This online course provides a comprehensive introduction to Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) design and applications for commercial buildings. The curriculum draws from several established InterPro HVAC courses and has been adapted for a flexible online format.

Participants learn about HVAC and refrigeration system components and how HVAC systems are designed to maintain comfortable, safe, healthy, and code-compliant indoor environments. The course also explores HVAC design considerations for healthcare facilities and data centers, two building types with high energy demands and significant opportunities for improved efficiency and performance.

• Apply ASHRAE standards related to comfort, indoor air quality, and energy performance
• Outline the key elements used in heating and cooling load calculations and energy modeling
• Describe major HVAC system components and principles of equipment selection
• Evaluate HVAC design considerations for healthcare facilities and data centers

• Facilities and building systems professionals seeking formal training in HVAC design and applications
• Facilities managers, engineers, and operations staff working in commercial or institutional buildings
• University, government, and industry professionals who prefer a comprehensive HVAC course delivered in an online format

Review of HVAC Fundamentals

• Welcome and introduction
• The need for environmental controls
• Abbreviations, units, and references
• Survey of ASHRAE standards

• Standard 55 – Thermal Environmental Conditions
• Standard 62.1 – Ventilation and Acceptable IAQ
• Standard 90.1 – Energy Standard for Sites and Buildings
• Additional references:  15, 34, 90.4, 169, 170, and 189.1

• Using a psychrometric chart
  • Properties of moist air
  • Sensible and latent heat
  • Mixing of two air streams
• Air handing units and distribution
• Vapor compression refrigeration
• Chilled water system components

Heat Transfer in Buildings

• Modes of heat transfer
  • Conduction
  • Convection
  • Radiation
• Time delay effects
• Weather data
  • Selecting design conditions
  • Dewpoint considerations
• Load vs. energy calculations

Heating and Cooling Loads     

• Exterior envelope
  • Wall and roof R-values
  • Window U-factors
  • Basement heat loss
• Internal load components
  • People
  • Lighting
  • Equipment
• Infiltration and ventilation
• Residential vs. commercial
• Cooling load calculation methods
  • CLTD / SCL / CLF method
  • Example 11 on page 28.54
• Hourly simulations
  • Using simulation software
  • Trane Trace 700 and 3D Plus

 Air Systems

• Ventilation and filtration
• Air distribution systems
  • Constant volume
  • Variable Air Volume (VAV)
  • Dedicated Outdoor Air Systems (DOAS)
• Dilution air vs. displacement
• Terminal air equipment
  • Fan coil units
  • VAV boxes
  • Grilles, registers and diffusers
• Exhaust air systems

 Ductwork and Fans

• Material specifications
  • Construction
  • Insulation
  • Duct specialties
• Ductwork sizing
• Layout and distribution
• Static pressure calculations
• Fan wheel types
• Fan laws and system curve

 HVAC Equipment Selection

• Motors
  • Types and options
  • Selection
• Motor controls
  • Disconnect switches
  • Starters
  • Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs)
• Packaged equipment
  • Packaged rooftop units
  • Split D/X systems
• Heating and cooling coils
  • Coil performance
  • Types and sizing
  • Coil selection
• Other terminal devices
  • Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF)
  • Radiant heating
  • Chilled beams

 Refrigerant Safety         

• ASHRAE Standard 34
  • Safety group classes
  • Flammability classes
• ASHRAE Standard 15
  • Updates in the 2024 edition
  • System classifications
  • Effective dispersal volume
  • Class A2L refrigerants
• Examples
  • VRF system with A1 refrigerant
  • VRF system with A2L refrigerant

 Hydronics and Plant Equipment

• Piping material, valves and fittings
• Pipe sizing and distribution
  • Pressure calculations
  • Reverse return piping
• Pump selection and performance
  • Pump curves
  • Parallel operation
• Hydronic specialty sizing
  • Expansion tanks
  • Pressure relief valves
• Primary plant cooling equipment
  • Chillers
  • Cooling towers
  • Condensers
• Steam and hot water heating

 Control Sequences

• Types of control
  • Manual and automatic
  • Pneumatic and DDC
  • On / Off and modulating
• Building Automation System (BAS)
• Energy conservation measures
  • Schedule and setback
  • Demand Control Ventilation (DCV)
  • Temperature and pressure reset
• ASHRAE Guideline 36
• Retro-commissioning

Healthcare

• Healthcare codes and standards
  • 2023 HVAC Applications – Chapter 9
  • FGI – Facility Guidelines Institute
  • ASHRAE 170 – Ventilation of Health Care Facilities
  • NFPA 99 – Health Care Facilities Code
  •  
• Examples of requirements
  • Infection Control Risk Assessment (ICRA)
  • Water treatment and circulation
  • Indoor Air Quality and air filtration (IAQ)
  • Air pressurization requirements
  • Humidity requirements
    • Steam humidification
    • Adiabatic humidification
  • Emergency power / standby
• Authorities Having Jurisdiction
  • Governing agencies
• Facility types
  • Hospitals
  • Outpatient facilities
  • Nursing homes and residencies
• Healthcare-specific design considerations by space type

Data Centers  

• Data center facility and equipment topology
  • Data center types
  • ITE form factors
• Data center power and cooling trends
  • Impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI)
• ASHRAE thermal guidelines
  • Air cooling (recommended and allowable)
  • Liquid cooling (W and S classes)
  • Contamination (particulate and gaseous)
• Airflow distribution
• Air cooling systems
  • CRAC and CRAH unit
  • Close coupled cooling
• Liquid cooled IT equipment
• Air- and water-side economizers

 Defining Uptime Expectations

• Standards and guidelines
• Best practices
• Mechanical system topologies
• Electrical system topologies
• Performance analysis and optimization
• Risk and availability assessment

 Energy Code Compliance

• Overview of compliance paths
  • IECC prescriptive
  • IECC performance
  • ASHRAE 90.1
• Portions of the prescriptive energy code
  • Building envelope requirements
  • Simplified HVAC compliance
  • Prescriptive compliance
    • Fan power
    • Duct leakage
    • Lighting
  • Information required for COMcheck
  • Building performance simulation paths
    • Performance Cost Index (PCI)
    • Building Performance Factor (BPF)

• Prescriptive compliance package
• Building performance simulation software
• eQUEST
• EnergyPlus
• AI workflows for HVAC design and compliance

 Building Information Modeling

• Floor plans and sections
• Equipment schedules
• System layout and sizing
• Revit load calculations
• Design coordination

Brian Clark

Brian Clark, PE, is a registered mechanical engineer at the National Laboratory of the Rockies. His experience is extensive and includes HVAC design of health care, laboratories, clean rooms, manufacturing, office space, and indoor waterpark resorts to name a few. He now focuses on building energy security and resilience research. Brian received his BS degree in Mechanical Engineering from Milwaukee School of Engineering.

Dustin Demetriou

Dustin W. Demetriou, PhD, is a Senior Technical Staff Member and Master Inventor at IBM where he leads the sustainability and data center innovation team. He has more than 15 years of experience focused on data center optimization and advanced electronics cooling technologies. He is an Uptime Institute Accredited Sustainability Advisor. He is the current Chair of the ASHRAE TC 9.9 IT Subcommittee, the past Chair of ASHRAE TC 9.9, and an ASHRAE Distinguished Lecturer 

Dustin received his BS in Mechanical Engineering from Manhattan College, and MS and PhD in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from Syracuse University.

Kyle Hansen

Kyle Hansen leads the BIM (Building Information Management) group in Affiliated Engineers, Inc.'s (AEI) Madison headquarters. Since joining the firm in 2004, Kyle has been instrumental in expanding the technical capabilities of the BIM software suite and related design technologies. He has been the BIM Lead for many of AEI's most prominent large-scale, technically complex projects involving coordination of extended multi-firm project delivery teams, primarily in the national healthcare and research markets. Kyle's firsts for AEI include: first use of Revit Server model sharing and the implementation of owner/contractor asset tracking for the UWHealth's The American Center facility, first use of the subsequent BIM 360 simultaneous design platform, and first use of virtual reality for the Caltech Tianqiao & Chrissy Chen Institute for Neuroscience. He is a member of the National BIM Standards Committee. 

Mark Malkin

Mark P. Malkin, PE, is a program director in the Office of Interdisciplinary Professional Programs in the College of Engineering at UW-Madison. He is a registered Professional Engineer with over 25 years of experience in university facilities project management and HVAC systems design. His course offerings include HVAC, plumbing and fire protection fundamentals, building code reviews, and design and operation of science labs, data centers, museums and libraries. Mark received his bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University, and his MS in Mechanical Engineering from UW–Madison.

Sagar Rao

Sagar Rao is a Co-Founder of NeuMod Labs in Madison Wisconsin, with a background in building physics, data engineering, and software development. As a Building Performance Consultant, he has successfully delivered over 50 high performance buildings for a clientele that includes federal agencies, state authorities, prominent healthcare systems, renowned universities, financial institutions, and national laboratories. Sagar provides leadership to several ASHRAE, International Building Performance Simulation Association (IBPSA), and Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) committees.

Douglas Reindl

Douglas Reindl, PhD, PE is a professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and a Program Director at the Office of Interdisciplinary Professional Programs at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He brings extensive expertise in mechanical systems, with a particular focus on industrial ammonia refrigeration. As the founding director of the Industrial Refrigeration Consortium, Dr. Reindl is dedicated to advancing the safety, efficiency, and reliability of refrigeration infrastructure. He holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering Technology from the Milwaukee School of Engineering, and both MS and PhD degrees in Mechanical Engineering from UW–Madison. A registered professional engineer in Wisconsin, Dr. Reindl is widely recognized for his leadership in refrigeration education and applied research.

Richard Schlosser

Richard Schlosser, principal at TiePoint-bkm Engineering in Baltimore, Maryland, is a registered professional engineer with more than 35 years of experience designing and commissioning Tier III and Tier IV power systems for computer and computer-related facilities. He served as a technical advisor to the Site Uptime Network for more than ten years. Richard holds a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering degree from Johns Hopkins University and a Master of Engineering degree from the University of Wisconsin—Madison.

Doug Showers

Deanne Walz

Deanne is a Project Manager at Affiliated Engineers, a national MEP engineering consulting firm with 16 offices. She began her career in the firm’s Washington, DC office, where she contributed mechanical design expertise to several projects at the National Institutes of Health. Now based in Madison, Deanne focuses on healthcare projects, currently leading the design of a new 332,000-square-foot hospital for Bay Area Medical Center in Marinette, Wisconsin. Her recent work also includes MEP and utility infrastructure planning for Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee and the mechanical design of a 452,000-square-foot expansion at Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children in Delaware. Deanne is a licensed professional engineer and a LEED Accredited Professional, bringing a strong commitment to sustainable and high-performance building design.