Daikin air conditioning VRVQ system installed earlier this year to replace the existing older VRV system

Despite the challenging business conditions of the past two years, Space Air has remained committed to taking all reasonable steps to reduce the environmental impact of its commercial activities. The ISO 14001 Standard forms an important part of Space Air's objectives and so the Directors were delighted when the annual external audit approved certificate renewal with a highly complimentary report on the management of the system and environmental targets achieved to date, the auditor concluding with "This is one of the best environmental systems I have audited".


Perhaps the most impressive achievement was energy efficiency improvements recorded for the Daikin VRVQ air conditioning system installed earlier this year to replace the existing older VRV system.
Detailed metered records indicating minutes run and kW/hrs consumed by the new VRVQ system were compared with corresponding periods in previous years for the original system and showed a remarkable average 28.6% reduction in monthly kW/hr consumption!

A Space Air spokesman commented, "In addition to various other measures we have undertaken to reduce our environmental impact, the external auditor was particularly impressed by the very significant energy savings achieved by the VRVQ system. Although we need to look at a full year of recordings to get a fair comparison, the results so far are extremely encouraging, not only in terms of meeting our own objectives but also in reinforcing the efficiency benefits of VRVQ for the many customers considering replacing existing R22 or R407C VRV systems.

VRVQ has specifically been designed to enable older VRV systems to be replaced without the need to renew the existing pipework and in some cases, retain the existing fan coil units. VRVQ can therefore be installed relatively quickly, at considerably reduced cost and site disruption. The additional benefit is substantially lower running costs. We are already reaping the rewards and our customers can do the same."

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Daikin Air Conditioning first VRVQ system delivered to the UK was installed in the Guildford offices of Space Airconditioning plc

The very first VRVQ system delivered to the UK was installed in the Guildford offices of SpaceAirconditioning plc, Daikin distributors since 1980.

Daikin's unique VRVQ system has been specifically developed to replace the outdoor and indoor units of similar systems, originally designed to operate with HCFC R22 (or HFC R407C) refrigerant - without the need to replace the interconnecting pipe work!

Traces of old refrigerant and oil mixing with new refrigerants and oils can cause equipment malfunction. Typically, when upgrading to new equipment, it is recommended that all existing interconnecting pipe work be replaced at the same time as the outdoor and indoor units. This can be extremely costly and cause great disruption within the building.

Daikin developed new technology to capture and contain any contamination in the old pipe work, thus enabling new VRV outdoor and indoor units to be connected to existing pipe work, greatly simplifying the installation process.


Space Air ensured that the first VRVQ system available to the UK was earmarked to replace a VRV 'K Series' R407C system. In this example, the existing refrigerant pipe work and ceiling cassette fan coil units were retained. Only the outdoor condensing units and internal branch selector boxes were replaced. Commenting on the installation, Space Air's technical after sales manager, Sibat Butt said. "It is quite usual for new Daikin equipment to be installed in our own premises, but normally it would be destined for our training suite or a showroom. On this occasion, we chose to replace the system serving our main offices as the energy efficiency advantages satisfied one of our planned ISO 14001 objectives." Mr Butt continued. "The project was completed over one weekend and the only impact on the office staff was the temporary imposition of a few ceiling tiles being removed on Friday afternoon. By Monday morning the new VRVQ based system had been fully commissioned and was up and running, many staff being none the wiser that any change had taken place."

Daikin VRVQ affords all the operating and energy efficiency benefits of a completely new installation, at a fraction of the cost. Installation can be phased for added convenience and increased capacity can be achieved where required.

VRVQ is a must to consider if you are planning to upgrade your older VRV/VRF Air Conditioning system.