Panasonic provides energy savings at a holiday resort in the Canaries
Specifying a system which can provide heat and hot water, supply sufficient air conditioning to cool hotel rooms, spa facilities and communal areas, whilst still keeping energy costs low, is a regular challenge confronted by hotel chains across the Canary Islands.
The exclusive Sunprime Atlantic View resort, owned by Thomas Cook, has 229 rooms plus full spa and swimming pool facilities. Holding an EU-Eco Label as testament to its commitment to the environment, Sunprime had set a goal to reduce its energy bills by 25%.
Its current heating and cooling system had proved to be extremely costly. Seven years ago, two large chillers had been installed to cool the rooms, whilst a gas boiler system heated the water, swimming pools and spa centre. Both systems were proving to be inadequate, with high running costs for the hotel plus customer satisfaction, claims about the fluctuations in water temperature for the swimming pools.
In search of a more cost and energy efficient system, five of Panasonic’s ECO G VRF systems were specified as they met all of the hotels heating and cooling needs via one simple solution.
Extensive development and research into the technology behind Panasonic’s ECO G system means these units use an engine cooling system, to heat water at up to 75ºC, covering all heating demands for the hotel. This includes all the rooms and most impressively, to heat the spa and outdoor swimming pool facilities, keeping temperatures at a consistent temperature of 28ºC. Additionally, Panasonic’s ECO G systems offered the ultimate ease of maintenance thanks to its remote monitor and maintenance software, which allowed the Maintenance Manager to control the status and temperature of the hotel from any site.
“Not only did the Panasonic system enable all of our heating and cooling requirements to be fulfilled through one compact system, but the installation itself was extremely quick, meaning the normal operation of the hotel was not affected,” explains Angel Hernandez Ramos, Resort Manager Sunprime Resorts. “Our customer satisfaction ratings have improved as a result of installing this system, which has meant an extremely quick return on investment for us.”
This new solution from Panasonic provided the hotel with energy savings so quickly that it was decided to replace the heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) systems in other Sunprime hotels across the Canary Islands, including Hotel Sunprime Riviera Beach & Spa, Arguineguín.
Within one year, Sunprime Atlantic View Hotel had made savings of 24% in electricity consumption and 32% in gas consumption, surpassing its original goals, thanks to a more efficient system by Panasonic.