Consistently failing actuators were getting in the way of Yale
University’s high aspirations for energy efficiency at the new Kroon School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. The LEED registered facility, completed in 2008, was designed to use 50% less energy than a comparably sized modern building. A natural ventilation system, a twelve inch thick concrete envelope, high performance insulation, and window glazing help keep heating and cooling loads to a minimum. When all this isn’t enough to provide adequate comfort, a water source geothermal heat pump system goes into action, transferring heat between the building and four 1500 ft deep water wells. Because of the acidic nature of the well water, PVC piping and PVC ball valves were selected for all of the geothermal piping. With the exception of these particular valves, nearly all other valves and actuators were supplied by Belimo per the engineer’s specification.
Included in these other product applications were Belimo’s Pressure Independent Characterized Control Valves known as PICCVs. These particular valves deliver specific flow through heating and cooling coils regardless of system pressure fluctuations. This made them a perfect match for the building’s high performance variable speed pumping design and energy saving endeavors.
No Weak Links!
Hoping to avoid an entire valve replacement, which would involve a total system shutdown, John Beauton, Product Manager for RCMS Control contacted Rick Smith of Belimo to see if he might be able to help with a replacement actuator solution. 
Fortunately for Yale, the new Universal Ball Valve Special Linkage Kits (UBSP) made it possible to put an actuator on a PVC ball valve or any other type of valve.
“Replacing the actuators was a matter of taking the old one off and putting the new one on. It took about one hour per valve and the system was up and running again,” said Mr. Beauton. This meant less down time and less repair costs.
That was good news for everyone involved in this unique building, which is a showcase of all types of environmentally friendly technologies, from photovoltaic panels that provide 25% of needed electricity to onsite energy and carbon emissions monitoring. With geothermal heating and cooling as the centerpiece of the mechanical HVAC system, it was important that there be no weak links in piping.
This project is a good example of how important ancillary equipment is in the big picture green design. You can have all sorts of renewable energy, but if the control devices aren’t reliable, all that effort and money is wasted. It is important to keep buildings LEED certified.
Watch a 1 minute overview of how a Pressure Independent Characterized Control Valve works.
Learn more about pressure independent valves at www.piccv.com