Addressing the Thermal Load and Reducing Heating and Cooling Costs

For a company, it is essential to have the most effective management possible of heating and cooling systems. The first step in improving the thermal comfort of work environments is to measure the thermal load of a building.
Knowing the energy expenditure required to maintain stable temperature and humidity conditions within a space allows the evaluation of operations to make heating and cooling systems more efficient. The advantage at this point is twofold: on the one hand, it is important to reduce energy costs, and on the other, sustainability will benefit.
An organization needs to evaluate alternatives that can reduce the thermal load within buildings without significantly affecting costs, thus preventing savings on energy procurement from being offset elsewhere.
Are there effective solutions that allow the reduction of the thermal load without causing invasive and costly interventions on the building? The answer is yes.
In this article, we want to delve deeper into the topic to offer companies a new perspective on managing energy efficiency and, in particular, on the energy retrofitting of industrial buildings.

What is Thermal Load?

Without making it too technical and without resorting to formulas, defining the thermal load to clarify the context is of primary importance. Thermal load refers to the amount of thermal energy that dissipates from within a space to the outside during cold months or, conversely, the heat flow that accumulates during warm months.
Therefore, thermal load is defined as the thermal power that must be provided or removed from a space to maintain established and constant temperature and humidity conditions.
Specifically, thermal load is referred to as sensible or latent depending on whether it refers to the difference in temperature or humidity between the exterior and the interior.
While this article does not intend to delve into how these parameters are calculated and measured, it is sufficient to clarify that the better a building’s ability to respond to external climate variations, the lower its thermal load will be.
In other words, a well-insulated building will require less thermal power to maintain stable and comfortable temperature and humidity conditions within the interior environment. Because that is the point: creating indoor microclimates that, regardless of external fluctuations, can be considered pleasant with as little energy expenditure as possible.
It is also important to remember that this comfort is not only necessary for people, which is certainly a priority, but also for machinery and equipment that perform best in environments with stable and constant microclimates.

Solar Radiation and Energy Demand for Cooling

In the summer months—although, to be precise, it may no longer make sense to talk about seasonality as it was a while ago and thus it might be more appropriate to refer to warm months—the cooling of environments is determined by various factors.
Temperature and humidity of the outside air are data to which solar radiation and exposures are added, which undergo continuous variations throughout the day and are also influenced by weather conditions.
In spaces and work environments with a significant percentage of transparent surfaces, such as windows or glass walls, shading solutions like those used in residential settings (e.g., external shutters or blinds) are not always present. Often, these are buildings with architectural constraints that limit interventions, but in these specific circumstances, solutions to contain solar radiation are equally applicable.
Curtains or solar control films work precisely this way, reducing the impact of solar radiation that influences the indoor microclimate from the outside. This type of solution is extremely effective in reducing the thermal load because it acts very efficiently on the structural conditions of a building, making the work of the cooling systems less burdensome and, therefore, less energy-intensive.
The idea of reducing the thermal load and thus addressing the root of the problem creates the conditions for improving the performance of indoor microclimate management systems with reduced energy consumption and an end result closer to expectations.

Thermal Insulation of Glass Surfaces

Reversing the issue and considering the needs during the cold months—again, it seems almost reductive to call them winter—it makes little sense to evaluate the favorable contribution that can be generated by solar radiation, while the issue of thermal dispersion gains great importance.
Heating systems that must operate effectively in large spaces are not only challenged by heat generation but also by distribution and emission. These systems are put to the test when a building’s insulation is poor or, in the case of older buildings, entirely absent.
Even in this scenario, there are many intervention solutions to improve the energy efficiency related to heating, and in the case of buildings with a significant amount of transparent surfaces, acting on the masonry portions makes little sense.
In situations like this, the application of insulating films on glass surfaces proves to be highly effective because it intervenes on large surfaces and can have a significant impact.
Improving the insulation of spaces results in a drastic reduction of thermal dispersion, which consequently contributes to the efficiency of the heating systems.

Serisolar and Sustainable Thermal Load Management

In the energy retrofitting of industrial buildings, the containment of the thermal load and, therefore, the effort in terms of thermal power to maintain the microclimate of an interior environment is of great importance.
Serisolar’s consultants offer companies tailored solutions that take into account the analysis of the characteristics of each property. Only in this way can concrete energy efficiency goals be achieved concerning cooling and heating systems.
The added value that makes Serisolar the ideal partner for organizations seeking quality and innovation is sustainability. Offering structural, durable, and effective solutions for energy retrofitting while also responding to today’s needs for low-impact products is the mission Serisolar carries forward in every project.
Contact us to find out how to make your building capable of meeting the sustainability requirements demanded of companies and turn it into a work environment that promotes well-being and productivity.