Four new air conditioners from Actron Air were installed at the Mingara Recreation Club in Tumbi Umbi, NSW to provide better and more energy-efficient cooling for patrons. Independent energy testing carried out pre- and post-installation of the ActronAir air conditioning systems in the gaming area revealed significant savings in energy bills for the popular club while ensuring comfort for the guests.

Located in Tumbi Umbi in NSW’s Central Coast region, the Mingara Recreation Club has grown into a major destination for the local community since its establishment in 1971. The well-equipped club features 5 bar areas, 4 restaurants and a café, gaming area, events centre, aquatic centre, athletics centre, fitness centre, kids’ playhouse, physiotherapy facility, hair design salon, beauty salon and a post office.

Given the extensive use of the club’s facilities by the local community, it was important to ensure a comfortable and welcoming environment for the guests. Reliable air-conditioning was an important aspect of this commitment, which meant these systems needed to be energy efficient to ensure the club could manage their power bills well.

Having decided to replace some of their older air conditioning systems, Mingara engaged Precision Air Conditioning in September 2017 for the installation and commissioning of four new ActronAir systems in their gaming area. Simultaneously, the club also hired the services of GJME Energy Management Solutions to conduct independent energy testing of the area before and after installation, and gauge the true impact of this update.

GJME provided a comparative analysis of consumption details and trends of the four air conditioning systems in the gaming area of the Mingara Recreation Club, with the tests covering the ‘Before’ period (with the existing, old HVAC systems) and the ‘After’ period (with the new ActronAir systems).

Temporary data loggers were installed on the four sub-mains of the gaming area HVAC to record the actual 24-hour electrical demand and consumption trends of the existing air conditioning systems from 10th June – 27th June 2017, for comparison with data recorded from 25th October – 23rd November 2017 after the new ActronAir systems were installed on the same sub-mains.

Key findings:

Better energy efficiency

Energy consumption on the four sub-mains reduced by 202 kWhs a day, equivalent to a drop of 35% and savings of $31 per day, in a timeframe that was hotter than the conditions the old systems were tested in.

Better peak performance

The data showed a 12% reduction in demand at peak from the new ActronAir units, which will result in further savings of approximately $40 per day from Mingara’s peak capacity charge.

Better gaming area performance

A 25% reduction was noticed in the amount that the gaming area contributed to whole-of-site energy consumption, with a 35% reduction in the gaming area’s average daily consumption cost. The gaming area was responsible for approximately 2.6% of the overall average daily site energy consumption after the installation of the ActronAir systems, improving from approximately 4% in the ‘Before’ period.

Better when it’s hot

The ActronAir systems delivered the improved performance in the warmer October-November ‘After’ period, which was an average of 5.6°C warmer than the June ‘Before’ period.

Better spare capacity

The ActronAir systems freed up 22.3 amps per phase at maximum load, with the surplus amps now used elsewhere, reducing the need for future upgrades to the mains board or the sub-mains board, and saving thousands of dollars for the club.

The combined electricity cost savings at Mingara Recreation Club came to a total of $71/day.

Architecture & Design Team

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