Optidrive Variable Frequency Drive: Ideal for Gallery HVAC Systems – Application
Problem
The National Portrait Gallery in Washington is the city’s third oldest building. During the gallery’s renovation, a new HVAC system was installed. It was required to precisely regulate the temperature in rooms where some of the nation’s historical portraits are stored and exhibited.
Solution
Optidrive Eco HVAC variable frequency drives are used worldwide to control HVAC systems. Their application in the National Portrait Gallery in Washington demonstrates the critical role this drive plays in preserving a part of the United States’ heritage.
NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY
The National Portrait Gallery is located in the Patent Office Building, the third oldest federal building in Washington D.C. (after the White House and the Capitol Building). As part of the Smithsonian Institution, the American people have designated it as a place to preserve portraits of generations of prominent Americans. These include distinguished Americans such as George Washington, Martin Luther King, George Gershwin, Bob Hope, Marilyn Monroe, Babe Ruth, and others. In total, it houses over 100,000 portraits and stories of notable Americans.
When the National Portrait Gallery reopens in July 2006, it will feature a brand new, state-of-the-art York International HVAC system, equipped with Optidrive Eco HVAC units from Invertek Drives.
Many Optidrive units are connected to Siemens APOGEE FLN PLCs via Invertek Modbus optional modules. Others are controlled independently, serving zonal equipment in ‘hot spots’ and hard-to-condition areas typical of older buildings.
Due to the historical and highly valuable contents of the National Portrait Gallery, Invertek Drives recently conducted commissioning and maintenance training for Optidrive units for employees of Pierce Associates (the project engineering firm).
Dan Donaghy, Pierce’s Project Manager, and other attendees, all of whom had ‘previous experience with A-Z brands of variable frequency drives,’ provided numerous positive comments regarding the excellent features and ease of use of Optidrive.
According to an Invertek Drives USA spokesperson, “Invertek drives are increasingly specified by consulting engineering firms and chosen by several HVAC OEMs. The National Portrait Gallery is a very important and prestigious project for Invertek, and further success is anticipated in the coming months and years.”
