Client Health Service Executive
Location Athlone, Ireland
Architect JNP Architects
Trusted with delivering an A2 Building Energy Rating for one of HSE’s central community nursing units
About the project
IN2 were awarded the role of providing full M&E, Environmental and Sustainability design services for the HSE’s Public Private Partnership contract for numerous community care units. Among the seven projects in this ambitious initiative is the Community Nursing Unit (CNU) in Athlone. The site has 50 bedrooms and 2 storeys and conforms with the Health Services Executive (HSE) and NZEB requirements.
IN2 undertook a detailed Building Comfort analysis, assessing overheating risk criteria and comfort categorisation. All bedrooms were found to be compliant with the Comfort criteria based on a naturally ventilated environmental strategy; windows were configured to achieve this. Comfort analysis identified that some spaces within courtyards at ground floor level only and cellular staff offices do have the potential to be naturally ventilated, therefore not necessitating the presence of an air conditioning system in these spaces.
Daylight analysis was also undertaken for the CNU using Radiance software - an advanced suite of raytracing-based lighting simulation tools. Building geometry was exported directly from Revit models received from JNP Architects, with results being re-imported into the BIM model, ensuring environmental performance results could be integrated to each room’s information data. Following this analysis, IN2 oversaw window updates across the site, with some windows in areas of reduced daylight benefitting from the addition of an opaque panel to ensure daylight compliance.
IN2’s mechanical expertise was focussed on CNU Athlone achieving NZEB compliance with a A2 building energy rating (BER) and to provide energy-efficient solutions which resulted in lower energy consumption and met CO2 production targets. It was decided that Air Source Heat Pump (ASHP) technology would provide the vast majority of hot water provision for the buildings (supplemented by gas-fired boilers to ensure required operating temperatures), thereby maximising the building’s Renewable Energy capacity.
High standards of efficiency combined with reduced energy consumption and lower associated carbon emissions have informed the M&E design of CNU Athlone, resulting in a stable environment which boasts easily operable building services, innovative use of daylight and natural ventilation, and comfort throughout.
