FAN COIL UNIT GROUP
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The aim of the HEVAC Fan Coil Unit Group is:
To promote the effective use of Chilled Water Fan Coil Units within a buildings environmental system by supplying meaningful and definitive specifications from which engineers can make considered decisions.
HEVAC Factsheet – Guidance on FCUs in residential applications December 2018
Guidance on FCUs in residential applications covers design considerations, commissioning and service and maintenance. This FCU Group factsheet gives current guidance (December 2018).
HEVAC Factsheet – How viable are Airside Fan Coils in 2019
Guidance on Airside fan coils, general arrangement, how they work, disadvantages. This FCU Group factsheet gives current guidance (August 2019).
BS 8850:2020 Fan coil unit performance. Determination of specific fan power.
Test method was published on 27 August 2020. Available from BSI Shop.
NEW – Fan Coil Industry statement: COVID-19 and fan coils, 5 August 2021
There is a significant amount of information available with respect to the operation and use of fan coils and COVID-19. Here is a summary of the latest guidance which, if followed, would allow Fan coils to be used.
NEW – HEVAC FCU Group Factsheet – Guidance on Electronically commutated (EC) motors
NEW – HEVAC FCU Group Factsheet – Guidance on Air Inlet Filters used in Fan Coils
New - Product Data Template for Fan Coils
The BIMHawk Toolkit is an online database and suite of software programs and utilities for creating, managing and integrating Product Data Templates (PDTs) & Product Data Sheets (PDS’s) with other digital systems (eg: native BIM authoring software applications). The toolkit has been developed by NG Bailey in collaboration with CIBSE and the CIBSE BIM Steering Group to enhance the production of PDTs and allow them to be easily integrated within BIM Authoring Applications.
A Product Data Template is a collection of Parameters that describe and define a specific Product or Product type. CIBSE PDTs are developed in conjunction with Product Manufacturers, Designers and Specifiers. Each PDT is rigourously peer reveiwed and made available for Public Comment prior to being published.
The PDT for Fan Coil Unit (FCU) is on www.bimhawk.co.uk/pdtlist2.php
Why use Fan Coil Units? Guide written in 2020
The FCU Group produced a short leaflet in 2011 and revised it in July 2020 to bring to your attention the many advantages of fan coil unit systems, which are summarised and compared with the attributes of alternative systems. (Download).
Summary of current standards; current but under review; and withdrawn standards
Current
BS EN 1397: 2021 Heat exchangers — Hydronic room fan coil units — Test procedures for establishing the performance
BS EN 16583: 2020 Heat exchangers - Hydronic room fan coils - determination of their sound power level
BS 8850: 2020 Fan coil unit performance - Determination of specific fan power - Test method
Current, but under review
BS 4856-1: 1972 Testing and rating fan coil units, unit heaters and unit coolers Part 1: Thermal and volumetric performance for heating duties: without additional ducting
BS 4856-2: 1975 Testing and rating fan coil units, unit heaters and unit coolers Part 2: Thermal and volumetric performance for cooling duties: without additional ducting
BS 4856-3: 1975 Testing and rating fan coil units, unit heaters and unit coolers Part 3: Thermal and volumetric performance for heating and cooling duties: with additional ducting
BS 4856-4: 1997 Testing and rating fan coil units, unit heaters and unit coolers Part 4: Determination of sound power levels of fan coil units, unit heaters and unit coolers using reverberation rooms
Withdrawn
BS 4856-4: 1978 Testing and rating fan coil units, unit heaters and unit coolers Part 4: Determination of sound power levels of fan coil units, unit heaters and unit coolers using reverberation rooms
BS 4856-5: 1979 Methods for testing and rating fan coil units, unit heaters and unit coolers Part 5: Acoustic performance; without additional ducting
BS EN 1397: 1999 Heat exchangers — Hydronic room fan coil units — Test procedures for establishing the performance
BS EN 1397: 2015 Heat exchangers — Hydronic room fan coil units — Test procedures for establishing the performance
BS EN 16583: 2015 Heat exchangers - Hydronic room fan coils - determination of their sound power level
Acoustic guide
First published in 2009, the revised July 2021 edition of the Fan Coil Unit Group good practice guide to acoustics for fan coils is now available. New content includes vertical fan coils, variable air volume operation and “In duct” v “Radiated” Sound Power Levels. In addition, it contains worked examples of installations and gives advice on system components, the effect they can have, and the associated pitfalls that can occur, especially in relation to small scale projects.
(Download)
Achievement of Aim
- Supplying Industry Standards for Testing of:
- Sound
- Thermal
- Performance
- Airflow
- Coefficient of performance
- Airside carryover / losses
- Component Efficiency
- Provide Industry Guides on
- Application of Fan Coils Units
- Installation of Fan Coils Units
- Maintenance of Fan Coils Units
- Act as a partner to Government departments to define any future standards specifications
- Provide Statistics to members of the Group to facilitate focused product development strategies
- The promotion of Fan Coils Units as one of the most effective air conditioning options
Do FCU comply with the new Part L Building Regulations?
Yes they do. Members worked closely with the DCLG when they developed the new Part L in 2006 and they all supply fan coil units that comply with the regulations.
Some end users have had difficulty in understanding the requirements for Specific Fan Power (SFP) under the new Part L. To help, the FCU Group had prepared the following position statements:
HEVAC position statement on SFP for fan coil unitsv1.pdf - 1 Dec 2014
HEVAC position statement on Acoustic Design Principles Iss2.pdf
HEVAC position statement on Airflow Commissioning Iss2.pdf
HEVAC position statement on Entering Air Temp Iss2.pdf
HEVAC position statement on Specific Fan Power Iss3.pdf
CIBSE TM43 - Fan Coil Units
This Technical Memorandum, which at Ecobuild in March 2011 was described by CIBSE as one of their "Best Sellers", sets out to describe all aspects of fan coil unit technology and provides manufacturers, designers, site personnel and operators a comprehensive guide. Please link to the CIBSE page where you can get this publication.
www.cibse.org/knowledge/cibse-tm/tm43-fan-coil-units
A Comparative Study of Active Chilled Beam and Fan Coil Unit Energy Consumption
Following a previous study where fan-coil units (FCU) and active chilled beams (ACB) were compared under different operating conditions, the HEVAC Fan Coil Unit Group in FETA commissioned EDSL to compare their relative energy consumption under the same operating conditions. For the results and the report ............
There is an article on the study in the Sept 14 CIBSE Journal - link is http://portfolio.cpl.co.uk/CIBSE/201409/special-fan-coil-units-efficiency/
A PDF of the article is available from here, but the above link is better resolution.
Links to useful Industry guides
BSRIA BG 29/2011 Pre-Commission Cleaning of Pipework Systems
BSRIA BG 2/2010 Commissioning Water Systems
CIBSE Commissioning Code W:2010 Water Distribution Systems
Last updated: 29 November 2021
