[Equest-users] eQUEST and Variable Refrigerant Flow

[Dakota Kelley]

Previous posts have indicated that it’s in development, but the release forecast is to be determined.  Speculation ranges from Q4 2009 to Q4 2010, so we’ll have to wait and see.  The two major roadblocks I see for VRF getting into public software are:

 

1)      Lack of a rating system for all capacities: ARI-210/240 was not expanded to rate low-capacity VRF systems until 2008, and it is my understanding that an ARI standard for larger-capacity (over 6 tons) VRF systems is still pending.  I don’t see the DOE granting money for simulation development without a recognized rating system.  Once one is approved, I would expect the development and testing to take the better part of a year, possibly longer.

2)      Funding: the manufacturers seem willing to pay for development, but in the interest of neutrality, developers of public software seem reluctant to accept.     

 

For what it’s worth, we recently purchased EnergyPro specifically for VRF systems, and I was fortunate enough to attend a training session at Daikin with several of their sales engineers.  The word was that Daikin (and I would assume Mitsubishi) is aggressively trying to get its products incorporated into various modeling packages. In fact, it’s a major hurdle they need to overcome in order to grow their market share.  The proprietary software developers have been much more receptive to working with the VRF manufacturers and accepting financial support for the development costs.  Daikin has produced several libraries of performance curves for their products, so much of the legwork has been done from a data-gathering perspective.  In fact, if you want to approximate a Daikin product in eQUEST, the info needed to create custom curves is readily available.  I would recommend that route over purchasing proprietary software.  If you’re considering EnergyPro and want a full opinion, feel free to contact me directly. 

 

Regards,

 

                                

                         DAKOTA KELLEY                                                              

                                Project Designer

 

                                Office:      214-744-6199

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                                Fax:         214-744-0770 

                

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dakotak at teliospc.com <mailto:dakotak at teliospc.com>              Dallas, TX 75204 

 

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From: Jeff Ross-Bain [mailto:jross-bain at rbgreenbuilding.com] 
Sent: Monday, November 23, 2009 2:16 PM
To: equest-users at lists.onebuilding.org
Subject: [Equest-users] eQUEST and Variable Refrigerant Flow

 

Hi All,

 

Does anyone know if eQUEST is planning to develop a means for modeling VRF systems? To the best of my knowledge, only EnergyPro and recently, Trane Trace, are able to capture the performance characteristics of these system types.

 

Regards,

 

Jeffrey G Ross-Bain, PE, LEED

Ross-Bain Green Building, LLC

404-228-2893

 

P Build Green...Save Time

 

 

  

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