Workshop17 Kloof recently underwent a full retrofit refurbishment of their heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system, with the HVAC specialists at SFI.

Workshop17 Kloof is a co-working space that offers tenants open plan working areas, 45 offices, multiple team spaces, meeting rooms, and boardrooms, plus a café in the bustling city centre of Cape Town. Boasting breathtaking views of the beautiful Cape Town landscape, this exceptional building had outdated HVAC systems that were not designed to cater to this re-imagined space.

The scope of the retrofit HVAC project

“We had several time constraints on this project,” explains Shaydon Victor, Head of Projects at SFI Group, “the first of which was the scheduled time we had to submit design ideas.”

Once SFI was awarded the project, they got to work right away to fast track this project. 

Design

SFI took care of the design and supply of this retrofit HVAC project.  “We worked closely with Smita Waghmarae, the interior designer, and Mark Seftel – the co-founder and Director of Workshop17 – on this retrofit. They needed a system that can scale with the rising demand and tenant occupancy,” said Shaydon, “and that could bring in healthy, clean, fresh air into the building as and when needed. The existing system was not designed for what the space required.”

Workshop17 also requested SFI to design and implement systems that were equipped with low noise, ensuring a comfortable, quiet working space for tenants. 

Deliverables

SFI started by stripping the existing HVAC system down to bare minimum. 

They then installed the following HVAC deliverables based on the approved design:

• 21 Chilled water fan coil units 
• Associated piping and ducting
• Various fresh air systems 
• Toilet extraction units
• Interface equipment to the building management system (BMS)

As a result, fresh air is now brought in with variable speed drives to accommodate future increased occupancy as needed. The challenging request to keep noise down to below 40 decibels was also achieved, thanks to careful planning and design.

Healthy, happy Workshop17 Kloof tenants with access to clean, safe indoor air are assured, thanks to the dedicated projects department at SFI Group.