THE CHALLENGE:

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Our EnviroGen was used for improving the efficiency of an HVAC system. The waste heat was used in an adsorption chiller during summer and used for LTHW (low-temperature hot water) boiler in the winter.

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E3NV had to overcome many challenges on this particular job site.

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We had never done a job for a department store before, and there was little industry precedent for cogeneration in this setting. They had very high operating costs that were similar to that of a hospital. Our engineers were able to design a system just for Macy’s HVAC system.

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The environmental regulations were beyond absurd. New York State DEC has their regulations; New York City DEP have their regulations, and the EPA have their federal regulations. We had to develop technology with near-zero NOx emissions. We also had to reduce NMHC (non-methane hydrocarbons) for use in a populated area. Of course, we still had to comply with CO2 emission laws at the same time. It took a very long time, but we got air permitting completed. All emissions were below the acceptable limit.

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New York is known for many things. One thing we did not know about going into the project were the laws regarding New York union workers. Needless to say, we had to learn quickly. If labor is going to take more than three days, then you are required, by law, to hire New York union welders and steam pipe fitters. As these costs were prohibitive, we pre-assembled the entire cogen system, lifted the whole assembly by crane, and set up the EnviroGen system in three days.