The following article was published in ASHRAE Journal, January 2002.

© Copyright 2002 American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-

Conditioning Engineers, Inc. It is presented for educational purposes only. This article may not be copied and/or distributed electronically or in
paper form without permission of ASHRAE.

Selecting the Right

HVAC System
By David M. Elovitz, P.E. Fellow ASHRAE

nly the first 5% to 10% of a designer’s total effort on the design of Spatial Requirements: Simply stated,
O an HVAC system is devoted to deciding what type of system to
use. Yet, it is probably the most important decision on the entire project.
the recommended system has to fit in the
space available in the building. No mat-
ter how reliable, how inexpensive to own
This initial set of decisions establishes about 90% of the system cost and operate, how quiet, if it does not fit,
you cannot use it. However, it is possible
and 90% of the users’ satisfaction. The subsequent decisions are im- to discuss with the architect and the owner
portant, but they are just fine-tuning. The system type dictates most of the advantages to the project if more
the cost, and determines what performance can be achieved. space is made available for the HVAC
system, or if the space can be arranged
differently to accommodate certain fea-
Designers cannot make system selec- mance criteria. However, you can explain tures in the HVAC system.
tion decisions in a vacuum. They cannot to the owner that by accepting these con-
pull an answer out of a hat. They do not ditions instead of those conditions, the System Selection Criteria
make a single decision to meet a single owner will gain that benefit. Not all system selection criteria are
requirement but a family of decisions in Capacity Requirements: If it takes x yes/no, gating items. Many are compara-
response to many separate criteria. For cfm at y temperature to maintain the stated tive. They involve tradeoffs. For instance,
the system selection process to be suc- indoor design conditions at the outdoor the owner may be willing to spend more
cessful, those criteria must represent the design conditions, the designer does not to install a system that costs less to main-
owner’s values and priorities. have a choice. He must provide a system tain or uses less energy. Or he might ac-
that can deliver the conditions he says it cept higher annual costs to reduce the
System Selection Gating Criteria will deliver. However, different system project investment cost. In the real world,
Some system selection criteria are types may require different total building owners do not have unlimited funds. The
yes/no, or gating, criteria. Either the sys- capacities to achieve the same end results. tradeoffs may be between lower annual
tem will meet them or it will not. A sys- When the owner asks, “Can’t we make operating costs or a fancy lobby that al-
tem that will not meet the gating criteria this system less expensive?” he must un- lows him to charge higher rent. Some of
cannot be considered for the project— derstand that the system capacity can the comparative criteria are:
unless the owner changes the criteria. only be reduced if he is willing to accept First Cost: “Spend as much as neces-
Some of the gating criteria are: less stringent indoor conditions at least sary to achieve the performance, but no
Performance requirements: One im- part of the time. Zoning is a popular tar- more.” Easy to say, but difficult to know if
portant function of the system selection get for reducing first cost. The owner you are doing it. First cost is probably the
process is helping the designer and the needs to understand that reducing con- first criterion that comes to mind, and it is
owner to share the same performance ex- trol zoning might make areas uncomfort-
pectations. No matter how attractive able for thousands of hours of each year, About the Author
David M. Elovitz, P.E., is president of Energy Eco-
other aspects of a possible system might while reducing peak capacity might
nomics in Natick, Mass. He teaches the ASHRAE
be, you cannot seriously consider a sys- make areas uncomfortable for 100 or 200 short courses and professional development semi-
tem that will not meet the stated perfor- hours each year. nars on system selection and report.

24 January 2002|ASHRAE Journal

certainly important. For some owners, it might even seem to be
the only criterion. But there are other criteria, and some of them
will have a bigger effect on total costs over the life of the build-
ing than first cost.
Operating Cost: Operating cost is made up of many compo-

Air Velocity, fpm

nents. Energy, water and sewer, maintenance, repair, equipment
replacement, and system modifications are the most common.
Many of them will be determined directly by which system is
selected. The tradeoff between operating cost and first cost is
obvious and familiar. However, operating cost is also affected
by less direct factors such as accessibility for maintenance.
Reliability: How reliable is reliable enough? Certainly an
owner will be much more attuned to avoiding downtime for a
mainframe computer room, a network hub, or a clean room
than he would be for a restaurant or an apartment building,
and rightfully so. Reliability should consider how quickly
and easily service can be restored in the event of a failure as
well as how frequently failures are likely to occur. The system
type affects both.
Flexibility: Years ago, office buildings had large spaces with
row upon row of desks. People came and went, but the physical
arrangement rarely changed. Today, with project teams and
rapidly evolving technology, nothing stays the same for long.
Air Velocity, fpm

When the layout changes to accommodate a new tenant or a

new department, or when new equipment is installed that needs
special conditioning, how easily can the HVAC system be
adapted to meet that new need?
Maintainability: What will it take to keep the system in
good operating condition, and running smoothly and effi-
ciently? Will periodic maintenance entail mechanics working
in the occupied space or in a mechanical room? Will someone
be climbing on a desktop every few months to change filters?
What level of skill will be required to operate and maintain the
system? Will the owner need to hire one or more skilled opera- Figure 1: Percentage of occupants objecting to drafts in air-
conditioned room.
tors, or can the proposed system run effectively unattended?

Selection Goals
Why is the owner planning to install an HVAC system, any-
way? Today, it is almost automatically expected, but about 70
years ago it was a rare building that had anything more elabo-
rate than a radiator under each window. When building opera-
tors thought “temperature control” they thought in terms of
whether or not to throw a few more shovels of coal into the
boiler. We will look at five reasons that owners give for having
a modern HVAC system.
Comfort: Residential, office, and retail applications nomi-
nally have air conditioning to provide human comfort. People
may have different ideas about what constitutes normal hu-
man comfort conditions, but — with the exception of the
owner’s own occupied space — do you think an owner spends
tens of dollars per square foot just because he is a kindly bene-
factor who wants people to be happy and think he is a nice
person? I think the owner wants to provide comfortable condi-
tions because he can more easily attract good tenants. Those
good tenants are willing to pay higher rent because they can
attract and keep better employees who spend more time work-
ing productively (instead of sitting there thinking about how
hot it is), or because the tenant thinks his customers will linger
longer and spend more money.
Process: Certain production processes, such as color print-
ing and semi-conductor production, require temperature and
humidity control. Others, such as pharmaceutical manufac-
turing, are required by regulations to produce in an aseptic
environment.
Before World War II, some of the most highly advanced
skills in designing sophisticated air-conditioning systems were
developed at the Disney Studios. Animated films were drawn
on thousands of transparent “cels” that had to match one to the
other exactly. The transparent substrates were extremely hy-
groscopic. If temperature and humidity were not tightly con-

ASHRAE Journal|January 2002 25

trolled, the frame drawn in the morning would not match the
background drawn a week ago or even the frame drawn that
afternoon. The Disney Studio’s air-conditioning skills were so
highly regarded that the government called on Disney to de-
sign the air conditioning for the (then) new B-29 bomber!
Preservation: Many materials are so sensitive to changes in
temperature and/or humidity that atmospheric conditions can
affect how long they last. Thus, many museums and libraries
routinely use air conditioning to preserve their collections.
Sometimes precision air-conditioning systems are used to
maintain constant temperature and humidity for rare books
and especially valuable textiles or artwork. There is consider-
able difference of opinion about what conditions are needed
and how constant temperature and humidity must be for opti-
mum preservation.
Productivity: Some processes, such as guitar making or tex-
tile production, can be carried out without temperature and
humidity control but can achieve higher production, reduced
scrap rates, and higher quality product when production fa-
cilities are air-conditioned. A 1959 General Services Adminis-
tration study of office workers performing routine filing tasks
showed that even among office workers, those in an air-condi-
tioned facility demonstrated significantly higher productiv-
ity and a measurable reduction in errors (not to mention greatly
Advertisement in the print edition formerly in this space.
26
improved morale) compared to workers doing identical tasks
in a non-air-conditioned, but otherwise identical, facility.
Real Estate Income/Value: Properties that provide condi-
tions that enhance productivity — whether for special process
needs, or by improving human comfort — are more attractive
to own or rent so they command higher prices in the market-
place. A survey of commercial tenants some years ago showed
that 56% of tenants who complained about temperature at
least three times per year do not renew their leases.
Constraints on System Options
There is no one right HVAC system that is the best choice for
every job. Nor is there one right HVAC system for every type of
project. There is not even any one right system for a specific
project. There are systems that will work for the project and
systems that won’t. Even among the systems that will work,
some will work better than others. There is rarely only one
system type that makes sense for a given project. The goals of
the system selection process are to sort out which could not
work, and to compare the merits of those that could work.
First, ask yourself, “will each possible system type meet the
constraints of this particular project?” Those constraints are:
Calculated Heating and Cooling Loads: The cooling sys-
tem must be able to remove heat from the space as fast as it
January 2002|ASHRAE Journal
comes in. The heating system must be able to add heat as fast
as it leaks out. That applies to the building as a whole and to
each space in the building. That means you need to calculate
the peak load for each space and for each system, and not use
some square feet per ton or cfm per square foot rule-of-thumb.
It also means a 75 ton (264 kW) unit cannot be used if the
calculated load is 100 tons (352 kW).
Control Zoning: The peak load occurs only a few hours each
year, and the peak load on one side of the building occurs at a
different time of day, and often in a different month of the year,
than on another side of the building. Interior zones need cool-
ing all year, regardless of outdoor weather. The system must be
able to deliver the right amount of capacity to each space at the
right time to maintain steady temperatures. That means the sys-
tem must have the ability to vary the capacity delivered to spaces
or groups of spaces independently of the capacity delivered to
other spaces. Different system types use different methods of
varying capacity. Those different methods may have big im-
pacts on system size as well as system operating cost.
Heating: The system needs to replace heat lost by transmis-
sion through the perimeter walls and the roof. It also needs to
heat outside air that enters the building through the system
(ventilation) or through leaks in the building fabric (infiltra-
tion.) Heat must be introduced where the heat is lost. Heat sup-
plied to an interior area doesn’t help offset the heat lost through
the glass in a perimeter office. In colder climates, the heating
system also has to control drafts off windows or lightly insu-
lated exterior surfaces to keep occupants comfortable. Research
reported by F.C. Houghten in the 1938 ASHVE Transactions
showed that 20% of the population will find air moving across
the ankle at as little as 70 fpm uncomfortable if that air is 4°F
(2°C) cooler than the air in the rest of the room. See Figure 1,
from Chapter 32 of 2001 ASHRAE Handbook— Fundamentals.
Ventilation: Occupants need ventilation. Generally, the
amount of outside air ventilation should reflect the recommen-
dations in ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 62-1999, Ventilation for
Acceptable Indoor Air Quality. Many building code ventilation
requirements are based on that standard, but some differ. Venti-
lation is not needed to keep people from suffocating, or even to
dilute the carbon dioxide they exhale. Ventilation requirements
are based on diluting contaminants generated in the space to an
acceptable level. The largest source of contaminants is gener-
ally bio-effluents from people, which is why so many ventila-
tion requirements are expressed in cfm per person. However,
copiers, fax machines, laser printers, carpet, finish materials,
and even outgassing from furniture also generate contaminants.
Architectural Constraints: The system has to fit in the avail-
able space. Whether a particular system type can be consid-
ered may depend on floor-to-floor height, particularly the space
available between the bottom of the structure and the ceiling.
Other space considerations include space for, and location of
duct shafts, and the need for mechanical rooms or equipment
closets. Intrusion into the space — whether it is physical floor
ASHRAE Journal|January 2002
space for a fan coil unit or acoustical intrusion by noise from a
piece of equipment above the ceiling or in an adjacent closet,
is an important factor to many owners and most architects.
Intrusion can also be visual: if the system cannot be invisible,
it should at least not compete with the interior design.
Budget is just another word for first-cost. This is sometimes
the most intractable constraint, and is paramount to some own-
ers. Although most owners have a finite amount of money for a
project, savvy owners recognize that a system with lower en-
ergy and maintenance costs is a better investment. Sometimes
owners can receive a larger mortgage if they can show lower
annual costs on their pro-forma. The system selection report
needs to give owners the information that helps convince them
of the lower annual costs.
Codes and Regulations: Designers have a duty to design
systems that comply with applicable codes and regulations.
They are responsible not just to the owner, but to the general
public as well. Beyond that, it will be necessary to get a permit
to construct the project, and that generally involves a plan
review process by the authority having jurisdiction (AHJ).
Sometimes following the strict language of the code is not the
best way to get the job done, and the designer will propose
alternative means that require AHJ acceptance. It might be
advantageous to resolve those variance issues before formally
applying for the permit, and certainly before starting construc-
tion. In that connection, the designer should identify all of the
authorities that will have jurisdiction and review compliance
questions with all who will need to issue approvals.
When Is a Ton Not a Ton?
There are air-conditioning loads and then there are air-condi-
tioning loads. The system selection process must consider dif-
ferent kinds of loads, and what the loads are at different places.
Sensible vs. Latent: Cooling loads consist of sensible cool-
ing loads (those that relate to the dry-bulb temperature) and
latent loads (those that relate to the moisture content of the
air). On the psychrometric chart, sensible heat is represented
by horizontal distance and latent heat, or moisture content, by
vertical distance.
Space vs. Coil: The space has heat transmitted from outdoors,
solar heat gain through windows, and heat generated internally.
The cooling coil must absorb not only heat gains in the space,
but also heat gained in the return (which may include part of the
heat from the lights and heat gain through the roof if there is a
return plenum), heat and moisture in the outside air for ventila-
tion, and heat from any fan motors upstream of the coil. Thus,
the load in the space can be very different from the load on the
coil, and the coil load with one kind of system can be different
from the coil load with another kind of system.
Sensible Heat Ratio: The sensible heat ratio is an important
factor in system design. It is the sensible heat divided by the
sum of the sensible heat plus the latent heat. The sensible heat
ratio for the space will not be the same as the sensible heat ratio
27
at the coil. The sensible heat ratio of the space determines the
optimum supply air temperature and cfm. The sensible heat ra-
tio of the load on the coil determines the coil’s performance.
Narrowing the Choice
There are a myriad of choices to consider and so many deci-
sions to make in selecting a system that it can seem quite a
confusing task. The first five chapters of the ASHRAE Hand-
book—HVAC Systems and Equipment offer an organized infor-
mation source. The two major questions in system selection are:
1. Where and how will the cooling or heating be created?
2. How will the cooling or heating be delivered from there
to where it is needed?
Chapters 4 and 5 outline the choices available for creating
heating and cooling. Chapter 4 discusses centralized produc-
tion, where heating or cooling is produced in a single central
location for an entire building, or an entire campus, or even an
entire city. Chapter 5 discusses the options for decentralized
production, where heating or cooling is produced near the
point of use, and often in equipment that incorporates part of
the distribution function.
Chapters 2 and 3 outline the choices for delivering heating
or cooling from where it is produced to where it is needed.
Quite often heating and cooling are delivered to the space by
Advertisement in the print edition formerly in this space.
28
means of air heated or cooled in a piece of equipment outside
the space. Chapter 2 (Building Air Distribution) describes the
options for this approach. Sometimes the heating or cooling is
delivered to the space by means of chilled or heated water (or
steam), and one or more pieces of equipment within the space
transfers energy to air distributed throughout the space. Chap-
ter 3 describes the options for these in-room terminal systems.
System Comparisons and Report
Project Description/Basis of Design: A solution is not useful
unless you know what problem it is solving. So the first step in
a System Selection Report is to define the problem: Describe
the building and its uses and define the intended performance
(indoor and outdoor conditions, summer and winter.) It often
helps to include a zoning keyplan showing the room locations
and the control zones as part of the project description.
System Selection Chart: Just as there is no one system that
is right for every project, there is no one right way to present
the results of a system selection study. Figure 2 is a sample
chart that illustrates one way of presenting a lot of information
in a concentrated format. It shows what systems were consid-
ered and summarizes the advantages and disadvantages of each
for a particular project. For a simple project, a chart like Figure
2 with a cover letter might be the entire report, with compari-
January 2002|ASHRAE Journal
Figure 2: HVAC system selection chart.
VAV with VAV with Multiple
Heat Pump Dual Duct VAV Fancoils
Radiation Fan Boxes Rooftops Increments
Comfort Considerations
Highly Highly
Control Options Can Be Flexible Highly Flexible Limited Limited Can Be Flexible
Flexible Flexible
Control Type On/Off Modulating Modulating Modulating On/Off Modulating On/Off
Noise Noticeable Least Quiet Least Quiet Quiet Note 1
Ventilation Limited Good Very Good Very Good Good Limited Note 2
Overhead Heat Yes No Yes Yes Yes Note 3 No
Glass Height Limited Any Limited Limited Limited Note 3 Above Unit Only
Filtration Low Good Good Good Good Low Good/Low
Partial Partial Partial Either Either
Effect of Failure Total Local Total Local
Everywhere Everywhere Everywhere Note 4 Note 5
Space Considerations
Boiler, Pumps,
Shafts, Boiler Shafts, Boiler MUAU* Shaft,
Floorspace Storage Tank, Shafts Many Shafts Shafts
If Gas Heat If Gas Heat pumps
MUAU* Shaft
Plenum Space Least Medium Medium Medium Medium Least Medium
Furniture Baseboard, if
Fully Flexible Fully Flexible Fully Flexible Fully Flexible Note 6 Least Flexible
Placement used
Maintenance
Above Ceiling On Roof On Roof On Roof On Roof Note 7 In Rooms
Access
MUAU*, Cooling One or Two One or Two Two or Three Many Smaller MUAU*,
Roofscape Several RTUs†
Tower Large RTUs† Large RTUs† Large RTUs† RTUs† Maybe Chiler
First Cost
System Cost Depending on Job and Contractor Specifics, Any of These Systems Can be Competitive

Cost to Add Zones Moderate Low Low Low Very High Low High

Ability to Increase
Expensive Inexpensive Inexpensive Inexpensive Expensive Inexpensive Expensive
Capacity
Separate Separate
Smoke Control Separate System Adaptable Adaptable Adaptable Adaptable
System System
Operating Cost
Energy Cost 1 = Highest and 5 = Lowest Cost
Gas 3 1 2 1 4 2 4
Electric 3 3 4 3 5 4 5
Maintenance Cost Moderate Low Low Low High Low High
Free Cooling Adaptable Inherent Inherent Inherent Available Adaptable Available
Heat Recovery Inherent Adaptable Inherent Inherent None Adaptable None
Inherent means the feature comes with the system automatically and requires no special design considerations to
implement.
† Rooftop Unit
Available means the feature is usually available as a standard option at some cost or with some additional engineering.
* Makeup Air Unit
Adaptable means the feature is not ordinarily part of the system but could be provided at extra cost and additional
engineering.

Notes for Selection Chart

Note 1: The central (interior zone) portion of the system should be quiet, much like the multiple rooftop unit system. The incremental (exterior
zone) portion is likely to be noisy because the compressors are located in the occupied space.
Note 2: Ventilation is good on the central portion of the system, but may be only fair on the incremental portion if individual units do not have
fresh air connections. Fresh air connections may be difficult to set for the proper air quantity and do not always close tightly when they should.
Note 3: If ceiling concealed fancoils are used, glass height is limited because heat is delivered from overhead. If console fancoil units are used
in perimeter rooms, glass height is restricted to the space above the fancoil unit. Fairly tall windows can be installed if low-boy style fancoil units
are used.
Note 4: If the chiller or central pump fails, the entire system will be disabled. If an individual fancoil fails, the shutdown can be limited to one
or a group of zones, depending on the nature of the failure.
Note 5: If the central unit fails, a large portion of the building will be without cooling or ventilation. If a fancoil or incremental unit fails, only the
zone it serves will be affected.
Note 6: Furniture placement is unrestricted when a ceiling concealed fancoil unit system is used. Furniture placement is restricted in
permeter rooms by the fancoil units, if console or low-boy units are installed in the perimeter rooms.
Note 7: Maintenance access will be in the ceiling for concealed fancoils and in the occupied space for console or low-boy style units.

ASHRAE Journal|January 2002 29

sons in subjective terms — good, better, best. For a large, com-
plex project, the report might be hundreds of pages with sys-
tem diagrams and calculation tables supplementing descrip-
tive text and quantitative comparisons.
Comfort: This section compares the ability of each system
to maintain comfortable conditions, including such things as
close temperature control, control zoning, noise, delivery of
outside air ventilation, ability to heat from overhead and still
control drafts from tall glass, the relative effectiveness of avail-
able air filtration, and the effect on the occupants if a piece of
equipment fails (one limited area is affected or the whole build-
ing goes down, for example.)
Space: How much floor space does the system need, includ-
ing duct and pipe shafts as well as mechanical rooms or clos-
ets? Where do they have to be? How much ceiling plenum
space, and how deep? Does the system limit furniture place-
ment in the space? Where do mechanics have to work to per-
form maintenance? How does the system affect the building’s
appearance indoors and out? From the ground and from an
adjacent taller building?
First Cost: First cost is not just the HVAC system cost. It is
also the impact of different systems on the cost of the electrical
system, the cost to provide space for the system, or special
structural support and sight screens as well as the cost to make
changes in the future to accommodate new layouts or add
Advertisement in the print edition formerly in this space.
30
special equipment. Some system types can be adapted to pro-
vide smoke management where that feature is required. Others
require completely separate smoke management systems. Ex-
pected equipment life is related to first cost. Will equipment or
major components have to be replaced earlier for one type of
system than for another? What is the relative cost impact, con-
sidering the “present value” of that future replacement?
Operating Cost: We think first of energy cost when we think
of operating cost because energy is usually the largest compo-
nent of operating cost. The ability to do “free” cooling in cool
weather, to incorporate heat recovery techniques for outside
air ventilation, or to incorporate load shifting techniques like
thermal storage are related to energy cost. Energy cost is not
the entire operating cost by any means. Will the system require
regular attention from an operating staff, or even a full time
operator? How about the relative cost of preventive mainte-
nance and the cost of repairs? The cost of water, water treat-
ment chemicals, and especially sewer charges, can be major
cost factors for water cooled systems.
Recommendations and Reasons: The report should conclude
with the designer’s recommendation, and the reasons for that
recommendation. Some designers may like to place this infor-
mation up front in an executive summary, and some owners
prefer that format. It is important to keep in mind throughout
the system selection process is that there are probably factors of
which only the owner is aware. Those factors may have impor-
tant bearing on the relative merits of different systems.
Recognize that your recommended system is probably not
the only system that will meet the requirements of the project.
Therefore, it is important for the report to identify which sys-
tems can meet the requirements of the project and which can-
not; give the owner all the information on which the recommen-
dation is based; and explain why the designer believes the rec-
ommended system is the most advantageous one for this project.
Remember: consultants recommend, clients decide.
Summary
The system selection report is the most important document
you will prepare on the entire project. Everything else in the
design process builds on what is in that report. What is impor-
tant to remember about the system selection process?
• There is no one right system. Every project is different.
• System selection is an important decision. It requires and
deserves, a lot of work.
•The owner is entitled to know what you considered and
why you recommend what you recommend.
• It is not your job to make the system decision. Your job is to
see that the owner has the information he needs to make the
right decision for him.
Editor’s note: For more information, consider enrolling in
ASHRAE’s short course or Professional Development Semi-
nar: System Selection and Report.
January 2002|ASHRAE Journal