Seminar 8 Comfort Challenges in Commercial Kitchens

Sunday, 26 June 2016: 11:00 AM-12:30 PM
Indoor Environment: Health, Comfort, Productivity
Chair: Russell Robison, Gaylord Industries
Technical Committee: 05.10 Kitchen Ventilation
CoSponsor: 04.01 Load Calculation Data and Procedures
With today’s intense focus on energy efficiency in our commercial buildings, kitchens present perhaps the greatest challenge of all. Balancing the most energy intense segment of our buildings with the oftentimes overlooked comfort of our kitchens must be a focus moving forward. This seminar presents the findings illustrating some of the current obstacles in this area and what our community is doing to bring back the balance.

1  Thermal Comfort in Commercial Kitchens: a Real-World Perspective!

Donald Fisher, P.Eng., Fisher Consultants
The restaurant industry in the United States is the second largest private-sector employer with a workforce of nearly 13 million. And while engineers designing HVAC systems for foodservice facilities recognize the importance of thermal comfort, the extent to which this design goal has been compromised has not been well documented by ASHRAE. This information gap became the catalyst for RP-1469, “Thermal Comfort in Commercial Kitchens.” The study focused on documenting the thermal environment, both winter and summer, in 100 food service facilities. Key findings of this study are presented in context with the author’s 40-year experience in commercial foodservice.

2  Latent and Sensible Loads in Commercial Kitchens and Dishrooms

Richard Swierczyna, Frontier Energy / Food Service Technology Center
Commercial kitchens and dishrooms house the equipment that generate the most intensive concentrations of sensible, latent and moisture loads in the commercial foodservice sector.  This presentation will include recent ASHRAE and industry data, and design recommendations for the the sensible, latent and moisture loads from kitchen equipment such as dishwashers, griddles, fryers, ovens and countertop appliances.

3  Considering Additional Loads Associated with Un-Tempered Kitchen Makeup Air

Jimmy Sandusky, Halton Company
Balancing energy efficiency, hood performance and thermal comfort is a difficult task for the commercial kitchen HVAC designer.  The need for makeup air in a commercial kitchen is well understood, but delivery strategies can vary widely.  Supplying un-tempered air at or near the kitchen hood is a common strategy and is a prescriptive option for California Title 24 compliance.  Although sometimes suitable in mild climates, un-tempered air can add loads that must be accounted for in the HVAC design.  This seminar presents this information for a variety of climate zones and best practice strategies for makeup air delivery.

4  Dew Point Designs for Commercial Kitchens

Greg DuChane, Oregon State University
ASHRAE 1449 RP reported that the majority of commercial kitchens are uncomfortable. Operating temperatures of 85⁰ to 90 ⁰F were reported for many kitchens. At these temperatures control of space humidity is critical to staff comfort. Kitchen HVAC designs must include consideration of the water used in many cooking and cleaning operations and consider the additional moisture that may be supplied thru unconditioned MUA systems in order to properly address kitchen comfort. This presentation will evaluate how HVAC designers may use dew point designs to improve staff comfort and safety in commercial kitchens.

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