Case StudiesCustom HVAC Configurations for Custom Spaces

Nestled in the hills of Orange, Virginia, The Inn at Willow Grove – a historic plantation turned boutique resort and spa – attracts guests with its world-class hospitality. In 2017, Travel + Leisure magazine named The Inn at Willow Grove the Best Hotel in the South, the Third Best Hotel in the Country and the Ninth Best Hotel in the World. With accolades like these, owners David and Charlene Scibal decided to build two Creekside Cottages as an expansion, with five guest suites each.

Foundation Communities, Austin, Texas, was founded in 1994 with the mission to provide everyone in Austin with a high-quality place to live near good jobs and schools. The 501(c)(3) organization provides sustainable, affordable homes and free onsite support services to thousands of low- to moderate-income households, including families with children, veterans, seniors and the disabled. The M Station community is a result of this effort.

Over the last few years, the average age of residents at the Ishpeming Housing Commission has gone up. Residents of this 88-unit, 67,750-square-foot apartment building in Ishpeming, Michigan, used to move in during their 60s and 70s. Now, they move in during their 80s and 90s. The older residents have required better indoor air quality, so a recent renovation set out to bring modern-day air conditioning to the 1960s facility. Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) technology from Mitsubishi Electric was selected for its easy installation and reliable comfort.

SandRidge Energy, Inc. (NYSE: SD) is an independent energy company focused on the exploration and production of natural gas and crude oil. In July 2007, SandRidge purchased the 30-story former Kerr-McGee tower, a downtown Oklahoma City icon since 1973, to accommodate its rapid growth and find additional space for its 500+ employees.

When Mark and Gretchen Biedron co-founded the The Willow School (Willow), Gladstone, New Jersey, their vision was to create a school that provides students with a space that celebrates learning and collaboration, and that fosters ethical relationships between people and the natural systems that support them. Sustainability drives both the curriculum and building design for Willow, so when the school was designing its fourth building – the Health, Wellness and Nutrition Center – the project team selected a Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) zoning system from Mitsubishi Electric.

“With the View Haus 5 project, developer Cascade Built wanted to be a game-changer – to do the absolute best. They wanted to make the most comfortable, energy-efficient homes out there,” said Tadashi Shiga, principal, Evergreen Certified, Seattle. Shiga served as the View Haus 5 project’s third-party verifier for programs like Built Green, HERS and Northwest ENERGY STAR. Key to earning these impressive certifications is what Shiga described as “a three-legged stool of heating/cooling, thermal envelope and ventilation. The legs must be perfectly balanced to meet high standards.” The View Haus 5 HVAC system that makes a perfect balance possible is a multi-zone heat pump system from Mitsubishi Electric. Shiga described it as “the now and the future of HVAC.” For View Haus 5, the now and the future are incredibly bright. The country is abuzz with talk of View Haus 5’s many accomplishments, especially its status as the Seattle area’s first passive multifamily building.

Johnson County Community College (JCCC), Overland Park, Kansas, serves about 20,000 students. In 2009, the school formed the Center for Sustainability to promote an environmentally, socially and economically responsible campus. The Center set goals, including becoming a zero-waste-to-landfill campus by 2025 and a 100 percent renewable energy campus by 2050. This commitment to sustainability has affected every building project on campus, including Galileo’s Pavilion, a new 3,000-square foot academic building. A host of superefficient practices and products, including Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) technology from Mitsubishi Electric, has made Galileo’s Pavilion a true showcase of sustainability—with LEED® Platinum certification to boot.

Enclave Development (Enclave), Fargo, North Dakota, envisioned The Retreat at Urban Plains as a robust Fargo community with apartments, offices, a sports complex, retail businesses, a strip mall and restaurants. When it came to the apartments, attracting renters was key. That meant finding an HVAC system that would satisfy users without breaking the bank. This challenge was complicated by North Dakota’s extreme temperatures. The answer: Zoned Comfort Solutions® from Mitsubishi Electric. The creative part: installing the outdoor units in a heated garage.

Although long winters are nothing foreign to New Englanders, the extreme cold that brought record-setting snowfall in 2015 got builders thinking about planning more deliberately for severe weather. In Boston’s North End, these concerns – and an increasing millennial population – have resulted in a variety of historic or aging buildings demanding modern comforts while maintaining a colonial charm. Such was the case with the North End Apartments, where an old, closed-off apartment building was updated to be upscale and energy-efficient. This balance was achieved with a Hyper-Heating INVERTER® (H2i®) system from Mitsubishi Electric.

The Stack House Apartments (Stack House) is a development located in Seattle’s fast-growing South Lake Union neighborhood. The project’s three buildings cover an entire city block, offering market rate residential apartments and mixed-use spaces including offices, a restaurant and a gym. The development has won multiple certifications and recognitions for its innovative, energy-efficient design, as well as its actual performance. To name just one: LEED® Platinum certification. None of that would have been possible without Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) systems from Mitsubishi Electric.