lead time on most standard products. • Engineers: Multiple valve options tailored to each unique application. Application overviews, specifications, Revit Models, CAD Blocks and project submittals readily available. For more information on Antec Control products and services, visit https://ow.ly/4z6I50SFgFT

We often get asked how do you make labs more efficient when you are often required to do 8-10 air changers per hour. We've seen many design teams move away from higher air change rates and create systems that offer lower air change rates, utilize technology to decrease air flow through fume hoods when either not in use or when someone isn't standing in front of the hood and in some cases, recirculate air when it is safe to do so. 1. Optimize HVAC System Design Use VAV systems to adjust the amount of air supplied to different areas based on demand, reducing energy consumption when full air flow is not needed. High-Efficiency Equipment: Install high-efficiency fans, motors, and compressors to reduce energy usage. 2. Smart Controls and Automation Utilize a BMS to monitor and control HVAC operations, ensuring optimal performance and energy efficiency. Fume Hood Occupancy Sensors: Install fume hood occupancy sensors to adjust ventilation rates based on the presence of people working in the the fume hood. General occupancy sensors don't offer the same savings that fume hood occ sensors offer. If someone is in the lab space doesn't mean they are working directly in front of the fume hood. Pressure Control: Implement precise pressure control systems to maintain necessary differentials without overcompensating, thus conserving energy. 3. Efficient Airflow Management Design ductwork to minimize resistance and leaks, ensuring efficient air distribution. Airflow Balancing: Regularly balance airflow to maintain proper pressure differentials with minimal energy waste. 4. Energy Recovery Systems Use heat recovery wheels to transfer energy between exhaust and supply air streams, improving overall efficiency. 5. Maintenance and Upgrades Conduct regular maintenance of HVAC systems, including filter replacement, duct cleaning, and inspection of all components, to ensure efficient operation. System Upgrades: Invest in modern, energy-efficient equipment and upgrade older systems to take advantage of technological advancements. 6. Design Considerations Design the lab with appropriate zoning to separate areas with different pressurization and ventilation needs, allowing for targeted airflow and energy use. Insulation and Glazing: Use high-performance insulation and glazing to reduce the heating and cooling load, improving overall energy efficiency. 7. Monitoring and Continuous Improvement Perform regular energy audits to identify inefficiencies and opportunities for improvement. Performance Monitoring: Continuously monitor system performance and adjust settings based on data analytics to optimize energy use. 8. Behavioral Practices Educate lab personnel on energy-saving practices and the importance of maintaining proper pressurization. Establish protocols for shutting down or reducing ventilation during non-operational hours without compromising safety. #havtechcriticalenvironments #makinglabsmoreefficient #greenlabdesign

VCA SouthPaws Surgical Center is a 24/7 state-of-the-art comprehensive veterinarian hospital that provides pre and post operative care. When they recently made significant renovations of their surgical suites they chose the new Antec Controls LUME room pressure monitors for their increased accuracy and ease of use to help ensure each surgical suite is safe for their procedures. ✍️Contact us to learn more at criticalenvironments@havtech.com! #HVAC #critical #renovation #environments

New Lume Series room pressure monitors by Antec Controls are designed for critical pressurized spaces including operation suites, patient rooms, isolation rooms, pharmacies, cleanrooms, and laboratories. Lume uses thermal dispersion technology to measure pressure differences. This is the most accurate method in the industry, providing reliable and consistent measurements of airflow and static pressure. Looking for the best solutions for Healthcare HVAC systems and air quality control? Contact criticalenvironments@havtech.com and follow Havtech Critical Environments. #havtech #criticalenvironments #healthcare #HVAC #lume Price Industries

The Lume series room pressure monitors are designed for critical pressurized space including patients rooms, isolation rooms, operation suites, hospital pharmacies, cleanrooms, and laboratories. Lume uses the most accurate differential pressure device in the industry utilizing thermal dispersion, which is highly regarded within the industry as the most reliable and repeatable solution for determining airflow and/or static differential. Contact Havtech's critical environments team at criticalenvironments@havtech.com #havtechcriticalenvironments #mostaccurateroompressuremonitor #lumeroompressuremonitor

We often get asked how important is it for the space to be airtight. Any pressurized space needs a high degree of being airtight. Since we deal with pressure differential the tighter the construction is the better. Doesn't matter if its lab, hospital or cleanroom. Majority of the spaces have multiple sources of exhaust such as fume hood, biosafety cabinets, snorkels or just several room penetrations similar to an operating room. Additional sources of exhaust may also be added at a later stage well after design and construction are complete. All this creates a constant challenge to keep pressurized spaces at design pressure. When this is coupled with leaky ducts and a leaky envelope (walls and ceilings encasing the lab) it may become impossible to maintain the lab at the appropriate pressure. While safety factors that account for leaky envelopes and ducts are used in determining the required CFM, since air sealing is usually not a priority with the design or construction team, mistakes can easily be made during construction. Architectural drawings normally do not contain the necessary level of detail and specifications do not go into specifying the appropriate materials and installation procedure. Even when architectural drawings do provide appropriate construction details, they are often ignored by the construction crew. Lack of oversight, pressure from fast-paced schedules and lack of coordination among various teams of subcontractors compound the problem. In order to achieve a tight lab envelope, it needs to be made a priority. Targeted levels of air tightness can be achieved by designing to it, followed by careful installation and inspection. Various measures need to be taken during design to minimize mechanical, electrical and plumbing penetrations and appropriate caulks, putties and sealants assigned to the variety of situations that will occur such as electrical outlets, appurtenances recessed into walls, etc. If possible, reducing seams in sheet rock by using ultra-lightweight drywall panels help as well. In addition to wall, ceiling and floor sealing, it is important to pay attention to reducing duct leakage. Using welded, gasketed or flanged ducts will make duct construction virtually leak free. criticalenvironments@havtech.com #havtechcriticalenvironments #anteccontrols #pressurizedspacechallenges

 How important is controlling humidity in hospitals, laboratories and cleanrooms? Humidity simply refers to the amount of water vapor in the air and is measured in terms of relative humidity (RH). Relative humidity is a function of both moisture content and temperature. It describes the actual amount of water vapor in the air as a percentage of the maximum amount of water vapor which the air could hold at a given temperature. The prevention of contamination is of primary concern in a laboratory or cleanroom and maybe a more serious concern in hospitals since the potential for the growth of microbes and bacteria increases in an improperly controlled environment. The high rate of air changes needed to control the air quality and keep these areas sterile can cause low or fluctuating RH levels, which in turn causes problems with patients, staff, equipment, chemicals, and measurements. Two terms commonly used in healthcare is "germs love dry air" and "moist air kills viruses". Approximately 5% of patients will contract a new infection while visiting a healthcare facility. On the lab and cleanroom side maintaining a RH below 45% can cause static electricity, which can impact experiments and damage equipment. Adiabatic humidifiers have grown tremendously in terms of product offering and acceptance over the past few years since Ashrae 170 changed to allow these systems in hospitals. Adiabatic being a lower energy solution has changed the way many labs, hospitals and cleanroom facilities control their humidity. Benefits include reduced operating and maintenance costs. We have extensive experience with Carel, who has specialized in the Adiabatic (low energy) solutions. (https://lnkd.in/ea6ENAtm) If you need help with your humidity control, we're more than happy to lend our expertise. #havtechcriticalenvironments #hospitalhumiditycontrol #laboratoryhumiditycontrol #cleanroomhumiditycontrol

An insightful article published in the June edition of the Ashrae Journal titled “Cost-Effectiveness of various Ashrae 241-2023 compliance methods” compared two Ashrae standards (Ashrae 170 & 241) using an emergency department's waiting room as the example.  Each standard will require different outdoor air volumes.   A recent change to Ashrae 170 allows various spaces to recirculate space/room air through HEPA filtration reducing the amount of OA. Increasing OA typically involves a significant mechanical equipment investment and long downtime for installation, which in a healthcare environment is not typically an option. Simply by adding an independent HEPA filtration device the potential increase in OA can be mitigated with filtering space/room air.   In non-healthcare settings you can use MERV 11 or MERV 13 filters to achieve the filtration required. You may not avoid increasing OA completely but you can reduce the amount of increase, which will impact cost and downtime.  Price Industries has developed several products that address the idea of filtering space/room air.  The Puraflo filtration device, Critical Area Recirculation/Exhaust System, Room Air Purifier, Overhead Air Purifier and the Ceiling Air Purifier are a few of their products that significantly improve IAQ without increasing OA. https://lnkd.in/eN3NTg2u https://lnkd.in/gQwFvZAY https://lnkd.in/duwUaRk https://lnkd.in/eCaExrDF https://lnkd.in/gzjdNbtH

The Model Clean Indoor Air Act talks specifically about air filtration, system maintenance and ventilation as the crucial pieces of preventing the spread of infectious diseases such as COVID-19, influenza, measles and RSV. I would add an equally important piece to this concept. Pressurization. You can filter, maintain and ventilate to meet what ever standard(s) you want but if the air flow is not controlled, none of it matters. As example is patient isolation rooms, if not properly pressurized, unwanted airborne transmission of infectious diseases may occur. Rooms used for isolation are considered either Airborne infection isolation with a negative-pressure differential to the adjacent anti-room/area or protective environment with a positive-pressure differential such as an OR. Specific attributes of negative and positive pressure rooms include: Airborne infection isolation (negative pressure): * Have negative air pressure in relation to all adjacent spaces. * Exhaust cubic feet per minute (cfm) is greater than supply cfm. * Prevent contagious pathogens (such as tuberculosis, COVID-19 or flu) from escaping the room and infecting others. * Minimize levels of contagion within the room due to high air-change rates. Protective environment (positive pressure): * Have positive air pressure in relation to all adjacent spaces. * Supply more air into the protective environment than is returned so no contaminants should enter. * Protect patients with weakened immune systems. How pressure affects IAQ Whether providing for negative or positive pressure, additional systems and components should be considered for an isolation room to effectively provide patient and caregiver protection. For one, a minimum of 12 air changes per hour must be maintained to sustain the desired environment. Depending on the room size and purpose, more may be necessary. The room also must maintain a minimum -0.01 inch water column (negative pressure) or + 0.01 inch water column (positive pressure) differential pressure. It is important to note that testing, adjusting and verification of room air changes and outside air exchanges is required in all health care facilities. Rooms must also be well sealed to prevent excess air from leaking in or out. This includes adequately sealing self-closing entryways, floors, walls and windows. The tighter the room is constructed, the more efficiently the air pressure differential can be maintained. We're available to help you with your IAQ and/or pressurization challenges. #havtechcriticalenvironments #labpressurization #hospitalpressurization #cleanroompressurization

Adequate air filtration is a must-have for all medical, cleanroom and laboratory facilities. There are often strict regulations regarding air quality in hospitals, doctor’s offices, research facilities, cleanrooms, laboratories and dental offices to prevent dangerous pathogens from infecting individuals and impacting research. Without proper air filtration, there is no way to prevent such pathogens from contaminating staff and patients, negatively affecting research, and sometimes, the general public with a variety of diseases. For this reason, HEPA filters are often required for most medical, cleanrooms and laboratory facilities. Filtration is one component of Indoor Air Quality (IAQ). The use of UV and soft ionization also contribute to the overall IAQ. Often times it takes multiple IAQ components to improve and maintain your facilities IAQ. If you are interested in air purification systems, HEPA filters, UV Disinfection Systems and/or soft ionization for your facility or clinic Havtech’s Critical Environments team can help you. We offer a variety of HVAC and medical filter solutions geared towards keeping your space free of dangerous pathogens.  Price Industries offers a full line of HEPA filtered devices tailored to medical, cleanroom and laboratory facilities (https://lnkd.in/eBMFjhq7). UVDI offers both surface disinfection and IAQ products including the new V-Max technology that has an airstream kill rate above 99% and 99.99% inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 in moving airstream (https://www.uvdi.com/).  Global Plasma Solutions (GPS) has developed soft ionization products that improve IAQ, mitigate odors and a low energy solution that keeps your coils cleaner longer (https://gpsair.com/). #havtechcriticalenvironments    #improveiaqinhospitals   #improveiaqincleanrooms   #improveiaqinlabs #improvehealthandsafetylabs