Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) is the use of various technologies to control the temperature, humidity, and purity of the air in an enclosed space. Its goal is to provide thermal comfort and acceptable indoor air quality. HVAC system design is a subdiscipline of mechanical engineering, based on the principles of thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer. "Refrigeration" is sometimes added to the field's abbreviation as HVAC&R or HVACR, or "ventilation" is dropped, as in HACR.
HVAC equipment needs a control system to regulate the operation of a heating and/or air conditioning system. Usually a sensing device is used to compare the actual state with a target state. Then the control system draws a conclusion what action has to be taken.
Heat recovery ventilation (HRV), also known as mechanical ventilation heat recovery (MVHR), is an energy recovery ventilation system that operates between two air sources at different temperatures. It's a method that is used to reduce the heating and cooling demands of buildings. By recovering the residual heat in the exhaust gas, the fresh air introduced into the air conditioning system is preheated before it enters the room, or the air cooler of the air conditioning unit performs heat and moisture treatment. A typical heat recovery system in buildings comprises a core unit, channels for fresh and exhaust air, and blower fans. Building exhaust air is used as either a heat source or heat sink, depending on the climate conditions, time of year, and requirements of the building. Heat recovery systems typically recover about 60–95% of the heat in the exhaust air and have significantly improved the energy efficiency of buildings.
UTC Climate, Controls & Security was a global provider of building technologies offering fire safety, security, building automation, heating, ventilating, air-conditioning, and refrigeration systems and services. A wholly owned subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation, UTC Climate, Controls & Security was a $16.7 billion company with 55,000 employees serving customers in more than 180 countries.
In the United States, the efficiency of air conditioners is often rated by the seasonal energy efficiency ratio (SEER) which is defined by the Air Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute, a trade association, in its 2008 standard AHRI 210/240, Performance Rating of Unitary Air-Conditioning and Air-Source Heat Pump Equipment. A similar standard is the European seasonal energy efficiency ratio (ESEER).
Carrier Global Corporation is an American multinational heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC), refrigeration, and fire and security equipment corporation based in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Carrier was founded in 1915 as an independent company manufacturing and distributing HVAC systems, and has since expanded to include manufacturing commercial refrigeration and food service equipment, and fire and security technologies.
A mechanical room, boiler room, plant room or technical room is a room or space in a building dedicated to the mechanical equipment and its associated electrical equipment, as opposed to rooms intended for human occupancy or storage. Unless a building is served by a centralized heating plant, the size of the mechanical room is usually proportional to the size of the building. A small building or home may have at most a utility room but in larger buildings, mechanical rooms can be of considerable size, often requiring multiple rooms throughout the building, or even occupying one or more complete floors.
Building services engineering (BSE) is a professional engineering discipline that strives to achieve a safe and comfortable indoor environment whilst minimizing the environmental impact of a building.
Temperzone is a privately owned large-sized organisation specialising in manufacturing air conditioning units and ventilation equipment for both residential and commercial markets. It operates in New Zealand, Australia, Singapore and other parts of Asia. Temperzone has over 500 employees.
In heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC), testing, adjusting and balancing (TAB) are the three major steps used to achieve proper operation of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems. TAB usually refers to commercial building construction and the specialized contractors who employ personnel that perform this service.
HVAC is a major sub discipline of mechanical engineering. The goal of HVAC design is to balance indoor environmental comfort with other factors such as installation cost, ease of maintenance, and energy efficiency. The discipline of HVAC includes a large number of specialized terms and acronyms, many of which are summarized in this glossary.
Goodman Manufacturing is an American company operating as an independent subsidiary of Daikin Group, the world's largest manufacturer of heating, ventilation and air conditioning products and systems. The company, founded in 1975 and based in Waller, Texas, manufactures residential heating and cooling systems.
Grayson Thermal Systems is a UK manufacturer based in Birmingham. The firm is based in Tyseley and designs, manufactures, and supplies cooling, heating, and air conditioning products for buses, coaches, commercial, specialist, hybrid and electric vehicles. In 2007 the Grayson Group created subsidiary Matco Engineering, a machining business set up to bring high-end service to the low and medium volume sector. There are now four Grayson manufacturing facilities globally.
Daikin Applied Americas is a corporation that designs, manufacturers and sells heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) products, systems, parts and services for commercial buildings. Since 2006, McQuay has been a subsidiary of Daikin Industries, Ltd. McQuay world headquarters are located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. Products are sold by a global network of sales representatives and distributors.
Trane Technologies plc is a manufacturing company focused on heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) and refrigeration systems. The company traces its corporate history back more than 150 years and was created after a series of mergers and spin-offs. In 2008, HVAC manufacturer Trane was acquired by Ingersoll Rand, a US industrial tools manufacturer. In 2020, the tools business was spun off as Ingersoll Rand and the remaining company was renamed Trane Technologies.
Daikin Industries, Ltd. is a Japanese multinational conglomerate company headquartered in Osaka. Daikin is the world's largest air conditioner manufacturer.
AAON Inc. AAON, Inc. manufactures heating, ventilation, and air conditioning equipment for commercial and industrial indoor environments. AAON is headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma and has manufacturing facilities in Longview, TX, Parkville, MO, and Redmond, OR. AAON employs approximately 4000 people across four US-based locations and has annual sales in excess of $880 million.
Variable refrigerant flow (VRF), also known as variable refrigerant volume (VRV), is an HVAC technology invented by Daikin Industries, Ltd. in 1982. Similar to ductless mini-split systems, VRFs use refrigerant as the primary cooling and heating medium, and is usually less complex than conventional chiller-based systems. This refrigerant is conditioned by one or more condensing units, and is circulated within the building to multiple indoor units. VRF systems, unlike conventional chiller-based systems, allow for varying degrees of cooling in more specific areas, may supply hot water in a heat recovery configuration without affecting efficiency, and switch to heating mode during winter without additional equipment, all of which may allow for reduced energy consumption. Also, air handlers and large ducts are not used which can reduce the height above a dropped ceiling as well as structural impact as VRF uses smaller penetrations for refrigerant pipes instead of ducts.
Rheem Manufacturing Company is an American privately held manufacturer that produces residential and commercial water heaters and boilers, as well as heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment. The company also produces and sells products under the Ruud brand name. It is an independent subsidiary of Paloma Industries.What became Rheem started in 1925 as a supplier of packaging to the petroleum industry, and is currently headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia in the United States. The company is one of the largest manufacturers of both water heating and HVAC equipment in the United States, and also produces and markets products in Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Bahrain, China, Chile, Brazil, Canada, Iraq, Kuwait, Mexico, New Zealand, Perú, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, UAE, and Ukraine.
Jacques Gaston Murray was a French-born British billionaire businessman.
