Jersey Shore University Medical Center
Upgrades Energy Recovery Ventilation System
Underperforming Ventilation System
The Hackensack Meridian Jersey Shore University Medical Center is a non-profit tertiary, research and academic hospital founded in 1904. It also serves as a designated level II trauma and stroke center to handle medevac patients in the region and is home to the K. Hovanian Children’s hospital – the first children’s hospital in Monmouth and Ocean Counties. Jersey Shore University Medical Center is the regional provider of cardiac surgery, a program which has been ranked among the best in the Northeast With over 1,000 physicians and dental staff in 60 specialty areas, interns and residents, and patients of all ages, it’s important that the facility provides a clean, safe, and healthy environment for all its occupants.
(Image: The new energy transfer surfaces of the Airxchange® segmented wheels can be effectively and easily cleaned outside of the cabinet to ensure high performance and a long-life expectancy.)
The hospital has expanded over the years to support its continuous growth, but their aging energy recovery ventilation system in the main medical building was underperforming and not providing optimum space conditions.
The original energy recovery equipment that was installed in 1977. Due to the inaccessibility of the existing energy recovery wheel and the inability to effectively clean the wheel, the desired amount of outdoor air was not being delivered to ensure proper ventilation.
(Image: Over the next 3 years, Airxchange® replaced the original monolithic wheels with a fully serviceable Energy Recovery Wheel design.)
Indoor air quality is crucial to a hospital environment, and the cost to heat and cool a facility operating 24/7 is substantial.
When it was determined the underperforming ventilation system at the Jersey Shore University Medical Center would need to be replaced over time, the medical center reached out to Airxchange® for a solution for their four failed 136” wheels. Airxchange® provided a fully segmented energy transfer media that can be easily removed and cleaned. The unique design allows the entire wheel and cassette frame to be carried into the mechanical room in manageable pieces for reassembly inside of an AHU cabinet.
Economically Restoring the Energy Saving Benefit to the Air Handling
Airxchange® replaced the original energy recovery wheels with a fully serviceable Energy Recovery Wheel design over the course of three years. Unlike the previous monolithic wheels, the new energy transfer surfaces of the segmented wheels can be effectively cleaned outside of the cabinet to ensure high performance and a long-life expectancy. With rising energy costs and climate concerns, energy recovery wheels are an ideal way to reduce HVAC costs while complying with code-mandated outside air requirements in a hospital setting. This reduction in load translates into significant ongoing cost savings.
With the system now operating as designed with fully serviceable wheels, the staff and patients at the Jersey Shore Medical Center can once again enjoy a healthy and comfortable indoor environment.