Dubai, UAE, 31 October 2018: All technologies have a downside, said Gregers Geilager, Head of Premium Drives, Product Management, Danfoss Drives, who stressed that while there is no shortage of energy-efficient options, there is a lack of understanding in the best way to optimise them within projects. “There’s always a flip side,” Geilager said, adding: “There isn’t just one solution that covers everything. There are some competitors trying to go out to market with easy-to-install solutions, but what is not communicated is that you lose the efficiency in the installation, so your running efficiency goes down and that is the flip side of that given technology. Right now, in the market, there isn’t one predominant technology that is the answer to everything. You have to evaluate and assess technical considerations.”

Geilager stressed that the added layer of knowledge needed to specify and install new equipment can make consultants, who are unwilling or unable to know more about new products, reluctant. “It’s at least stopping the right specification of products,” he said. “Sometimes either the wrong product is specified, or a product is specified that actually isn’t the most optimal way to mitigate harmonics in that given situation. We are seeing consultants who are scared [to try something new] and others just specifying blindly, which is a waste of money and drives down the efficiency. And there are others who aren’t aware there is a problem at all, so they are not specifying anything, when they should. For sure, there is a lack of information in the market.”

Geilager said that, often, the task set for consultants can be daunting, as they are faced with having to look, assess and understand something about motors, drives, switch gears, cabinets and other considerations. “I think it’s really difficult for them to grasp all the things they need to be an expert on,” he said, stressing that this makes a case for specialised MEP consultants and contractors, of which Geilager said, there are too few.

Hannah Jo Uy is Assistant Editor at Climate Control Middle East magazine. She may be contacted at hannah@cpi-industry.com