10/06/17 – Keeping cool in the heat of the desert

Heat, shimmering, stifling, suffocating heat; that may be one of the first things that springs to mind when you think about the oil-rich countries of the Middle East, such as Qatar, Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia. The next thought may well be wealth, which has fuelled very fast and extensive development. Heat and wealth have proven very important to manufacturers of heat monitoring instrumentation. For example, Contrec’s 212 Heat Calculator is paving the way across the region in a wide range of applications from Qatar’s Pearl to Ski Dubai, calculating the energy used to cool these luxurious and dynamic buildings in the heat of the desert.

One of the most striking new developments in the region is the artificial island network of Pearl-Qatar, in Doha. When the whole project is complete the Pearl Lagoon will have more than 13 artificially constructed islands featuring luxury villas, apartments and five-star hotels, as well as shops, restaurants and entertainment facilities. The initial estimated construction cost of the project when it was first revealed in 2004 was $2.5 billion. It is now believed that the final cost will be in the region of $15 billion. There are 125 systems operating Contrec’s 212 Heat Calculator in the Pearl to date.

The World Trade Centre in Abu Dhabi is one of 330 such centres in nearly 100 countries around the world, all with the common purpose of facilitating and developing international trade and business. Designed by world-renowned architects Foster and Partners the striking building is a fully integrated mixed-use development with offices, residences, as well as having a hotel, retail mall and a traditional souk. It also features 90 heat monitoring systems with the Contrec 212.

Skiing and deserts do not necessarily go together. However, Ski Dubai opened in 2005 offers five runs, of varying difficulty, height and steepness. The longest run is 400 metres with a descent of 60 metres, making it the first ever indoor black run. Skiers and snowboarders of all skill levels are welcome, and so are those, adults and children alike, just wishing to experience snow for the first time in the world’s largest indoor snow park. There are even penguins at Ski Dubai, giving people the opportunity to meet these Antarctic birds first-hand. It takes a lot of energy to create enough snow to service this enormous 22,500 square metre construction and to keep it cool; 60 Contrec 212 Heat Calculators have been installed to monitor this energy consumption.

Dubai Metro, with 47 stations and two transfer stations, has also installed Contrec’s 212 Heat Calculators. With a daily average temperature of 360C (960F) in the summer, with the highest temperature recorded 52.10C (1260F), Dubai needs to keep cool. Stations, trains, shopping malls, offices and homes all have air conditioning.

Saudi Arabia, with similar temperatures, faces these same challenges. The King Abdulaziz International Airport, just north of Jeddah the largest city of Western Saudi Arabia, was opened in 1981 and is the country’s busiest airport. As well as serving this wealthy and dynamic city it is also the gateway to Islam’s holy city of Mecca, which explains its size and its footfall. The Hajj Terminal has been designed to handle the vast numbers of pilgrims visiting the country to take part in the rituals associated with the annual Hajj and can accommodate 80,000 travellers at the same time.

The Hajj Terminal is known for its tent-like roof structure with ten modules, each consisting of 21 tents of white coloured Teflon-coated fibreglass fabric suspended from pylons. There are 55 systems with Contrec 212 Heat Calculators in this striking building.

Contrec’s 212 Heat Calculator is ideal for these applications. It is designed to measure the energy consumed in chilled water cooling systems and supplied complete with temperature probes. It has the capacity to interface with a wide range of flowmeters, including positive displacement and inferential water meters, magnetic flowmeters and pulse outputs, turbine and paddle wheel flowmeters.

International boundaries are not a problem for the Contrec 212, with its multilingual capability. Data-logging and peak/off peak operations are standard. With accuracy to OIML R75 Class 4 and EN1434 it has the standardised accuracy that meets European and International approvals for heat calculators. In addition its inherent flexibility allows the 212 to also measure the energy consumed in hot water heating systems.

Contrec’s 212 Heat Calculator is a flexible and reliable instrument that enables businesses across a broad range of sectors to monitor the energy consumed in maintaining a pleasant temperature for employees, residents, customers and travellers alike; even in the heat of the desert.