All-electric treatment center for Reinier de Graaf in Voorburg

With gas prices skyrocketing, everyone suddenly realizes: gas is "bad business. Even the Reinier de Graaf concluded this long before the gas crisis began. When building a new treatment center in Voorburg, the healthcare provider opted resolutely for an all-electric environment. An environment that is also future-proof, because by developing the clinic in a housing format, a future transformation to houses or apartments can be made quickly and easily. The HVRF system from Mitsubishi Electric was deliberately chosen for the climate control technology.

Reinier de Graaf is the oldest hospital in the Netherlands and has been providing care to the residents of Delft and surrounding areas for nearly eight centuries. The Reinier de Graaf Groep includes treatment centers in Naaldwijk and Voorburg in addition to the hospital in Delft. The latter is located on "special ground" - the former Roman settlement Forum Hadriani forms the backyard of today's treatment center. As a Unesco World Heritage Site, this does not make the development of the care center easy. We speak with Ronald van Lier, Project Leader of Building Services at the Reinier de Graaf Groep and Jan Feijes, technical consultant at Deerns consulting firm.

All-electric ambition

About the healthcare provider's ambitions, Van Lier says: "Gas is a volatile product and therefore a business risk for our hospital. We wanted to remove that risk at the treatment center, by putting up all-electric new construction that also accounts for 75% of CO2 reduction." The building design was based on residential building format. When asked why that format was chosen, Van Lier replied, "There is less need for hospitals and the length of stay in a hospital is getting shorter. Therefore, no one knows what will be expected of a hospital in 10 years. In contrast, hospital buildings are developed for a life span of 50 years. To build in enough security for the future, we asked Deerns to create a design that could last 50 years, but could also be easily reused for residential construction. For the installation work, we relied on the specialists at Van Dorp Installations Rotterdam."

Installation technology in sign of user

On the grounds of the Reinier de Graaf Groep in Voorburg, a wide range of medicine is offered - from IVF clinic to hospice. "Life-course medicine, you could say," Van Lier said. "With that same life-cycle thinking, we also chose the plant engineering and climate technology from Mitsubishi Electric for the new treatment center." Feijes adds: "Initially, thoughts turned to a ground source heating system, but due to its location on World Heritage land, that proved to be unfeasible. In the end, we opted for a combination of hybrid VRF systems (HVRF) and heat pumps. From the very first moment, this involved careful consideration of how the requirements and wishes of users could be met intelligently, economically and sustainably."

Smart building

"Within the Reinier de Graaf Groep, staff comes first," Van Lier said. "A good, easy-to-use and comfortable climate ensures that staff are comfortable and can give their full attention to patients. That in turn contributes to the high level of service we strive for. It also prompted us to opt for a "climate without worries. And that is not a given in a complex environment like a hospital." Together with the architect, Deerns proposed a building that looks and feels along with the user and knows what is happening at any moment. Feijes: "Such a 'smart building' not only ensures a climate without worries, but also offers the possibility of maximum performance in terms of sustainability."

Best of both worlds

About the climate solution chosen in the 2,400 m2 new treatment center, Van Lier says: "In a building like this, the trick is to distribute heat and cold well. With the choice of a Mitsubishi Electric HVRF system, the cold/heat exchange within the system takes place over a short path. The distribution of heating and cooling through the building is through a 2-pipe system that poses less risk of leakage. In the system, energy is exchanged and heat and cold is produced simultaneously. A very elegant solution that actually combines the best of both worlds: the quietness and evenness of a water system and the ability to both heat and cool of a VRF system."

The HVRF system is complemented by the Mitsubishi Electric Zubadan air-to-water heat pump for underfloor heating. Also noteworthy is the redundant cooling of the fertility laboratory. "Here, ultra-clean air and operational reliability are a prerequisite," Van Lier said. "For cooling and heating, the rooms are fed from multiple Mitsubishi Electric heat pump systems, making a redundant and operationally reliable solution easy to achieve."

Choice not a point of discussion

In order to optimally connect all Mitsubishi Electric systems to the smart building concept, the systems communicate with the building management system on the basis of BACnet via the cloud. Future expansion on this is easily possible. Asked about the choice of Mitsubishi Electric, Van Lier answers enthusiastically, "The choice of Mitsubishi Electric has not been a point of discussion at any time. The company's energy-efficient and circular philosophy and the support from Alklima's experts are groundbreaking and fit seamlessly with our vision."