HVAC Medical Buildings
‘Thanks’ goes to the baby boomers for this surge in demand for medical related facilities. Doctors groups, hospitals, dental suites, outpatient suites; all have unique and important HVAC upgrades to perform well. McCormick-Allum Co provides these ‘Active’ HVAC systems that medical staff and baby boomers expect.
A Medical building may be constructed with many features not found in normal buildings for very specific reasons. These features combined will result in the healthiest indoor air of any building, in the area. The air we breathe when indoors is affected by everything from the chemicals used in making the particleboard and plywood that comprise the floors and walls, the Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC’s) which are slowly given off from the carpets, the carpet backing, the adhesives and sealants, the paints & finishes used and the organisms (such as molds and bacteria) that grow behind the walls and in the ductwork of the Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system to the chemicals used for cleaning—even the perfumes and other odors carried in on the people who enter the building. The LEED reference manual for new construction is a 330-page document, which provides very rigorous specifications for achieving LEED certification. More than 80 pages of which are devoted entirely to indoor air quality. One feature that has a large, long term impact on the indoor air quality is the great length that has been taken to find and purchase materials which produce no or very low VOCs. The sub flooring used will not off gas any formaldehyde (a very toxic, carcinogenic compound used in manufacturing most plywoods and particleboards.) This will eliminate long periods of exposure to low levels of such VOC’s resulting in healthier occupants with fewer respiratory insults. The low VOC components perform as well as the standard higher VOC building materials, and in many cases better. Care has been taken to insure each individual building component meets those standards.
Because of this, the structure has extremely low levels of chemicals in its air, which can irritate or even sicken the people in it-but there are chemicals or materials, which people will bring into or use in the building. The cleaning or disinfectant chemicals will meet strict standards to minimize occupant exposure to harmful compounds. Those locations in which such chemicals will be used (such as rooms where gluteraldehyde is used to sterilize medical instruments) will have special ventilation that exhausts them directly out of the building. This will prevent them from mixing with the building’s circulating air.
One of the common places for molds to grow is within the dust and fine particulates that settle within the HVAC ductwork system and adhere to the petrochemical which remain from the ductwork manufacturing process. To prevent SMB has used steel ductwork that is constructed using vegetable oils, which have been meticulously cleaned by hand prior to installation. In addition, in accordance with a strict LEED specifications that all ductwork must remain closed and sealed until after all construction activities , which create dust or particulates, are completed. They will remain sealed until then. Should any such work be performed in the future the same isolation measures must be taken to protect the HVAC system. The HVAC system has not and will not be used to provide ventilation or drying during construction (as is commonly the practice) to avoid just such problems. This eliminates one more common cause for the “Sick Building Syndrome.” Further, the walls of the SMB have been filled with a special type of cellulose insulation, which will not support the growth of molds or insects, and as a bonus is also fireproof. If you are looking for emi shielding services you can check Central Coating
A Medical building’s air will be mechanically filtered as in standard buildings, but then it will be passed through an electrostatic filter. This will electrically charge and remove almost all particulate matter. The air will pass to the third step of treatment of electro-static air cleaner. This step carbonized organic compounds (such as those found in unpleasant or noxious odors) and removes these substances from the air stream. In the fourth and final step, the air is passed through a highly reflective chamber containing very high levels of Ultra-Violet C and Ultra-Violet V light. This kills airborne bacteria and viruses. If you are looking for abrasive waterjet cutting services or laser drilling services the please contact our partner Ebtec Corp in Agawam Ma. Thus the air breathed by the building’s occupants will be cleaned of viruses and other airborne pathogens, will have had allergens destroyed and eliminated, and all particulates will have been removed down to a size of 0.3 microns! No one can insure that persons with viral illnesses or very strong perfumes will not enter the building, but we can insure that those elements will not be spread in the ventilation throughout the building. This is equally important for physicians, accountants, insurance, or offices of any other type.
Installations
Check out some of the many projects we have completed.
InstallationsDid you know?
McCormick Allum is the oldest operating HVAC company in Massachusetts since 1888?