Westridge Middle School
Grand Island, Nebraska
Kucirek Engineering was hired as the mechanical and electrical design consultant for this 140,000 square foot middle school for Grand Island Public Schools. The project consisted of designing an energy efficient HVAC system while incorporating state-of-the-art technologies. The total construction cost for the new middle school was roughly $17 million.The HVAC system was designed to provide heating and cooling through a single-duct variable air volume (VAV) system. Variable air volume terminal boxes were systematically located throughout the building to provide precise temperature control to individual zones. Two roof-mounted penthouse air handling units provide adequate air distribution and ventilation. Heating and cooling was provided via hot water and chilled water from high-efficiency boilers, chillers and distribution pumps. The zone that conditions the administration area was designed with a chilled water cooling coil and a direct-expansion (DX) cooling coil enabling the air handler to utilize chilled water if the chiller is operational or DX cooling if the chiller is off. This design concept was incorporated to save the owner operating costs by reducing the operation of the chiller during summer months when students are out and the adminstrators are present. 
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