Plumbing & Mechanical Engineer

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There was a time when furnaces and boilers shared equal flexibility in Btu/h input/output and air delivery. It's hard to imagine, right? But times are changing. Will you embrace this change for profit, or cling to old ways as sales slip away?

Last month, we discussed how solid thermal energy storage, combined with an air-to-water heat pump and an electric boiler, provides a platform to leverage time-of-use electrical rates in ways that can benefit customers as well as the utility providing the electricity.

PM Engineer Chief Editor Nicole Krawcke had the chance to speak with several key industry stakeholders about trends and technological developments in the market, including: Greg Nahrgang, vice president, technical services and product development, Charlotte Pipe and Foundry; Adam Botts, product manager for Viega; and Steven Dolejsi, applications engineering manager, IPEX.

The medical profession confronts dual challenges: ensuring positive outcomes for patients while tackling the prevalence of healthcare-associated infections. Healthcare management is deeply focused on addressing these critical issues.

A reader asked if the process for water heater selection could be used for selecting a faucet. This column provides the process steps for selecting faucets, without discussing the findings in detail, as several resources are available for comparing faucet types.

When a plumbing engineer receives the design of a health care building — our minds gravitate to designing the system to optimize all the different considerations I mentioned above — with the fixture layout the architect has developed. But what if the layout changed? What if the amount of fixtures were reduced? 

Heat pumps are growing in importance due to climate change. Extensive investment in heat pump technology has led to higher heating capacities and smaller equipment sizes.

Have you heard of terms like "circular economy" or "EPR"? They describe regulations aimed at reducing packaging waste and promoting recycling. Let's explore California's draft regulation for implementing the Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act.

A problem is developing with the transition to electric heating: peak demand. Learn how air-to-water heat pumps tackle seasonal needs but struggle during extreme cold, leading to reliance on electric resistance heating.

Sooke School District responded to the influx of young families by swiftly constructing schools for 1,200 students. These LEED v4 Gold-certified buildings seamlessly integrated into the landscape, featuring photovoltaic panels, geothermal HVAC, and district heating for efficiency. Underground piping ensured optimal comfort while minimizing waste.