What are AirMotion Sciences AltAir™ HVLS (high volume - low speed) fans systems?

By taking advantage of the physics of fluid dynamics and the latest manufacturing technologies, our engineering team has been able to design and build these highly efficient air movement systems. The six-bladed industrial ceiling fans with Rotatair™ composite blades and VPT™ (Variable Pitch Technology) range in size up to 15’ and typically require 1 horsepower or less to run at low RPM’s, creating an engineered air movement system where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Arrange them in an array throughout your facility, using our VPT capability to move all the air, and you get what we call CFM – Complete Facility Movement of air.

How are these fan systems used?

Originally designed to create an evaporative cooling effect over large areas, these systems are also used to combat wasted rising heat during colder seasons, reduce installation, tonnage, and operating costs of air conditioning, provide healthier air mixing and ventilation, and reduce damaging humidity and moisture, helping improve facility IAQ (Indoor Air Quality).

Where are these fan sytems used?

AirMotion Sciences AltAir™ HVLS fans are designed to work in warehouse and distribution facilities, manufacturing, production and assembly operations, large commercial, automotive and retail spaces, aeronautical and municipal storage and repair sites, agricultural applications, and a variety of other locations having high ceilings and large floor areas.

What are the AirMotion AltAir™ HVLS fan features?

The typical industrial fan system is a 15 foot diameter AirMotion HVLS fan with composite Rotatair™ blades that fits within most lighting and fire suppression systems (keeping your local fire marshal and insurance underwriter happy). The blades are easily bolted to a lightweight hub with the VPT™ blade control to allow multiple airflow possibilities, including full up or down air movement. The power unit is comprised of a variable speed 1 horsepower motor specifically matched with a robust gear reducer. A single motor control panel allows for blade speed and pitch adjustment, including full reverse wind-flow direction. Average air speeds range from 0-12 mph depending on Rotatair blade RPM and pitch angle.

How are these fans beneficial to cooling?

By replacing up to 15 or more standard industrial fans, these fan systems provide all the breeze necessary for an evaporative cooling effect of 6 to 8 degrees, resulting in happier, healthier, and more productive employees during warm months. When working in tandem with A/C systems, thermostat settings can be increased by several degrees, resulting in significant energy savings. AirMotion HVLS fans create a safer, more comfortable environment, all for of pennies a day.

What about during heating seasons?

Greater comfort may be achieved from running the fans at lower speeds and altered pitch to effectively bring trapped warm air from the ceiling down to floor level, while resulting in significant energy savings (20% and much more possible) due to the de-stratification of the heated air in the facility (temperature differences of 15 degrees or more from floor to ceiling are typical before using AirMotion HVLS fans). An array of multiple fans with Rotatair blades and VPT may also be efficiently utilized to move the airflow in the opposite direction to push trapped air down from greater heights, achieving CFM – Complete Facility Movement of air.

What are other benefits of using these fans?

Massive air mixing results in greater absorption and dispersion of noxious fumes and damaging moisture and humidity, resulting in a healthier, drier, and safer environment with improved IAQ (Indoor Air Quality). Other benefits include elimination of birds and bugs, as well as avoiding the noise and disruption characteristic of other solutions.

Explain some of the physics behind these fan systems.

Energy efficiency is fundamental to the design of these fans because of the fact that the power required to drive a fan varies approximately with the cube of the average air speed through the fan. Accordingly, a fan delivering air at 20mph requires 64 times as much power as one delivering air at 5 mph. Moving more air with larger blades rather than larger motors is the key.

With their large diameters, these fans create large masses of moving and mixing air that have proportionally less surface area and therefore less friction and related drag. This allows the air to move further using less energy and effort than smaller fans. As inertia is overcome, the momentum of the flowing air mass allows for air circulation and mixing, requiring little ongoing effort to maintain.

Throw in highly efficient composite Rotatair™ blades and VPT™ (Variable Pitch Technology) to create the air flow benefits most suitable for individual facilities in what we call CFM – Complete Facility Movement of air - and there is no other solution that moves as much air as efficiently and cost-effectively.

How do these work with other HVAC systems?

These fans were designed to work in conjunction with existing environmental, fire, and other safety control sytems. More importantly, they supplement existing HVAC systems by making them more effective while reducing or eliminating many of their inefficiencies.

How long do they last?

AirMotion HVLS fans, with their easy installation (complexity similar to a light fixture), are designed to last for many years. They come with a lifetime warranty on blades and hubs, and multi-year warranty on all other components. Maintenance is typically limited to periodic cleaning of the composite blades (with our VPT and composite Rotatair blades, dust is less likely to settle and stick compared to competitive solutions) and inspection of components and built-in safety features.

Give me some numbers to digest.

Each fan, with professional installation, costs around $5,500, and cost about a nickel an hour to operate, using about as much energy as three or four light bulbs.

A 100,000 square foot distribution center or manufacturing facility with a typical layout of racking and equipment would probably require 5 – 12 fans to enjoy the optimal benefits of AirMotion HVLS fan systems. The key factors are location, height, size, and density of airflow obstructions.

Size options of AirMotion HVLS fans having low profile power units allow for meeting many unique facility installation challenges. Ceiling heights are ideally more than fifteen feet, though we do not expect to encounter any ceilings that are too high. Clearance above the fans is recommended to be about 3 feet for best airflow, however our VPT allows for effective air movement even in tight spaces. Nominal clearances of blades from nearby equipment and structures are recommended.

When heat de-stratification (and/or as a supplement to A/C) is a benefit, rapid payback, high ROI, and significant NPV is realizable. As an example, in a typical facility in the northern half of the US having a 15 degree heat gradient from floor to ceiling, one can expect annual heat savings of 20% - 40% with a payback period of less than 2 years, an annual ROI of over 40%, and an NPV over 5 years at a low discount rate well in excess of $10,000 per AirMotion HVLS fan. Why waste money on energy when it could be put to many better uses?

How do I find out more about AirMotion Sciences AltAir™ HVLS fan systems?

Learn more about the latest technology in efficient and effective air movement. They are sold directly by AirMotion Sciences as well as through its authorized dealers and distributors. Contact us for more information.