The Arts Centre has a rich history in Christchurch, which includes 21 Heritage listed buildings with the oldest dating back to 1877. Since the 2011 Earthquake, the site has been going through extensive restoration, with the inclusion of one new structure.

The new building on this Heritage site required innovative solutions to protect the historical architectural integrity. The Consultant, Powell Fenwick and Contractor, Benmax New Zealand, were charged with finding an Air Conditioning product which kept all plant hidden from public view, while also keeping noise to a minimum.

Photo: Property staff smoko room in the new building which is mostly underground.

A newly released Mitsubishi Electric PQRY-P200YLM-A Water Sourced Condenser was chosen for its high COP’s. Water for the condenser is sourced from the underground Christchurch Aquifer wells via boreholes and fed into the PQRY via plate exchangers and a closed water loop. This water loop also serves the larger water sourced chillers on site for the larger buildings, providing central heating.

Photo: PQRY R2 Water Sourced Technology Condenser. 

With the use of the plate heat exchangers and closed water loop condensers, all water extracted is returned to the Aquifer, as it is not cross-contaminated with other water supplies and is free from pollutants.

The Mitsubishi Electric PQRY unit was installed inside the building, conveniently located in the basement. This could be achieved due to the unit’s compact footprint, and with it being installed away from public view, this meant there was no visual impact to the overall heritage look of the building’s exterior. Having the condensing unit located underground also solved the outside noise concerns too.

For more information on Mitsubishi Electric’s VRF Water Sourced products Click to View.