150 North Wacker Drive

Energy Star Boiler / Chiller Project in Chicago, Illinois

While using our data logging equipment to study the heating and cooling loads of this high rise building, we discovered the existing equipment had been sized much larger than necessary. After discussing redundancy with the Owner, new smaller-sized equipment was selected. Mechanical equipment was located in the building penthouse, so new chillers were helicopter lifted through a hole in the penthouse roof.

The reduction of the over-sized equipment decreased the capital cost of the equipment, reduced operating expenses, and allowed the chillers to be lifted without taking them apart. Natural gas usage diminished by 40% through the use of condensing boilers and an aggressive hot water reset schedule. Two years later, this building achieved the Department of Energy’s Energy Star® Award.