Building Management System | YMCA Edmonton

Partners since 2009

YMCA Edmonton approached Nordic with the challenge of updating aging infrastructure that frequently broke down. They were struggling with high energy and operational costs and limited capital budget for improvements. In addition, patrons regularly complained about the comfort of the building which resulted in closures and loss of business for the facility.

Challenge:

YMCA Edmonton faced growing challenges that were impacting member satisfaction and overall operations. To address patron complaints and restore reliability, YMCA Edmonton needed to update aging infrastructure within a limited capital budget, all while keeping the facility open to the community with no downtime and managing high energy and operational costs.

Solutions:

Nordic developed and implemented a comprehensive facility solution, anchored by a fully integrated Building Management System (BMS) to unify and optimize operations. Outdated building systems were updated or replaced, improving indoor environmental quality, comfort conditions, and lighting levels.

To address the pool environment, heat recovery was added to the existing make-up air, capturing wasted heat from the ventilated pool space to pre-heat outdoor air. This upgrade was designed to recover up to 75% of heat from exhaust air, significantly reducing gas-fired heat requirements by 30-40% and increasing ventilation capabilities. Custom controls allow fine-tuning of unit operation during weather changes, ensuring peak efficiency and reliability, while giving YMCA staff greater flexibility to adjust pool air quality based on patron needs.

Remote monitoring and integrated controls now support better resource allocation and cost management. A fully guaranteed maintenance program provides added assurance, helping the facility remain reliable, efficient, and ready to serve the community.

Benefits:

• New comprehensive facility solution, including a new pool air handler with heat recovery, improves indoor environmental quality and reduces excessive energy use and repair costs. The system captures and reuses up to 75% of exhaust heat, contributing to overall operational savings.
• Heat recovery system reduces gas-fired heat requirements by 30-40%, increases ventilation capacity, and enhances energy efficiency, resulting in 20–25% annual energy savings
• Custom controls enable precise adjustments to pool air quality based on patron needs, as well as peak performance in changing weather conditions.
• Integrated building management system with remote monitoring enables more operational efficiency and better allocation of resources.

Nordic developed a fully functional and integrated system for the YMCA that can be monitored remotely, ensuring better allocation of in-house staff resources. A building management system (BMS) and training for their in-house maintenance team was implemented, guaranteeing continued service on their large-scale HVAC equipment. Overall, indoor environmental quality was enhanced improving lighting, humidity levels and patron comfort.