Legally speaking, our MEP engineers decide this based on the factor of the building you’re living in. Chicago City Building Code has made it mandatory for office buildings, both high-rise, and low-rise, to install an emergency power system.
High-Rise Office Buildings:
Low-Rise Office Buildings:
This type of power systems design is implemented to provide power to systems which may cause a huge loss if left without power for more than some moments. Some of these design systems include sprinkler systems, fire alarm systems, alarms, life-support systems at the hospitals, chair-lifts, elevators and so on.
The design of this kind of power system is expected to:
The design should provide a facility for firefighter operations, and emergency evacuations and such.
The design is expected to:
The design for this kind of system is implemented to provide backup power for the comfort of the building attendees and users. These systems provide facility to prevent data losses from computers, provide human comfort through HVAC, keep the security system coverage to 24/7, keep refrigerators, heaters and communication system up and running according to the requirements.
The design is bound to:
Installation and Uninstalling Aspect : The NFPA 70 states that UL 2200 Standard for Stationary Engine Generator Assemblies must be a benchmark for all the emergency and standby generators, to be used in the city. On that note, it’s the duty of NYE engineers to practice safety with respect to the installation.
One aspect of safety is to not install the generator or its energy distribution channel in the same room as the main electrical assembly service. So the generators are then placed in an independent and isolated room other precautions like fire-barriers etc.
It is also essential to take care of the piping network. All the piping that passes through the room, that is not related to sprinkler systems or cooling systems, must go uninterrupted through the room. The fuel tanks which will be used for the generator are the only ones allowed inside the space.
Environmental Aspect : All fuel combustion appliances must be registered with the New York City Department of Environmental Protection. This includes both emergency and standby generators. Furthermore, our professional engineers cater to the possible dangers of natural hazard like a storm, flooding, sewer spew, and other physical dangers to moisture or materials, as defined in the NFPA 110. All this, while designing for these locations to be readily accessible in all type of hazards.
Operational Aspect : Our professionals are well-versed and experienced with tackling operational issues related to documentation, charging system for the batteries, inspection of faults, and lighting to visibility and untied small material that may disrupt the system.
Small objects are to be kept away from the room. In essence, objects like small blades, documents, loose paddings, plastic parts or wood fibers should be kept well away from the intake and exhaust channel, although we prefer to keep the room free of these troublesome elements altogether.
Lighting should be adequate, more than 1000 lux in both day and night. It should also never be chain-mounted; rather, it should be fixed hung to prevent oscillations of light under wind pressure and thus accidental damage. They may as well be surface-mounted. The fixtures should also be designed with a thermal capacity to bear high thermal loads. Moreover, they should also be resistant to dust and excess water vapor levels in the air. All these considerations are made by our engineers when designing the proper system for you.
Healthcare Application Aspect : Most noticeable in the case of medical facilities, the generator system, with its noise and pollution need to be taken special care of to mitigate the effects on the patients, ICUs, and the peace-seeking troubled attendees of the hospitals.
Our professionals are efficient at treating the acoustical flaws of the power generator, too. During the architectural design of a medical facility, the placement phase must be discussed with a proper MEP engineer so that these disturbances are minimum.
Electrical Aspect : The battery system of the generator is designed so that the voltage output never drops below ninety percent, with that being said, there’s also a deployment of an automatic recharge system as the law require. Electrical knowledge is also a core part of designing a power system and so even if you do not understand all of this, know that our engineers do and will make sure that everything is satisfied.
Proper fire-barrier, horizontal assemblies should be incorporated and only the piping of the sprinkler system may be incorporated. The voltage calculation is done prior to clearances for EPS and EPSS system because these may be considered as a variable that depends on the voltage.
Noise Aspect : We at NYE believe in providing the utmost comfort to our employers, and thus the aspect of noise is given special importance to, aside from the environmental aspect. A generator’s noise may disturb the occupants of a building and reduce the efficiency of work by around 60%. These noises arise from parts like cooling fans, electrical noise, exhaust, and engine block.
The prominent reason for the noise is vibration. Our professionals use especially rubber paddings, isolation springs and dampers to reduce noise pollution within the system and thus reducing overall noise within the building. However, there’s still some noise and therefore the overall placement of generators means dedicating a room to it that is far away from the occupants, especially the busy areas.
One more way to reduce the noise is by using exhaust mufflers, although it requires advanced knowledge of air flow and distances between the ventilators, the air dischargers, and the occupied spaces.
Our engineers, therefore, may deploy special sound attenuators, oversized enclosures and such to the conduit runs to dim the primary pathway for generator noise.
Fuel Aspect : This is one of the most important aspects of a power generator. Fuel is the direct source of energy and without proper precautions, you might find your machine operation but without fuel. If that’s the case in an emergency situation, you’re in big trouble.
Our MEP engineers have precise calculations for the amount of fuel required for the power generator per hour. Moreover, according to the requirement by the code, a full fuel input for around six hours of operation is measured and made available with a factor of safety. For all emergency situations, our engineers deploy the use of diesel as per the Chicago building code requirements. This diesel is stored on site in the sub-base tank or within a remote tank inside the room.
For residents who consider this overwhelming, the deployment of natural gas is also applicable for R-2 occupancy residential lots. However, as a precaution, as the law required, our engineers deploy a cut-off valve between the supply of gas to the generator and other appliances running on gas.
Exhaust and Ventilation Aspect : NYE professionals are the masters of computational fluid dynamics, something they’ve been doing for the entirety of their career. If you know anything about this software, it’s two things. One it is tough and requires a degree but the second is how useful it is to plot streamlines and potentials of fluids.
In our case, these fluids are exhaust fumes. On account of the US Environmental Protection Agency compliance of tier four, urea injection and other solutions like catalytic reduction are required, to reduce the amount of pollution.
Our MEP engineers are well-experienced with the sizing, configuration and optimal placement of conduit runs. Our engineers are also well-versed in the application of radiators to reduce the airflow requirements in the room, though this comes with an added adverse effect of reduced engine cooling reliability of the system.
Generally speaking, homeowners may need emergency generators in the case of uncalled for a power outage, in which case, they would use it for the HVAC comfort, freezers and refrigerators, security systems, and lighting. Community lots may not only get financial benefits but in some cases, the safety of lives on the lot. And industrial lots or hospitals are where the backup power becomes critically important.
has full knowledge about when to incorporate which type of generation system to fulfill your needs and the legal requirements.
Let’s have a look at some of the standards of our engineers, driven directly from the Chicago Building Code.
Emergency Power System:
Standby Power Systems:
Optional Standby Power Systems:
Not necessarily required by law but it will be good if it can handle these loads,
