Ask the Experts: Tim Dorman of Havtech

The “Ask the Experts” blog series features conversations with mechanical engineers, architects, IAQ authorities and other built environment thought leaders about their first-hand insights into how to deliver better indoor air quality (IAQ) more energy efficiently and cost effectively. 

In this installment, I catch up with Tim Dorman, Sales Engineer at Havtech, the Mid-Atlantic’s largest and most experienced commercial HVAC equipment, building automation systems, service and energy solutions provider. Tim works hand in hand with leading mechanical engineering firms such as CMTA, Engenium and Salas O’Brien on innovative projects across the region where HVAC energy efficiency and IAQ are top design goals. Whether it be a new net zero school, a retrofit for an award-winning museum, or offices that address healthy indoor air and building decarbonization, Tim’s knowledge of Daikin Applied and Daikin Comfort products, and his system level approach to achieving IAQ sustainably have established him as an innovative HVAC expert.

In today’s discussion we focus on a growing trend throughout the Mid-Atlantic of electrification, and how performance-based ventilation using the Indoor Air Quality Procedure (IAQP) can help buildings achieve building decarbonization goals.

CW: You have spent many years providing innovative building solutions to commercial building owners, property management firms, contractors, and consulting engineers. As we emerge from the pandemic, what are the top trends you see shaping the way commercial buildings are designed?

TD: The biggest design trend to emerge from the pandemic is the need for improved building resilience and indoor air quality (IAQ). At the same time, building decarbonization is a growing focus for the industry.

Most design engineers are taking a very hard look at how they design for IAQ and are implementing design features that allow a building to adapt to changing environmental conditions energy efficiently. Design engineers are doing this by installing air cleaning systems for particles, pathogens, and gaseous contaminants, e.g., high MERV filters and Sorbent Ventilation Technology^™ (SVT^™), and using the IAQ Procedure (IAQP) within ASHRAE 62.1, which defines a specific list of contaminants of concern for commercial spaces, to optimize ventilation rates for IAQ and energy goals.

MEP consultants are realizing they need true performance-based calculations such as the IAQP to measure and report IAQ, and that the way they have always designed HVAC systems using the prescriptive Ventilation Rate Procedure (VRP) is less defensible moving forward. ASHRAE’s recent Addendum aa to Standard 62.1 and position paper on indoor carbon dioxide are moving the needle towards better IAQ design using the IAQP.

CW: We are hearing a lot about resilience, IAQ, and decarbonization these days. The challenge seems to be achieving these goals simultaneously since traditional methods to improve IAQ with more outside air are energy intensive and counterproductive when the outside air isn’t clean. How can we accomplish all three goals at the same time?

TD: Increasing ventilation is a great solution when it can be achieved without affecting indoor relative humidity levels or requiring massive increases in HVAC equipment sizing and energy use, but those instances are few. As an industry we need to get away from promoting increased ventilation and instead focus on increased clean air changes per hour energy efficiently, which is possible using high efficiency filtration for particles, pathogens, and gases. The best design engineers in our region recognize the difference between increased outside air ventilation and increased clear air changes and are designing systems for better IAQ, less energy use, and increased resilience.

CW: The pandemic has highlighted the need for layered filtration and ventilation approaches to allow us to efficiently improve IAQ. How are building codes and standards keeping up?

TD: Our core markets in the Mid-Atlantic region are good at implementing the latest standards into building code much more rapidly than other areas in the country. Maryland specifically requires government buildings and schools to meet LEED silver criteria as part of their code adoption, and DC has recently adopted several measures that make it one of the most aggressive jurisdictions in promoting sustainable building design.

The LEED pilot credits for performance-based indoor air quality design and assessment (EQpc119 and EQpc124), which awards points for an IAQP design, have been very helpful in cost effectively achieving higher LEED ratings. Additionally, ASHRAE has recently improved guidance on ventilation and IAQ with the publication of Standard 62.1 Addendum aa, the 62.1 User’s Guide, and its position paper on indoor carbon dioxide. One area that does need improvement is ASHRAE’s quick adoption and promotion of innovative and emerging new technologies. While it’s understandable that due diligence is needed before incorporating new technology, as an industry we have to be quicker to adopt technology that shows demonstrable, proven results.

CW: There is a lot of talk about electrifying buildings so that they can get power from a greener grid and thereby reduce building carbon emissions. How do standards like ASHRAE’s IAQP help electrify buildings?

TD: As we try to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, electrification has become a major design trend here in DC. Heat pumps will be an important part of that electrification solution. That said, significant improvements, and expansion of heat pump products by HVAC manufacturers are required to realize our electrification goals. The good news is that applying the IAQP with SVT helps us lower outside air requirements and reduce our overall HVAC system sizing, which expands the number of applications where heat pumps make sense today.

CW: Is there a project you have worked on that is a good example of how a performance-based ventilation design approach using the IAQP can enable building electrification?

TD: There are many examples I can cite where combining SVT with the IAQP has helped optimize HVAC system sizing to support building electrification. Alice West Fleet School in Arlington, VA, designed by CMTA, is the largest net zero school in the country and uses SVT in combination with geothermal heat pumps. The Planet Word Museum, designed by Salas O’Brien, used SVT with a VRV system to accomplish building electrification goals. We have also used SVT and the IAQP on office projects like the fit out for the Gates Foundation office in DC designed by GHT Limited. Lastly, the Engenium Group office project combines SVT and ERV to eliminate DOAS and enable electrification with IAQP.

CW: You have been a champion of enVerid’s Sorbent Ventilation Technology for years now. How big a deal is it that SVT is now available inside Daikin air handlers and rooftop units?

TD: There are so many applications for using Sorbent Ventilation Technology in packaged rooftop units and modular AHUs. We are currently working with engineers on multiple projects with these packaged solutions that will ultimately reduce first costs, reduce energy and CO₂ emissions, as well as save space and simplify installation.

When Sorbent Ventilation Technology was first introduced to Havtech as part of a standalone HVAC Load Reduction^® (HLR^®) module, I thought it was one of the most (if not the most) innovative HVAC solutions I had seen in my career. As a manufacturer’s representative for Daikin, I am proud of Daikin for embracing, incorporating, and promoting Sorbent Ventilation Technology. Daikin is the largest HVAC manufacturer in the world, and their rise to prominence in North America over the last two decades is certainly not due to happenstance. Daikin leads our industry with the most innovative solutions and with an altruistic approach to sustainability. Their incorporation of Sorbent Ventilation Technology into their Rebel Applied RTU is just another example of their ingenuity and leadership.

Click here to learn more about enVerid Sorbent Ventilation Technology.