Areas of Expertise

DMI’s energy consulting experience spans a wide variety of environments; our work is chiefly focused on medium and large commercial, industrial, and institutional facilities. The following is a listing of the areas in which our expertise has helped our clients identify, evaluate, and implement energy conservation measures. Strategies employed include specialized equipment selection, system configuration, and advanced control protocols.

HVAC Systems and EMS Building Controls

Controls

DMI studies advanced control settings in the following areas:

Specialized Air and Water Temperature Control
Air- and Water-Side Economizers (Free Cooling)
Demand-Controlled Ventilation
Variable Frequency Drives
Energy Management Systems

Waterside HVAC

DMI has an extensive knowledge of waterside HVAC systems. These systems are found in almost all building types and can provide air heating and cooling, domestic hot and cold water, and process water. The systems can include the following equipment depending on facility type:

Chillers and Chilled Water Systems
Boilers, Steam, and Hot Water Systems
Heat Pumps (air source, ground source) and Heat Recovery Chillers
Cooling Towers, Condensers, and Fluid Coolers
Pumping Systems
Ground- and River/Lake-Source Heat Exchangers
Domestic Hot Water Heaters

DMI may recommend the following energy conservation measures for Waterside HVAC systems:

Partial or Full Electrification of Central Heating Systems
Electrification of Domestic Hot Water Systems
High-Efficiency Equipment
Pre-heat of Domestic Hot Water
Variable Frequency Drives
Optimized System Controls: Water Temperature Resets
Optimized System Controls: Water-Side Economizers

Airside HVAC

DMI examines methods to improve airside HVAC equipment efficiency. Our Airside HVAC knowledge includes, but is not limited to, the following equipment:

Commercial HVAC Systems
Rooftop Units and Air Handlers
Water-Source and Air-Source Heat Pump Systems
Unitary Equipment
Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) Systems

DMI may recommend the following energy conservation measures related to airside HVAC systems:

Variable Frequency Drives
Demand-Controlled Ventilation
Energy Recovery Exhaust System
Dual-Enthalpy Economizers
Optimized Controls: Discharge Air Temperature Resets

Building Shell

Building shell design is important to the overall building energy performance. DMI analyzes the following building envelope design elements:

Building Orientation

Window to Wall Ratio

Window Glazing Assemblies

Spandrel Assemblies

Insulation for All Exterior Assemblies (Wall & Roof)

Infiltration

Refrigeration

Refrigeration systems account for a large portion of a facility's energy use. DMI specializes in optimizing the refrigeration systems for many different facility types, including:

Commercial Refrigeration (Supermarkets)

Refrigeration in Food Processing and Cold Storage Facilities

Ice Rink Refrigeration

Industrial Processes

DMI often applies its expertise to the efficiency optimization of many types of industrial processes, including the following:

Industrial Fans

Industrial Pumping Systems

Process Cooling

Compressed Air Systems

Injection Molding and Thermoforming

Metalworking Processes

Industrial Mixing and Slurry Agitation

Wastewater Treatment and Municipal Water Supply

Special Facility

DMI has provided efficient design recommendations for the unique systems of many facility types, including:

Printing, Dyeing, and Pigment Manufacturing

Pulp and Paper Manufacturing

Research Laboratories

Semiconductors and Cleanroom Facilities

Food Processing

Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturing

Hospital and Health Care Facilities

Institutional, Governmental and Academic Campus Facilities

Commercial Office Space

Indoor Horticulture Facilities (Including Cannabis)

Data Centers

Labs/Data Center

DMI provides energy consulting for labs and data centers. Clean-rooms, uninterruptible power supply centers, large-scale data centers, telecommunications centers, and server farms all require rigorous control of ventilation, fire protection, and security systems. Energy use is typically high in these facility types due to the various heat loads. These centers benefit significantly from our energy consulting services and experience reductions in both energy usage and cost.