The new Welcome Break motorway service area on the M54 near Telford is a 24-hour operation with a considerable service requirement to ensure comfort temperatures for customers and staff at all times.

Completed in March 2003, the amenity building combines public toilets, a retail shop, fuel filling station kiosk and restaurants providing freshly cooked meals and fast food, with an adjoining Day’s Inn Lodge for overnight accommodation.

The 1260m² amenity building (of which 800m² is front of house) requires heating in winter and comfort cooling in summer. While the retail shop and public toilets are open 24 hours a day, the food outlets close at 10pm, when the plant is switched off to night setback conditions.

The differing requirements of adjacent areas presented a challenge for Design Installation Services Limited (DIS), Welcome Break’s M&E services contractor who specialise in design and build contracts and, in conjunction with architects JWA, specified a Reznor Air Mixing solution to condition the area.

Three 630mm diameter grey pvc Air Mixing ducts were installed in the amenity building at 4.3m from floor level. From packaged air handling equipment positioned in the roof well between the amenity building and the Lodge, warm or cooled air is introduced into the Air Mixing ducts, where it is forced through minute perforations along the ducts’ length. The air mixes instantly with room air, creating all-round comfort conditions of 21°C in winter and 23°C in summer, with no perceptible air movement.

The lightness of the Reznor Air Mixing ducts made them an ideal solution for this building, which has a lightweight frame and cannot accommodate heavy services. The ducts were quick and easy to install and supported on rails from the roof purlins. While the ducts distribute conditioned air to the space, they do not require insulating as no condensation occurs on the surface of the Air Mixing sock, as it would on a galvanised duct.

Chris Croome, Managing Director of Design Installation Services Limited, of Cheltenham, says: “The Air Mixing solution has exceeded Welcome Break’s expectations. It answers the client’s need for flexible, zoned heating and comfort cooling all year round, while providing continuous ventilation for occupancy requirements and make-up air for the kitchen extract systems.”

www.reznor.co.uk