Modern Building Services

16 MODERN BUILDING SERVICES JANUARY 2022 FEATURE PIPED SERVICES C ontrolling costs and compressing schedules without sacrificing quality are key concerns for contractors responsible for mechanical room installations. Alongside these drivers, space is becoming a critical factor. The high cost of commercial and industrial building space and its scarcity has also led to a growing trend to squeeze the size of mechanical rooms. Grooved-end mechanical piping systems address all these issues. The lighter weight, smaller size yet higher integral strength of grooved components compared with welded or flanged systems, make them ideal for projects that are tight on space or where mechanical rooms are located on higher-level floors. Their ease and speed of installation offer savings on total installed costs and they also deliver improved performance and reliability. Eliminating rubber bellows In traditional mechanical room set-ups, rubber bellows or compensators are placed in the piping system at either side of the pump to reduce noise and vibration, and are sometimes used to correct misalignment between welded pipe and equipment, placing the rubber under intense stress in a certain plane. Not only do they take up valuable plantroom space, but rubber bellows are considered the weakest point of an installation and the first component that is likely to fail, as general wear and tear, along with exposure to UV light in the mechanical room, causes the rubber to erode. Installing three grooved flexible couplings on each side of a pump solves these problems. It eliminates the need for costly, bulky flanged units and avoids the use of rubber bellows. The coupling construction enables the gasket to seal against the pipe, while the metal housing provides both space for the resilient elastomeric material to flex, and containment to prevent overstretching. This creates a discontinuity similar to that of a rubber compensator. Additionally, ductile iron and stainless steel both have their own vibration dampening qualities, so the external housing also serves to absorb sound, thereby protecting equipment and enhancing the lifetime of the system. Three flexible couplings can be used not only with pumps but Grooved-end mechanical piping systems reduce the mechanical room footprint, enhance system performance and save time and cost on installation, says Shaun Hughes , Regional Manager Southern UK at Victaulic. Grooved systems optimise mechanical room efficiency PIPED SERVICES, PUMPS &WATER