It’s been a big couple of years for HVAC. Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning technologies have never been under more scrutiny and attention, due to the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

A multi-disciplinary team, including leaders from F&S in construction, HVAC, and safety, oversaw the examination of all current and installation of new university HVAC systems. To see a published list of completed work, visit:
https://go.fs.illinois.edu/HVACSystems.

When time came to turn wrenches and make adjustments, the temperature control shop was there to help complete
the work. Temperature control oversees public spaces, offices, and classrooms, sure. And comfort for students, faculty, and staff is important. But often overlooked is the importance of HVAC in research laboratories: precise and reliable temperatures and humidity levels are needed to ensure scientific integrity. In other spaces, ventilation is essential to life safety needs for faculty and students.

Travis Huls, temperature control foreperson, saw factors like these in refurbishments and upgrades at Edward R. Madigan Laboratory.

“The recent temperature control upgrade there comes to mind, because our group coordinated with electricians and programmers to upgrade several large air handlers and heat exchangers,” said Huls. “Madigan is one of the largest lab and animal research facilities on campus, and doing an upgrade of that scope while keeping the equipment operational was a challenging task.”

Just as important to assessing and completing the work is updating customers as the project completes phases, according to Huls.

“It takes skilled technicians and good communication, our people are not only efficient at diagnosing and repairing HVAC controls, but are also very experienced in customer service. To be a good service provider you need people that have both of those skill sets, and our team is exceptional.”