Leung Apartment
Overview
The notion of “face” has a specific meaning in Chinese culture, indicating a sense of prestige and honor. So, it is no wonder that Franz Leung, The Unico System representative for the country, chose his own, elegant high-rise Beijing apartment as a working showroom and example of the system’s benefits. “In China, image is everything,” explains Franz, “This installation sets the stage with prestige and luxury, so consumers can relate comfort with these qualities.”
The apartment also allows visitors to witness first-hand how The Unico System fits easily into small spaces and compliments the apartment’s aesthetics, key factors for the capital city’s multitude of high-rise buildings.
Benefits - Ideal for heating or cooling buildings with:
- Electric Heat
- Hot Water Heat
- Chilled Water Loops
- Steam Heat
- Radiant Floor Heat
- Inadequate of No Ductwork
- Limited Space
- Inadequate Cooling on Upper Levels
- Baseboard Heat
- Radiator Heat
Strategy
Because high-rise apartment living constitutes the majority of Beijing’s residential makeup, forced air systems have all but disappeared, replaced by fan coil units and chillers. When Franz bought the unit, he immediately replaced the existing fan coils with two 5-ton Unico Green Series air handlers. He kept the two original 6-ton chillers as the source of cold water for the cooling coils and integrated the hot water coils with a radiant floor heating system. Franz also added a humidifier and a fresh air recovery system. Franz opted to install an additional two 1.5-ton Green Series air handlers for the guest wing, consisting of two bedrooms, two bathrooms and an additional living room. While the two 5-ton air handlers are more than sufficient for the 4,000 sf apartment, Franz wanted to showcase the excellent zoning capabilities of The Unico System.
Results
With the rise in popularity of tile and stone flooring in China, radiant heat systems have become more commonplace. However, their slow response requires the quicker supplemental heating available with The Unico System. In addition, Beijing’s pollution renders air quality an important factor in residential HVAC, hence the addition of the fresh air recovery system. Combining or integrating these types of systems with fan coils is quite costly and complicated, but very easy with The Unico System – another benefit that can be experienced in Franz’s showroom apartment.
Previously, Chinese consumers hadn’t put much thought into their indoor comfort needs, leading developers to install low-cost equipment to keep things as cheap as possible. “But, Chinese consumers have come of age in terms of home comfort,” notes Franz, “A showroom like ours allows them to experience a difference and make a better choice.”
