Adjustable humidity controls are one unique feature of the GreenBuilder. Delta’s original fans with built-in sensors were non-adjustable at set points between 60 and 70 percent relative humidity, but humidities throughout the region can be lower or higher, which prompted the design upgrade for better customer comfort, according to the company. With the GBR80HLED, when humidity is above the user-adjustable set point, the fan runs at full speed (80 cfm). When humidity is below the set point, the fan runs continuously at a preset lower level (0 or 50 cfm).

The GBR80HLED was launched in 2017. Designing the product and gathering feedback from contractors and customers began two years prior.

“We run into this issue on custom homes, where a builder makes us perform two trips to install a soffit vent: one trip to vent the fan and another to install the vent,” said one of the awards program’s contractor judges. “This saves on a second trip charge and is a very nice looking vent — a major improvement over what is currently available today.”

The Delta Breez GRB80HLED touts an extremely small housing size to accommodate retrofits. It’s designed for new construction, retrofit, or remodels. The body is constructed of galvanized steel with a built-in back-draft damper. Its 11W power consumption translates to an efficiency rating of approximately 7.2 cfm per watt at 0.1-inch of static pressure. It is ASHRAE 62.2 compliant, and it is certified by Home Ventilating Institute (HVI), UL and cUL, and Energy Star®.

Andrew Delaney, CEO at GB Windsor Corp. in the greater San Diego area, has been using the fan since its release in 2017.

“We use it all the time, mostly in high-end custom homes and remodels,” he said. “It’s pretty versatile for most applications, and the mounting brackets are adjustable, so it fits most bays. We love the product. We like that it’s small and compact. It’s easy to install, pretty quiet — they like that — and the finish is sleek.”

Looking ahead with the GBR80HLED, Delta plans to develop significant energy-efficiency improvements, reduce the fan’s noise level by at least 40 percent (currently at 0.8 Sones), and integrate tunable, color-changing LED lights.

“With an extremely quiet fan with tunable LED lights, the Delta Breez GreenBuilder series can be applied to different applications and work environments,” said Wang.

SILVER

Winning silver in this category was Ruskin’s XP500WD Louver, which provides both FEMA impact protection as well as Class A wind-driven rain protection. FEMA protection, as well as being required for FEMA shelters, is highly desired for projects like data centers, where equipment needs to stay dry to function properly.

Like other impact-resistant FEMA louvers, the XP500WD is tested to FEMA standard 361 for impact protection. Its patent-pending design includes a chevron blade, incorporated into the FEMA louver, that catches rain and can withstand projectile impacts of over 100 mph.

The result is a FEMA-quality louver that gives designers and builders one product that does the work of two.

The XP500WD took about two years to develop and test, and the concept is currently patent-pending. In the future, Ruskin anticipates increasing size options for the product, as well as looking for ways to make it more lightweight and affordable while still providing the same level of protection.

BRONZE

The ZQYRA Demand Ventilator by Nortek Global HVAC won the bronze award in this category. It’s a dedicated outdoor air system (DOAS) unit that includes a fully integrated heat pump and total enthalpy wheel combination to treat air that ranges between minus 10° to 115°F ambient.

The ZQYRA was designed to meet evolving building standard requirements due to code compliance and increased ventilation demands. ZQYRA technology uses the least amount of energy required to precisely condition the ventilation air year-round in low-load, part-load, and full-load conditions. It can recover more than 80 percent of wasted energy, and the company says it is the first DOAS product that addresses Integrated Seasonal Moisture Removal Efficiency (ISMRE), based on the AHRI 920 standard. The ZQYRA also addresses the ASHRAE 62.1, ASHRAE 90.1, ASHRAE 189.1 and LEED standards.

The unit has a built-in “Test & Balance” screen that allows personnel to verify and implement the correct cfm for each application. Unit control functionality is directly accessible from the plan. The supply fan is directly controlled by the unit’s mounted display, meaning there are no pulleys to adjust. The unit has a built-in test function, allowing the technician to directly test and independently control each aspect of the system, like the fans, electric heat, enthalpy wheel, and DX heat pump.

Research began in 2012, and the product went to market the following year. It can be used in a variety of light commercial building ventilation applications such as spas, veterinary clinics, offices, universities, day care, museums, libraries, theaters, and universities.

Publication date: 7/23/2018

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