High performance Bitzer Ecostar condensing units are at the heart of a new high efficiency refrigeration system installed at Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital NHS Trust.

The project, carried out by Adcock Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Ltd (Norwich) in conjunction with Serco Health Ltd, involved the installation and commissioning of the Bitzer Ecostar refrigeration systems linked to 17 evaporators within the Norwich hospital’s catering department.

The system, which runs on refrigerant R407F, replaces existing cooling equipment serving food preparation and storage rooms in the Serco catering facility, which had reached the end of its operational life.

The new installation includes both medium temperature chill rooms and a number of low temperature freezer rooms.

With more than 1000 beds, the hospital is one of the largest in the UK in terms of inpatient capacity. A key requirement of the project was to ensure that patient services remained unaffected by the works, and the catering department was able to continue to function as normal. This required careful planning, with a phased programme of installation and decommissioning to avoid disruption.

A new purpose-built modular freezer room is served by a fourth Bitzer Ecostar unit. The project included new control systems for evaporators, including full network integration to an existing Building Management System (BMS).

Bitzer Ecostar units were chosen for their excellent energy efficiency and proven reliability. Their outstanding energy performance is assisted by a built-in inverter and intelligent control system. This automatically adjusts the speed of the compressor and fan to precisely match the current cooling load. As a result, Ecostar delivers reduced operating costs, lower noise, extended life and significant reductions in carbon emissions.

With secure remote access via a PC or LAN, and heat recovery options, Ecostar offers a complete solution for high performance, high efficiency cooling.