When a major pharmaceutical manufacturer began constructing a new building, climate control was one of the most critical systems to get right. From research labs to production areas, every room depends on air that is precisely filtered, conditioned, and safely exhausted. To meet these demanding requirements, Coward Environmental Systems, Inc. (CESI) partnered with Buffalo Air Handling to deliver six large-scale air handling units (AHUs), including four custom air handlers and two heat recovery sections.
Designing for Complex Pharmaceutical Needs
“This is a new facility, so they need all the HVAC for the building,” explains John Daher, Sales Engineer at CESI. “We designed and bid multiple Buffalo Air handlers to give them exactly what the project requires. There are four full AHUs and two additional heat recovery sections.”
The design is unique in both scale and function. Each pair of units resembles a small building or rooftop penthouse. “It’s like an air handler connected to half of a vestibule, and then the other one is the same way,” Daher says. “They shipped in sections with the roofs separate, and then on site, the roofs were added. From the outside, they almost look like houses.”
Heat Recovery for Energy Efficiency
Alongside the AHUs, the project incorporated advanced heat recovery units to capture energy from exhaust air.
“Those heat recovery units don’t need internal fans. The exhaust fans are located externally. Instead, each unit contains a coil that transfers thermal energy. As the exhaust air flows past this coil, it either warms or cools the fluid inside, depending on ambient conditions. That energy is then pumped to the main air handler to pre-heat or pre-cool the incoming air.”
Daher elaborates, “By using heat recovery units, we capture part of the energy that would have been wasted in the exhaust. We feed it into the air handler to precondition the supply air before it hits the chilled water or hot water coil. That saves energy, reduces load, and improves system efficiency.”
Safe Exhaust for Pharmaceutical Labs
In addition to the AHUs and heat recovery sections, CESI also provided high plume exhaust fans, mounted on top of the heat recovery units. These fans play a critical safety role.
“The high plume fans exhaust air from the labs and dilute it high into the atmosphere,” Daher explains. “That ensures any traces of pharmaceutical materials in the air are reduced to very small, very safe amounts.”
The high dilution plumes are another way CESI delivered operational efficiency while still meeting the strict safety requirements of a pharmaceutical environment, ensuring indoor air quality and protecting the surrounding community.
Contact CESI to Learn More About Buffalo Air
From engineering coordination to delivery, CESI plays a critical role in making the new pharmaceutical facility possible. By combining Buffalo Air’s custom AHU technology with CESI’s expertise, the project delivers safe, efficient, and reliable HVAC systems that meet the industry’s most stringent standards.
If you want to learn more about options from Buffalo Air, or need custom solutions for your pharma build, contact CESI today. We’re ready to get started.
