Technology Feature

Energizing smart buildings with innovative solutions

Reaching net zero emissions in a commercial building requires innovative thinking. But what about a building that can produce more energy than it consumes? 

This was the ambition of Powerhouse Alliance when designing Powerhouse Brattørkaia – Norway’s most energy-positive building. Powering the building required world-class innovation by the network of experts from the Johnson Controls team. Their expertise – combined with a legacy in industrial refrigeration since 1897 ­– brought this innovation to life. 

                                                                                      Partnering for success 

 The Powerhouse Brattørkaia project team turned to Johnson Controls; as the leader in innovative solutions for smart, healthy, and sustainable buildings. 

 The plan was to cover the exterior surface of the building in solar cells to generate energy. Approximately half the energy would go towards the electricity consumption of the building (lighting, computers, etc.) and the other half towards heating and cooling the building. It was up to Johnson Controls to determine how they would use the 50% allotted to achieve their net positive heating and cooling ambition. 

                                                                      The power of heat pump innovation 

To move the project forward, Roar Traelnes, Sales Manager, and his team; together with Morten Deding, Heat Pump Director and Specialist at Johnson Controls, suggested an innovative route. The solution would prove to be crucial to the outcome of the overall project.

 The answer to producing the remaining 50% was in the installation of just one heat pump – the Sabroe HeatPAC-104S single-stage heat pump R717. The heat pump would then interact with Johnson Controls OpenBlue technologies.

Morten Deding explains: “The beauty of this heat pump is its different capabilities. Using the same technology, we can switch its function from chiller to heat pump, depending on the temperature needs. Keeping the temperature in the system below 50c, the heat pump acts as a normal refrigeration system with incredible efficiency. The design and its installation as a low temperature heat pump achieves high COP [Coefficient of Performance] and low operating costs. Making it the only suitable option to meet the net zero criteria.” 

 The low temperature central heating system proved to be the game changer. Low-charge ammonia would act as a natural refrigerant and a high COP would be achieved with the use of seawater as both a source of free cooling and heating. 

“It’s a bit like driving your car. When you’re going on a flat road, you use one gear and when going uphill, you use another. The brilliance of this installation is that you’re creating a situation where the heat pump operates as if you’re driving downhill – still operating but with minimal energy use,” says Morten. 

                                                                Predicting the behavior of the building 

 However, for the heat pump to perform effectively it needed to be able to cope with the variations in load and capacity that would naturally occur once the office building was operational. 

“The key to achieving energy surplus was being able to predict energy consumption during operation. This is where OpenBlue excelled, because traditionally when you build an office building, there’s a very long phase where you must learn about the building and then you have to analyze if you are above or below predictions. 

But with OpenBlue , the system offers visibility to enable the possibility of mitigating the unforeseen from day one. Energy consumption can sometimes deviate significantly from predictions. Now operating for over a year and a half, all predictions have proved to be correct. For me, it was one of the main reasons why the goal of producing surplus energy was met,” says Morten. 

                                                  The development of a district energy system 

In 2019, Johnson Controls installed a single seawater-sourced natural refrigerant heat pump in the 18,200 m2, eight-floor Powerhouse Brattørkaia. 

Its low energy consumption pumps hot water for heating to Powerhouse Brattørkaia and to the Trondheim Business School campus next to it. Once pumped into the business school for heating, the water then loops back to Powerhouse where the remaining heat is used. The pump also operates the complete cooling and heating of some surrounding buildings through a district energy system. This, along with other innovative solutions from Johnson Controls, means the building produces surplus energy during the summer. 

                                                                      Innovation that never sleeps 

Our business was founded on innovation – it’s in our DNA. We spearhead the creation and adoption of advanced building solutions – and we’ve been doing it for more than 135 years. The groundbreaking work at Powerhouse Brattørkaia is just another example of how we don’t just produce an answer for our customers, we find the answer that meets their specific needs. 

Our headquarters building in Cork is home to one of our OpenBlue Innovation Centers situated across the globe. This means the sun never sets on our innovation efforts. This passion for the new idea, the fresh perspective, is alive in all we do, and we channeled that spirit into a solution for Powerhouse Brattørkaia that sets new standards for heat pump operation and optimization. 

Learn more about OpenBlue Innovation Centers here.