Space heating is provided by high efficiency gas-fired boilers supplying a compensated radiator
circuit. Local zone control is obtained using two-port valves. The boilers also supply domestic
hot water, augmented by 60 m² of roof-based solar thermal collectors. The building is predominantly
naturally ventilated with some local mechanical ventilation of toilets, food preparation
areas and office equipment rooms. The council chamber, meeting rooms subject to intermittent high occupancy and IT rooms, are provided with mechanical ventilation with comfort cooling supplied by an ir-cooled chiller linked to low-level distribution. No spaces are fully air-conditioned.
Aras Chill Dara Building, Naas, Ireland
Acronym of the case
AdVent Case 16
Author(s) information
Lessons learnt
The use of controls that default to ‘off’ worked well. The commissioning of automatic window
and lighting systems was time-consuming but ultimately beneficial. Daylight modeling was used to
show that light shelves and reflectors can balance the distribution of natural light. This assisted in
reducing the use of shading, therefore increasing the efficiency of lighting controls while helping to
maintain excellent comfort conditions.
