What are the Major Benefits of District Cooling Systems (DSC) For Businesses?
As a country with the second-highest gross domestic product (GDP) per capita among the ASEAN member states, Malaysia has continued to see a high demand for air-conditioning systems. The country, which has a population of 33 million, has recorded a high air conditioning systems utilization rate of 80%. It also has a developed District Cooling market. The statistics consequently mean an increase in energy costs and emission of greenhouse gases as well.
There are 23 District Cooling Systems in operation, and another two are currently under development in the country. With its tropical climate and robust economic development, Malaysia has a large potential for District Cooling systems.
As such, it has become a challenge for energy experts to produce viable solutions that minimize the negative impacts of cooling systems on the environment without eliminating their usage. One of these solutions is the installation of district cooling systems. To learn more about this modern solution, read on and discover the significant benefits of a district cooling system, particularly for the commercial sector.
1. Saves energy
A District Cooling System (DCS) is rising in popularity for its high energy efficiency today. A DCS is considered an ideal energy-saving system for heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) since it utilizes efficient systematic production and distribution of chilled water. It also takes full advantage of the diversity in cooling demands for various buildings and the economy of scale.
Although energy-saving levels vary according to the individual configuration of each DCS — such as the application of heat rejection method or the length of distribution pipe works — a saving of about 20% and 35% can usually be achieved with a DCS as compared to traditional air-conditioning systems.
2. Saves costs
With minimized energy consumption, one can naturally expect a reduction in costs when adopting a DCS. A DCS typically enables building owners to do away with their on-site chiller operation and maintenance. That means you will no longer need to operate, maintain and or replace chillers at the end of their life cycles. As a result, you can minimize your capital investment and the subsequent maintenance costs of air conditioning.
3. Minimizes greenhouse gas emission
Aside from being a huge energy guzzler, air-conditioning systems are also known for contributing vast amounts of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) to the environment and negatively impacting the climate in turn. These HFCs are present in the refrigerant fluid, which may escape from an air conditioning unit. While HFCs are not toxic, they are a form of greenhouse gas that significantly contributes to the rising temperature on earth.
The installation of a DCS ensures a reduced emission of HFCs as well as carbon dioxide. As a result, the decrease in energy consumption and improvement of energy efficiency through DCS help minimize fossil fuel consumption for power generation, consequently reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
4. Improves space utilization of buildings
As chiller plants are no longer required once a DCS is in place, buildings or facilities that adopt this system can save remarkable amounts of space usually intended for plant rooms. On average, building owners can save 75% of plant room space when using a DCS compared to conventional air-conditioning plants. Additionally, removing chiller plants also allows power companies to save space typically intended for transformer rooms.
5. Enhances flexibility and reliability
Building owners and facilities management teams can streamline their facilities management processes without running and maintaining chiller plant equipment. The use of DCS provides these building owners or management teams with fewer restrictions when expanding their cooling capacity and eliminates the need to allow provisions for chiller replacement. As a result, building owners or facilities management teams can concentrate more on their core business.
Unlike a traditional centralized air-conditioning system, a DCS is typically built with standby cooling capacity to ensure that cooling remains available at the central plant at any time. As such, professionally designed and well-constructed DCS provides commercial buildings with more reliability.
Conclusion
As the effects of excessive energy consumption, global warming, and space scarcity worsen each year, the benefits of district cooling systems are becoming increasingly relevant. Much of the world’s excessive energy consumption levels have caused irreversible impacts on the environment. For this reason, it is crucial for the various sectors of society, particularly the household and business sectors, to look towards adopting viable environmental solutions.
Here at KJTS Group, our team is constantly looking for innovative ways to push our boundaries and offer better performance-based facilities management across various industries in the ASEAN region. With a drive to provide energy-focused long-term technical management solutions, entrust your cooling energy and building services solutions to our highly proficient engineers.
To learn more about any of the solutions KJTS Group has to offer, please drop us a call at +603-2716 6866 or email us at [email protected]. Let us elevate your cooling energy management process with our innovative technology today.
