Under Floor Air Distribution for Better Indoor Air Quality

UAD systems are shown to offer potential for initial capital savings, which may be achieved by lowering slab-toslab heights, reducing cooling capacity requirements due to stratification, thermal inertia improvements, minimizing ducting, and reducing construction schedules. UAD systems are also shown to provide significant energy efficiency advantages due to fan energy savings, extended free cooling and improved chiller COP, thereby reducing life-cycle building costs. Additionally, improvements in occupant thermal comfort and Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) are achieved. Unlike displacement systems, UAD systems extend these high levels of IAQ to applications with significant movement and/or heating.

In typical office environments, UAD systems are also able to provide more than three-to-five times the maximum sensible cooling capacity of comparable displacement systems without subjecting occupants to draughts or to an excessive vertical temperature gradient. They also improve air flow in the occupancy microclimate and provide the opportunity for localized control of air flow and direction, further enhancing individual thermal comfort. These advantages raise worker productivity and lower absenteeism rates. The ease with which UAD systems can be rearranged to satisfy new office layouts improves flexibility, reducing reconfiguration costs.