What is a Chil-pak?
A Chil-Pak is a modular central plant. Our default is to include everything needed for a complete central plant. The difference between Chil-Pak and a site built plant is that ours is built in an ISO 9001-2015 certified factory by trained production technicians and then shipped to a job-site where it is re-assembled.
Does Chil-Pak offer custom solutions?
Yes! Each Chil-Pak is custom: from connection locations to redundancy requirements, to size constraints Chil-Pak is ready to work closely with the design engineer, owner and contractor to provide a modular central plant that meets and exceeds your needs for that specific project.
Is the Chil-Pak UL or ETL labeled?
Yes, the Chil-Pak is ETL labeled and is considered a piece of equipment.
Why should we use a modular central plant?
There are many reasons to utilize a modular central plant.
- One point of contact for any problem/issue with the central plant. Compare this to a built up plant where there are many contractors involved (mechanical, controls, plumbing, electrical,structural, general) and many times solving a problem takes calls to all the contractors with each pointing fingers are another.
- ISO 9001 certified factory. This means that we have a documented, established and audited quality control system. This results in much fewer errors during construction.
- Factory built means that there are no weather delays, no dirt in the piping, etc. The workers building your Chil-Pak build modular central plants every day and they are very experienced.
- The Chil-Pak is ETL labeled and it is equipment, not a building. Check with your tax accountant to see if this will allow you to write off your investment faster (or immediately). Tax laws often favor equipment purchases over real property and the bottom line impact can be substantial.
- Reduced job site labor. Your crew can focus on the building and site preparation. This may allow you to pursue more work because you can split your crew between multiple projects. It also means that you may not have to hire additional workers for only one project.
- Chil-Pak Design Assist. Chil-Pak engineers spend all their time designing modular central plants.We will do complete design work for the central plant or we can help as needed.For an engineer who doesn’t have a lot of central plant experience the Design Assist can be a valuable sounding board or a way to pursue jobs requiring a central plant when they might not be comfortable taking on the responsibility of designing a site built central plant.
- Reduced lead time. The building, mechanical yard and the Chil-Pak can be produced simultaneously. Chilled and hot water can be provided to your load (building, process, data center, etc.) as soon as the load is ready.
Why should we go with Chil-Pak ?
- Chil-Pak has been designing and manufacturing modular central plants since 2001. We have made our share of mistakes along the way and have learned from every one.
- We KNOW central plants and are experts at minimizing footprint while providing excellent service access for all equipment.
- Chil-Pak defaults to providing everything you need for a complete, efficient, and reliable modular central plant. During system design or bid we will provide feedback about missing and/or duplicate components to ensure that everyone knows exactly what each contractor is to provide.
- Chil-Pak uses multi-pin quick connectors where controls wiring is routed between modules.Imagine a plant with three chillers, three chilled water pumps, three condenser water pumps,three cooling towers, and VFDs for all the equipment. Think about the number of wires going to the control panel… temperature and pressure sensors, communications with chillers & VFDs,flow switches and flow meters, etc. (Remember, that for larger plants there will be multiple modules and everything that crosses from one module to another must be disconnected (at one end at least) for shipping.) By using quick connectors Chil-Pak eliminates the need to re-terminate all these wires. The installer simply plugs in the connectors as needed. Reconnecting controls wiring will take minutes instead of days.
Without quick connectors there is invariably bad connections and/or wires connected to thewrong terminal. Quick connectors elimiundefinednate all these problems as well.
Does Chil-Pak provide design assistance?
Yes. Chil-Pak is willing to design the complete modular central plant for you so you can treat it like a black box. We will provide layout, piping, electrical, and controls drawings. We will work closely with you to make sure all connection points are where they need to be, the footprint and weight work with your application, and that the Chil-Pak will properly operate for YOUR application.
Each project is unique and Chil-Pak has the experience to ensure that our design meets your full load,low load and in between operations. We will provide the redundancy that you need and will work closely with you to meet your budget.
When wishes and budgets do not agree with one another, Chil-Pak will help you by providing lower cost options that will meet your budget.
Is the Chil-Pak plug & play?
The Chil-Pak is as close to plug and play as you can get with a central plant. Set the unit on the preparedpad, connect the chilled/hot water to the loads, connect the towers, run drains to floor sinks, andconnect controls as needed to the outside world and you are ready to go.
Extensive factory testing ensures that controls connections are correct, that electrical connections are correct and that all piping is leak free. However, shipping does subject the equipment to significant vibration so it is required that the installer verify that electrical connections are tight before putting power to the Chil-Pak.
The Chil-Pak is a full central plant so all startup, commissioning, balancing and tuning that is required fora site built plant is required here as well. Chil-Pak technicians on-site during this time make sure that the process goes smoothly.
is there adequate access for all equipment in the Chil-pak?
Yes. Chil-Pak designs the layout to provide good service access for all equipment. Since the Chil-Pak is designed to be compact in relation to a built in place mechanical room, we provide hinged or removable access doors to provide access where components are near an external wall. We provide I-beams above the pumps larger than 20hp so that a trolley & hoist may be used to facilitate pump/motor removal/repair. We provide either I-beams or removable roof hatch for chiller compress or removal/repair depending on the size of the compressor.
Is the piping supported from the floor?
No. Piping is supported from above to eliminate floor mounted supports. This allows Chil-Pak to maintain better service access to all equipment since the technician will not be fighting with floor mounted supports.
Does Chil-Pak use mechanical couplings or welded pipe?
Chil-Pak’s standard is to use mechanical (grooved couplings) since this grooved fittings are better able to handle the vibration and impacts that occur during shipping. Chil-Pak will provided welded pipe if our customer wants it.
Does Chil-Pak provide controls?
Yes. Chil-Pak’s standard is to provide Automated Logic (or Carrier I-Vu) controls with a graphical touch screen interface. Consult with the factory for other options if you need alternate controls.
What if Automated Logic is not the controls used on my campus?
There are options when you want controls other than Automated Logic. First, Chil-Pak has provided Allan Bradley, Siemens, and other control systems as needed to be compatible with existing systems.
Second: We can “sensor & wire” the Chil-Pak. In this case Chil-Pak will provide and install all internal sensors, transmitters, flow meters, control valves/actuators, VFDs, and the control panel. We will wire everything back to the controls and either install terminal blocks where we will terminate all the wiring,or leave all the wiring for your controls contractor to terminate. Chil-Pak will coordinate with your controls contractor to ensure all components are compatible and that the control panel is large enough and laid out as needed by your controls contractor.
Third: Your controls contractor provide a control panel for us to install and we wire our components as specified by the wiring diagram provided with the control panel.
Fourth: Your controls contractor provides ALL controls related components (except VFDs) and wiring diagrams. Chil-Pak will install all the provided equipment.
Your controls contractor will be responsible for controllers, programming, and warranty for all equipment that they provide.
Does Chil-Pak offer factory pipe insulation?
Yes. Chil-Pak’s standard is to provide 1 ½” preformed fiberglass insulation with PVC jacket and labels. Other insulation is available as necessary.
What is the maximum cooling capacity?
Chil-Pak can provide up to 1500 tons cooling capacity in a single module. For plants with multiple chiller sand/or larger cooling loads, Chil-Pak provides multiple modules that bolt together to form a single large modular central plant. The total capacity of a single Chil-Pak modular central plant is basically unlimited.
What is the minimum cooling capacity?
Chil-Pak can provide any size chiller to match your needs. When comparing cost/ton larger plants aremore economical.
Does Chil-Pak offer heating and/or domestic hot water options?
Yes. Chil-Pak can provide hot water for heating and/or domestic hot water needs. The boilers areseparated from the chillers by an internal wall or the boiler section can be completely separate from thechillers, depending on site requirements. Multiple modules can be bolted together to provide theneeded capacity.
Does Chil-Pak help with system design?
Yes. Chil-Pak has a complete design team that is available to help design your central plant. We will provide layout, piping, and electrical drawings along with component selections and schedules for you to review and incorporate into your project documents.
What are Chil-Pak's standard components?
Carrier chillers, ABB drives, Armstrong pumps, Belimo control valves, Automated Logic controls, GE or Square-D electrical, and Evapco cooling towers.
Will Chil-Pak provide my preferred component if it is not one of Chil-Pak's standard items?
Yes. Chil-Pak is application specific and vendor neutral. This means that while we have preferred vendors we can match your existing components to facilitate maintenance & spares. Since these are not our normal sources of equipment our turnaround time for designs/budgets/proposals will be longer than normal.
Chil-Pak has access to other component manufacturers and we will provide the name brands you want!
How long does Chil-Pak need to provide preliminary design and budget for a modular central plant?
Generally Chil-Pak will say that we need at least two weeks to produce preliminary layouts, piping and electrical drawings and a budget/bid. If time is critical, let us know and we will do everything we can to expedite our process.
Is the Chil-Pak cabinet insulated?
Yes. Chil-Pak standard is an insulated industrial grade cabinet with 2” thick panels. The panels are mode of 16 ga prepainted galvanized steel exterior and 20 ga galvanized steel interior. The cabinet is sealed,similar to a custom air handler.
For cold or very humid environments Chil-Pak will provide an insulated floor.
Does Chil-Pak include the cooling tower?
Yes. For smaller Chil-Paks (single modules up to approximately 800 tons) Chil-Pak can provide the tower on a skid that attaches directly to the Chil-Pak skid. We will mount the tower at the factory, install all piping, electrical, and controls and then disassemble as required for shipping.
For larger Chil-Paks it is often more economical to purchase the tower locally and provide the tower installation and piping in the field.
Does you offer an option to mount the cooling tower above the Chil-Pak?
Yes. The tower support platform is shipped as a kit which is installed following installation of the Chil-Pak modules.
Do I need to run power or controls wiring inside the Chil-Pak?
No. Chil-Pak installs all controls related equipment (sensors, transmitters, control valves, etc.) inside the Chil-Pak and wires them back to the control panel. All controls wiring inside the Chil-Pak is in conduit.
For external sensors, transmitters, control valves, etc. Chil-Pak provides a junction box with marked terminals for connecting these controls items. The installing contractor simply connects the external components to the proper terminal in the junction box.
How do I connect electrical power?
Chil-Pak coordinates with the design engineer, owner, and contractor to provide the most efficient means of connecting power to the modular plant. Power can come up through the concrete pad into the bottom of the switchgear or it can come through a pull box provided on the exterior of the Chil-Pak.
How many electrical feeds are required?
Chil-Pak will coordinate with the engineers, owners, and contractor to meet site/project requirements.We can provide for a single 460/3/60 power feed for the entire Chil-Pak (including cooling towers) or multiple power feeds as best fits the project.
Does Chil-Pak require a separate 208-120/3/60 power feed?
No. Chil-Pak standard is to provide a step down transformer for powering all lights, receptacles,controls, etc. inside the Chil-Pak.
If there is a need or desire for a separate 208-120/3/60 power feed Chil-Pak will design the system accordingly.
Does Chil-Pak provide a refrigerant monitor, alarm and exhaust system?
Yes. Chil-Pak’s standard is to provide an infrared sensor with alarm panel, emergency exhaust fan,motorized fresh air damper(s), and interior/exterior horn strobes.
