A Hilton hotel in St. Augustine, Fla., has been fitted with a PowerCold proprietary environmental HVAC system and DuPont Caltrel® plastic heat exchangers. The new system is designed to control moisture and provide clean fresh air throughout the 72-room mid-rise hotel, including the guest rooms and public areas. The system is expected to operate with utility costs 50 percent below the standard systems installed in other mid-rise hotels with a return on investment in less than two years, according to PowerCold.

The hotel is a "hollow-square" design consisting of 19 separate buildings set around an inner courtyard and connected by an interior corridor. The facility features wooden balconies, cedar shake and tile roofs, and different elevations and color schemes, in an attempt to re-create the look and feel of St. Augustine's Spanish Colonial period.

Hilton's Kanti Patel said, "The hotel's unique Spanish Colonial design embodies the history of St. Augustine and its status as America's oldest city. PowerCold's central HVAC system met the city's stringent design and construction requirements, and was specifically chosen because it eliminates the noisy, cumbersome through-the-wall units that would have detracted from the look, charm, and feel of the architectural design."

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection's Energy Conservation Assistance Program will continually monitor the facility to record energy usage and determine cost savings. PowerCold is working with the Florida ECAP program to conduct energy audits for the hospitality industry and assist owners and developers seeking certification in the state's Green Lodging Program.

Robert Yoho, president of PowerCold Comfort Air Solutions, said, "The St. Augustine Hilton is another example proving the PowerCold patented HVAC system can be installed in any hotel, office complex, or institutional building, regardless of the building's age or structural design. The PowerCold system works perfectly to control moisture in guest rooms and all public areas, despite the unique design of the hotel. At the same time, the system reduces building power and maintenance costs."

For more information, visit www.powercold.com.

Publication date: 05/09/2005