Queensland hospital chiller hire was required at a healthcare facility in remote North Queensland while refurbishment works were carried out on the existing chilled water plant.
The permanent plant needed to be taken offline during the works, but the hospital still required a reliable source of chilled water throughout the refurbishment period.
Aircon Rentals supplied a trailer-mounted 1300kW air-cooled chiller that became the hospital’s primary source of chilled water while the existing plant was unavailable.
The trailer-mounted configuration also helped simplify the installation of a chiller of this size by removing the need to crane the main unit off the delivery vehicle.
A trailer-mounted 1300kW air-cooled chiller supplied to maintain chilled water during a hospital plant refurbishment in North Queensland.
Project Overview
Location: North Queensland
Industry: Healthcare
Application: Hospital chilled water cooling
Project type: Planned chilled water plant refurbishment
Cooling capacity supplied: 1300kW
Equipment configuration: Trailer-mounted air-cooled chiller
Operation: 24/7 during the required hire period
Monitoring: 24/7 remote monitoring
Equipment Supplied
- 1 x 1300kW air-cooled chiller
- Integrated chilled water pump
- Electrical switchboards
- Connection cables
- Temporary water and electrical connections
- Remote monitoring
The Challenge
The hospital was undertaking refurbishment works on its existing chilled water plant.
Completing the works required the permanent cooling plant to be unavailable, but hospital operations still depended on a continuous chilled water supply.
A temporary system therefore needed to provide sufficient capacity to take over the cooling requirement while the refurbishment progressed.
There was also a practical installation challenge.
A chiller of this capacity is a substantial piece of equipment. The unit weighs approximately 12 tonnes and is similar in size to a 40-foot shipping container.
If the chiller needed to be unloaded from a standard transport vehicle, the project could require a crane for positioning and another lift when the equipment was eventually removed.
The temporary solution needed to provide the required cooling capacity while keeping mobilisation and installation as straightforward as possible.
Why Temporary Cooling Was Required
The hospital could not wait until the chilled water plant refurbishment was complete before restoring cooling.
The permanent plant needed to be taken offline so the planned works could proceed, while the hospital continued operating.
Temporary chiller hire provided an alternative source of chilled water during this period.
Once installed and commissioned, the rental chiller could take over the hospital’s cooling requirement while work continued on the permanent system.
This allowed the refurbishment programme to progress without relying on the existing chilled water plant remaining available.
The Temporary Chiller Solution
Aircon Rentals supplied a trailer-mounted 1300kW air-cooled chiller for the project.
The unit was permanently mounted on a purpose-built 13-metre trailer along with much of the supporting equipment required for the installation.
This included the chilled water pump, electrical switchboards and connection cabling.
Keeping these components together created an integrated temporary cooling package that could be transported to site and positioned without first removing the main chiller from the trailer.
Once connected and commissioned, the 1300kW chiller became the hospital’s primary source of chilled water during the refurbishment works.
Why the Chiller Was Trailer-Mounted
Mobilising a large-capacity temporary chiller can involve significant lifting and positioning requirements.
At approximately 12 tonnes, moving the 1300kW chiller from a standard transport vehicle would normally require suitable lifting equipment.
A crane may be needed to:
- unload the chiller
- position it at the installation location
- move it again at the end of the hire
- reload it for transport
For this project, the chiller remained mounted on its purpose-built trailer.
This meant the complete unit could be transported into position and later removed without requiring the main chiller to be craned off the trailer.
The configuration also kept the chilled water pump, switchboards and connection equipment together with the chiller.
This reduced the amount of separate equipment that needed to be positioned and connected on-site.
Positioning the Chiller at the Plant Room
Site access allowed the Aircon Rentals truck driver to carefully reverse the trailer to within approximately two metres of the plant room entrance.
Positioning the temporary chiller close to the existing chilled water plant helped reduce the distance required for the temporary connections.
The trailer remained in this position throughout the hire.
With the chiller positioned close to the plant room, the Aircon Rentals team could proceed with the water and electrical connections required to integrate the temporary equipment with the hospital’s cooling system.
Installation and Commissioning
Once the trailer was positioned, the Aircon Rentals team completed the temporary installation.
The work included:
- positioning the trailer-mounted chiller
- connecting the chilled water system
- completing the required electrical connections
- checking the supporting equipment
- commissioning the chiller
- confirming correct operation before placing the system into service
An Aircon Rentals refrigeration mechanic commissioned the equipment and verified that the temporary chiller was operating correctly.
Once commissioned, the 1300kW chiller took over as the hospital’s primary source of chilled water.
The chiller then operated 24 hours a day, seven days a week during the required hire period.
Remote Monitoring
Aircon Rentals remotely monitored the chiller 24/7 throughout the hire.
This provided ongoing visibility of the temporary cooling system while it was operating as the hospital’s primary chilled water source.
Reliability is particularly important when temporary HVAC equipment is supporting a healthcare facility.
A cooling interruption can affect building conditions and other temperature-sensitive areas of the facility, which makes ongoing system visibility valuable during an extended temporary installation.
Remote monitoring allowed Aircon Rentals to maintain visibility of the chiller throughout the project while the permanent plant refurbishment continued.
The Outcome
The temporary 1300kW chiller provided the chilled water required while the hospital’s existing plant was being refurbished.
The trailer-mounted configuration allowed a large-capacity chiller to be positioned close to the plant room without requiring the unit to be unloaded by crane.
Once connected and commissioned, the rental chiller became the hospital’s primary chilled water source and operated continuously throughout the required period.
The project allowed the planned refurbishment works to continue while maintaining cooling to the hospital.
Project Results
- 1300kW of temporary cooling capacity supplied
- Hospital chilled water maintained during planned refurbishment
- Trailer-mounted chiller used to simplify mobilisation
- No crane required to unload the main chiller
- Chiller positioned approximately two metres from the plant room entrance
- Integrated chilled water pump supplied
- Electrical switchboards and connection cables supplied
- Temporary system commissioned before operation
- Chiller operated 24/7 during the required hire period
- 24/7 remote monitoring used throughout the project
- Temporary chiller became the hospital’s primary chilled water source during the works
What This Means for Healthcare Facilities
Planned work on a hospital chilled water plant requires more than selecting a temporary chiller based on cooling capacity.
The temporary installation also needs to consider:
- required chilled water capacity
- system flow
- supply and return temperatures
- available electrical supply
- temporary connection points
- equipment positioning
- delivery access
- lifting requirements
- distance from the existing plant room
- commissioning
- ongoing system reliability
These factors become particularly important when large-capacity equipment is required.
A chiller may have enough cooling capacity for the application but still be difficult or expensive to deploy if site access, lifting and connection requirements have not been considered.
For the North Queensland hospital project, the trailer-mounted 1300kW chiller provided the required capacity while simplifying the logistics associated with positioning such a large unit.
Planning the temporary cooling arrangement before the permanent chilled water plant is taken offline can also reduce the risk of an interruption during planned maintenance or refurbishment works.
Why Aircon Rentals
This project required more than supplying a large chiller.
The temporary cooling system needed to be transported to a remote North Queensland hospital, positioned close to the existing plant room, connected to the hospital’s chilled water system and operated continuously while the permanent plant was being refurbished.
Aircon Rentals supplied a trailer-mounted 1300kW chiller with an integrated pump, switchboards and connection equipment to simplify the temporary installation.
The system was commissioned by an Aircon Rentals refrigeration mechanic and remotely monitored 24/7 throughout the hire period.
Aircon Rentals provides temporary HVAC and power solutions for healthcare facilities for planned maintenance, equipment upgrades, emergency breakdowns and other situations where permanent infrastructure is unavailable.
Planning Chilled Water Plant Maintenance or Refurbishment?
Aircon Rentals supplies chiller hire for hospitals, healthcare facilities and other critical commercial and industrial sites across Australia.
Temporary cooling can support:
- planned chiller maintenance
- chilled water plant refurbishment
- chiller replacement projects
- HVAC upgrades
- equipment breakdowns
- temporary additional capacity
- critical cooling requirements
Planning the temporary system before the permanent plant is taken offline gives you time to assess capacity, water flow, electrical supply, access, connections and equipment positioning.
Call 1800 626 996, available 24/7, or request a hire quote online.