SolarWall® Air Heating Technology – Case of MDS Nordion
| Region(s) | Ottawa, Ontario |
|---|---|
| In domains | Construction / Engineering / Building Materials, Renewable Sourcing |
| Participants |
The biotech company MDS Nordion commits to continually reviewing its operations and seeking opportunities to improve its environmental, health, and safety performance. As part of efforts to reduce its natural gas consumption and augment its environmental profile, the company had Conserval Engineering design a custom SolarWall® system for its Ottawa office. The solar wall was installed on a large southwest-facing wall (293m2) and integrated into the building’s pre-existing ventilation system.
In the MDS Nordion project, the SolarWall® system should save approximately 735 GJ of energy per year and reduce CO2 emissions by 55 tons per year. The cost savings should be over $9,500 per year, based on 2007 energy prices.
The SolarWall® system has no mechanical parts and is thus maintenance-free for its expected lifetime of over thirty years.
Research into dessication is being pursued so that the SolarWall® system can be used for cooling purposes.
In the MDS Nordion project, the SolarWall® system should save approximately 735 GJ of energy per year and reduce CO2 emissions by 55 tons per year. The cost savings should be over $9,500 per year, based on 2007 energy prices.
Compared to other renewable energy projects, the SolarWall® system technology has one of the best returns on investments (ROI); its payback is better than many other building investments, such as high-efficiency windows, heat recovery systems, and photovoltaic panels. The payback for the SolarWall® system can range from zero to six years. With an ecoENERGY grant from the federal government and a Ontario Solar Thermal Heating Incentive, the MDS Nordion payback was reduced to less than four years.
Generally, annual energy savings from using the SolarWall® system range from $20-$80/m2 of wall during cold winter weather.
The SolarWall® system also helps to improve indoor air quality as more fresh air can be brought into a building without increasing heating costs. Improved air quality can help improve worker health and productivity.
Around 1000 companies or organizations have installed Conserval Engineering Inc.’s SolarWall® Air Heating Technology, such as:
3M Canada
Artic Schools – Nunavut and Northwest Territories (Canada)
Aveda (Minnesota, USA)
BigHorn Home Improvement Centre (Colorado, USA)
Boeing (Toronto, Ontario)
Calgary Transit (Calgary, Alberta)
Canadair [Bombardier] (Montreal, Quebec)
City of Sudbury Sewage and Water Treatment Plants (Sudbury, Ontario)
City of Toronto Maintenance Garage (Toronto, Ontario)
Correctional Facility (Inuvik, Northwest Territories, Canada)
Erlangen City Hall (Germany)
Environment Canada – Centre for Inland Studies (Ontario, Canada)
FedEx (Denver, Colorado)
Ford Motor Company (North America)
General Motors (Toronto, Ontario)
Giant Tiger (Ottawa, Ontario)
Greater Sudbury Housing Corporation (Sudbury, Ontario)
Greater Toronto Airport Authority (Toronto, Ontario)
Health Canada (Toronto, Ontario)
Hibbing Courthouse Annex (St. Louis County, Minnesota)
Krause Plant (Poland)
Manitoba Housing Authority (Manitoba, Canada)
NASA (USA)
Rapid City Community Centres (Rapid City, SD)
Sainsbury Distribution Centre (Pineham, UK)
St. Lawrence College (Kingston, Ontario)
Shiseido Cosmetics (Japan)
Steelcare (Toronto, Ontario)
Syracuse Housing (New York, USA)
Thetford Elementary School (Vermont, USA)
Toronto Community Housing Authority (Toronto, Ontario)
US Military (USA)
WMEP K-12 Public School (Minnesota, USA)
Wal-Mart (Denver, Colorado)
- No document available
