Have you ever wondered; why does it always take 2 hours to chill my office down on Mondays?

In our previous blog posts we have addressed the trust you can have in a legally approved smart thermal energy/cooling meter, and we have looked into the benefits offered, such as accurate billing for the tenants.

Now it is time to look at the possibility of optimizing the cooling network based on data collected and controlled directly in the meter.

Optimizing your network

How do you ensure that your tenants are chilled to the right comfort temperature every Monday morning? What can you do if a person leaves a window or a door open to get fresh air, causing hot spots and thereby causing complaints about lack of cooling from other tenants?

How can you secure the right amount of cooling capacity at the right time for assets that demand high cooling, e.g. data centers… or offices - without having to quote and install over-dimensioned chillers?

It´s all about knowing your network and using the data the network provides for controlling/regulating according to your preferences.

The “regulator” module

One possible solution is to take advantage of the Kamstrup smart meter already installed in the network, simply by adding a regulator module and a valve.

PQT Controller

The regulator module is called a PQT controller module and is designed to optimise the energy consumption by regulating the waterflow in the network via a motorised valve based on set points for either power, flow or temperature. Depending on the installation, it is possible to ensure that the available energy is fairly distributed among the end users connected to the cooling network, or to secure the required temperature is kept stable, regardless of the actual load.

The different set points can be remotely adjusted through Modbus or BACnet® communication – another module, that fits directly into Kamstrup’s cooling meter – a “one-box regulation and optimization solution”. The module needs an external 24 VAC supply to drive the motorized valve.

The needed components and installation of the PQT controller

A typical setup looks like this

Cooling application example

Here, an example of Cooling application showing the power and flow is adjusted back to the specified set point within 3 minutes, ensuring enough cooling energy is available for each chiller/apartment/tenant.