Heat Recovery Technology a Great Fit for Hospitals Looking to Cut Energy Bills and GHG Emissions

Earlier today we announced that we received an order from a teaching hospital for one of our proprietary FLU-ACE® heat recovery systems. The FLU-ACE condensing heat recovery system is to be installed on the exhausts from two existing hot water boilers and one CHP. The waste heat will be used to generate hot water for use in hydronic heating and domestic hot water.

Based on our analysis of the information gathered on site, we expect the FLU-ACE system to provide the teaching hospital with annual savings of approximately $220 thousand, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 1,007 tonnes per year. 

Hospitals are very energy-intensive facilities

In terms of Btu per square foot, inpatient health care facilities are the second most energy-intensive facility type across the United States, according to the Energy Information Administration.

Just what makes them so energy-intensive?  Well for starters, hospitals are open 24 hours a day and are occupied by hundreds or thousands of employees, patients, and visitors. They tend to have sophisticated heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems to control temperatures and air flow.  Moreover, many energy-intensive activities occur in hospitals: laundry, medical and lab equipment use, sterilization, food service, refrigeration, and computer and server use.

Why FLU-ACE is a smart choice for hospitals

About 15% to 20% of the energy used in a boiler plant is lost up the boiler stack. FLU-ACE is a direct contact condensing heat recovery system that recycles the heat normally lost through the boiler flue gas exhaust. It effectively recovers this waste energy and uses it to preheat a heat sink – this could be water for your space heating, domestic hot water, boiler feed water, or outside air heating. By replacing the existing load with our recovered energy, many hospitals have been able to prove savings of 20% on their fuel bills.

Be sure to check out our case studies showing the proven benefits of our energy efficiency solutions for hospitals.
​

Case studies