Val Simmons, a professor of nearly 30 years teaching in the Brigham Young University Mechanical Engineering Department, has also worked as an HVAC consultant for many years. Continually encouraging students to gain HVAC experience and enter the field, he has long foreseen the need for software to aid in the proliferation and improvement of the HVAC industry.

Now that tool exists. HVAC Solution, a valuable software tool used in the design of HVAC systems and equipment is ready for market. Its technology may also be used to teach and train HVAC system designers and engineers, just as Dr. Simmons described. Dr. Simmons foresees the program being used at Colleges and Universities, where there is an emphasis on Mechanical HVAC systems and design. He relates, "The creation of a program of this nature requires technical expertise and experience gained over many years." This technical expertise is now being offered to the HVAC design community in the form of the software, HVAC Solution.

One key area of the program that assists students with HVAC systems concepts is a systems "Help" file which gives the students a basic understanding of HVAC components and systems design.

HVAC Solution bridges the gap between HVAC theory and reality. For example, we have all had to solve mathematical story problems. But, what use are they in real life? Lets look at an actual example. One engineer had the following problem:

A system generates 220^oF water. A blending valve mixes 160^oF return water to produce 180^oF water sent out to a bank of coils. What is the required flow rate of the 220^oF water to supply 9,000,000 btu/h of load? Sketch the system and solve for the unknowns, right? Quicker than that, and perhaps more descriptive, this system is quickly modeled with HVAC Solution (see Figure 1).

Another nice feature in the program is under the "Tools" heading. Included in the program are five educational/design tools that may be used to analyze data:

Air Properties Enter the dry bulb temperature and relative humidity. Corresponding wet bulb and enthalpy are calculated.

Mixed Air Enter the airflow rate of two air streams and their respective dry bulb temperatures. The mixed air dry bulb and wet bulb temperatures, relative humidity and enthalpy are calculated.

Fan Laws Choose what you want to calculate: airflow, fan static pressure, fan brake-horsepower or fan motor speed.

Fluid Properties Select a fluid type, water, ethylene or propylene glycol. Corresponding specific heat, density and thermodynamic factors are calculated.

Pump Laws Choose what you want to calculate: flow, heat, brake-horsepower or motor speed.

But these tools are only the beginning of what the program can do. Simple to complex boiler, chiller and airflow systems may be designed using HVAC Solution. Inputs and schematics may be updated and saved for quick retrieval, or new projects. The program will automatically prepare equipment schedules for construction documents. The program saves time and reduces errors!.

With its easy-to-use, Windows® drag-and-drop design method, HVAC Solution will aid you in systems design and specification. Whether you're an older experienced designer/engineer or a young student/designer, you can easily design HVAC systems with HVAC Solution. Visit us at www.hvacsolution.com.

[Click Banner To Learn More]

[Home Page]  [The Automator]  [About]  [Subscribe ]  [Contact Us]