Our HVAC Projects & Case Studies

The Challenge

The client was setting up their new 15,000 sq ft office in Hinjewadi Phase 2 with a move-in deadline driven by their existing lease expiry. The timeline was extremely tight — 22 working days from fit-out clearance to occupancy. Additionally, the client had a server room requirement that their previous HVAC quote had addressed with standard split ACs — a solution AirSmart assessed as fundamentally inadequate for the heat load and redundancy requirements of a server room housing critical production infrastructure. Additional complications included working in an active IT park with strict contractor access protocols, noise restrictions during business hours in adjacent occupied floors, and coordinating with 4 other fit-out contractors simultaneously.

AirSmart's Assessment & Design

AirSmart was engaged after the client had received one other HVAC quote. Our first action was to conduct a proper site inspection and load calculation — which the previous contractor had not done. The load calculation revealed that the previous quote's system capacity was undersized by approximately 20% for the office floors and completely inadequate for the server room.

For the server room, we designed a precision cooling solution using two 5 TR PAC units in an N+1 configuration — one unit can handle the full server room heat load, so if either fails, the other takes over without temperature rise. The PAC units maintain 45–55% RH. Hot aisle/cold aisle containment was implemented, reducing cooling energy consumption in the server room by approximately 30%.

For the office floors, we designed a 72 TR VRF system with 28 indoor units, zoned to provide independent temperature control across the open-plan floor, meeting rooms, director offices, reception, and the pantry. Fresh air ventilation was designed at 10 L/s per person for the rated 200-person capacity, implemented using an ERV unit that recovered approximately 70% of the energy from exhausted air.

Execution

AirSmart submitted a detailed project execution plan coordinating our installation sequence with the other fit-out contractors. Structural penetrations for refrigerant lines and fresh air ducting were done first (coordinating with civil team) before ceiling works closed access. Outdoor unit lifting to the roof was scheduled during the one available crane window. Internal works were completed in phases aligned with the ceiling installation progression. Work on the server room HVAC was prioritized to allow IT infrastructure to be installed early. The server room HVAC was operational and tested 3 days before the rest of the floor, giving the IT team their needed lead time. The project was completed in 17 working days — one day inside the agreed program, with all contractor access protocols observed and zero site incidents.

Outcome

• System delivered target temperatures within 20 minutes of start-up on commissioning day.
• Server room maintaining 22°C ± 1°C and 48% RH — within ASHRAE recommended parameters.
• All 4 meeting rooms achieving setpoint within 12 minutes from unoccupied to full capacity.
• Client enrolled in Quarterly Comprehensive AMC — now in year 2 with zero emergency breakdowns.
• Post-installation energy audit showed 18% better efficiency than comparable IT offices in the same park running older non-inverter systems.

The Challenge

The client had been operating their metal fabrication workshop for 7 years with inadequate ventilation. The facility had a basic roof-mounted fan that did little to address the welding fumes generated by their 12 welding stations operating simultaneously. Workers were complaining of respiratory irritation, headaches, and eye irritation. The client had also received a notice during a factory inspection citing inadequate ventilation under Section 14 of the Factories Act. They needed a compliant ventilation solution that would resolve the worker health issues and satisfy the regulatory requirements — but the facility was a working production unit that could not simply shut down for extended installation work.

AirSmart's Assessment & Design

AirSmart conducted a site assessment that began with mapping the positions of all 12 welding stations, understanding the welding processes used, and reviewing the existing ventilation. Our assessment confirmed the existing ventilation was grossly inadequate. We designed a two-tier ventilation solution. The primary system was Local Exhaust Ventilation (LEV) — 12 flexible extraction arms, each positioned at a welding station to capture fumes at source before they dispersed. The LEV system used a 15,000 CFM centrifugal fan with a filter unit. The secondary system was general dilution ventilation — 6 roof-mounted powered exhaust units drawing 5,000 CFM each, combined with 4 wall-mounted supply air units to provide makeup air. The control room received dedicated split AC with positive pressurisation to prevent workshop dust entry.

Execution

Installation was planned in phases to maintain production continuity. The general roof ventilation units were installed first — during a shutdown weekend for the roof penetration work — then operational the following week. The LEV system was installed station by station during production hours, with each station's extraction arm operational before moving to the next. Total installation time was 11 working days (including the weekend shutdown for roof work).

Outcome

• Factory re-inspection passed with compliance certification for Section 14 ventilation requirements.
• Worker health complaints (respiratory irritation, headaches) ceased within 2 weeks of system operation.
• Workshop temperature reduced from peak 42°C to 33–34°C during summer — a significant improvement in worker comfort.
• Client enrolled in bi-annual AMC for the ventilation system.

The Challenge

The client's facility manager contacted AirSmart after a frustrating 18 months with their existing HVAC maintenance contractor. In that period, they had experienced 3 emergency breakdowns — including a compressor failure that took 5 days to repair because the previous contractor did not carry stock and had to order parts, leaving the 3rd floor without cooling for a full working week in April. The facility manager suspected the breakdowns were not just bad luck — that the previous 'maintenance visits' were not being performed thoroughly. Service records showed generic, undated checkboxes with no measurement data, and several items that were supposedly 'checked' showed obvious signs of being long-neglected.

AirSmart's Assessment & Design

AirSmart conducted a comprehensive condition assessment of all 26 HVAC units across the 3-floor building. The assessment revealed: 18 of 22 split ACs had severely fouled filters (several blocked almost completely), 12 units had dirty evaporator coils, 4 units had refrigerant levels below optimal (indicating slow leaks not addressed), 2 units had failing capacitors showing visible bulging, the precision AC for the server room had an inoperative drain pump, and 3 AHU units had belt-drive fan assemblies with worn belts. We prepared a phased remediation plan — categorizing issues by urgency (immediate, within 30 days, within 90 days) — and presented this alongside our AMC proposal.

Execution

The remediation was completed within the proposed timeline, with the most urgent items (failing capacitors, inoperative drain pump, refrigerant leaks) addressed within the first two weeks. Regular, thorough maintenance was then established on a quarterly cycle. Written, measurement-backed reports were issued for every unit after each visit.

Outcome

• Zero emergency breakdowns in the 12 months following AMC commencement — compared to 3 in the previous 6 months.
• Energy consumption for HVAC reduced by estimated 22% following remediation of fouled coils, correct refrigerant charge, and filter replacement — verified by comparing electricity bills.
• Full quarterly service reports provided — facility manager now has complete, verifiable maintenance documentation for the first time.
• AMC renewed at 12 months and continues.

The Challenge

The building owner was operating a 10-year-old building with the original R-22 split AC systems. The systems were experiencing increasing breakdowns, R-22 refrigerant was becoming expensive and difficult to procure as the phase-out accelerated, and the systems' energy consumption was significantly higher than modern alternatives — directly affecting tenants' operating costs and making the building less competitive in the market. The challenge was executing a full HVAC retrofit on a building with 4 floors occupied by 6 tenants who could not be asked to vacate. Each floor's HVAC would need to be replaced while the other floors remained operational, and each floor's replacement would need to be completed quickly enough that tenants were not without HVAC for extended periods.

AirSmart's Assessment & Design

AirSmart's assessment confirmed the economic case for full replacement rather than continued maintenance of the aging R-22 systems. We designed a new VRF system using the existing refrigerant pipe routes where the pipe condition assessment confirmed they were serviceable, and new routes where pipes were corroded or incorrectly sized. The new system design provided dedicated metering per tenant floor — allowing the building owner to allocate energy costs accurately to each tenant. The floor-by-floor execution plan ensured each floor's new HVAC was installed and commissioned within 5 working days, giving tenants a maximum of one week's disruption. Temporary portable AC units were provided for the server rooms during the transition period.

Execution

Full 4-floor retrofit was completed in 21 working days — within the 4-week program. All 6 tenants remained on site throughout, and coordination with electrical and ceiling contractors was managed in night and weekend shifts. The outdoor condenser layouts on the roof were optimized to reclaim floor space.

Outcome

• Full 4-floor retrofit completed in 21 working days — within the 4-week program.
• Post-retrofit energy consumption comparison (3 months of data) showed 34% reduction vs same period previous year.
• All 6 tenants reported improved comfort and control versus the old system.
• No tenant required to relocate during the project.
• Building now fully R-32 refrigerant — future-proof against further R-22 phase-out costs.
• Building owner enrolled in Quarterly AMC for the new VRF system.

The Challenge

The client operated a distribution warehouse with high picking and packing activity. During Pune's summer months, warehouse temperatures were regularly reaching 40–42°C — conditions causing heat stress incidents among workers, reducing packing output rates, and creating a risk management problem for HR and operations leadership. Conventional AC was not a viable option for the 12,000 sq ft open warehouse volume — the installation and operating cost was prohibitive. The client needed a cost-effective solution that meaningfully reduced worker heat exposure without requiring impractical capital expenditure.

AirSmart's Assessment & Design

AirSmart proposed a solution combining 3 complementary systems. Industrial evaporative coolers positioned at floor level to supply cool air directly into the picking and packing zones where workers spent the most time. Powered roof exhaust fans to continuously remove hot air rising to the ceiling and draw fresh air through the evaporative coolers and low-level inlets. Air curtains on all 4 loading dock doors to reduce heat infiltration during dock operations. The evaporative coolers were positioned based on the picking zone layout — directing cool air flows along the main picking aisles where workers walked most frequently. The exhaust fan positioning was designed to create a directional airflow that swept hot air from the picking zones toward the exhaust points.

Execution

Installation was completed in 8 working days. The ducting runs for the evaporative coolers were hung from the warehouse structural trusses, coordinating with local fabricators. Cable drops for the electrical lines were run from the main overhead distribution. The loading docks were fitted with high-velocity air curtains to seal out hot air sweeps.

Outcome

• Average temperature in picking zones reduced from 41°C to 32°C during peak summer hours — a 9°C reduction.
• Zero heat stress incidents in the first summer season post-installation (vs 3 incidents in the previous summer).
• Packing output rate improved by 12% in summer months (as measured by the client).
• Total project cost was 20% of what conventional AC would have cost for equivalent area.
• Operating cost of the evaporative system is approximately 15% of what equivalent refrigerant-based cooling would cost.

The Situation

The client called AirSmart's emergency line at 11:35 PM. Their primary server room precision AC had failed completely. The backup unit (a standard split AC) was running but was insufficient to handle the full server room heat load — temperature was at 29°C and rising at approximately 1°C per 15 minutes. At that rate, they estimated they had approximately 90 minutes before servers would begin thermal throttling and potentially shutting down. Several production systems were running on these servers, and a shutdown would have caused significant business impact. This client was not an AirSmart AMC client — they had no existing relationship with us, calling us based on a recommendation from another tenant in the building.

AirSmart's Response

Our on-call technician was dispatched within 5 minutes of the call being received. He arrived at 12:15 AM with our standard emergency parts inventory. Diagnosis confirmed a compressor failure in the primary PAC unit — not repairable on-site. However, there was a backup split AC unit in the server room that was operational but not configured for the server room's airflow requirements. Our technician reconfigured the backup split AC — repositioning the indoor unit's airflow direction, adjusting the thermostat setpoint, and positioning portable fans brought from our vehicle — to maximize its effectiveness for the server room heat load. This stabilised the temperature long enough for production systems to complete their current processes safely. A follow-up visit was scheduled for the next morning to install a permanent replacement.

Outcome

• Server room temperature stabilised at 24°C using reconfigured backup system — within acceptable limits.
• No server shutdowns or data loss.
• Failed PAC unit assessed and replacement specified the next morning.
• Replacement PAC unit installed within 4 business days.
• Client enrolled in Quarterly Comprehensive AMC following the incident.