"Seiberlich Trane Energy Services has been our partner at the Chase Center for over 20 years, and their staff consistently goes above and beyond to accommodate the needs of their clients."
In 2020, the Democratic National Convention (DNC) needed to make a late shift to Wilmington, Delaware from Milwaukee for their convention this year. The DNC organizers selected the Chase Center on the Riverfront in Wilmington for the new venue. With many event centers struggling during the Covid-19 pandemic, this opportunity gave the Chase Center on the Riverfront a large prestigious client to showcase its facility on a national stage.
Most speakers at the convention would be remote as the location would primarily be for media to gather. However, a few very important attendees would take the stage live including the Democratic nominees for President and Vice President.
Just over a week before the convention was expected to take place, the DNC organizers reached out to Seiberlich Trane Energy Services to see what could be done to maximize indoor air quality at the Chase Center on the Riverfront given the current pandemic. It was a short time frame so an organized approach was needed. “We were excited for the challenge when we got the call. We welcome the opportunity to perform for great clients like the Chase Center on the Riverfront and allow them to showcase the wonderful facilities Delaware has to offer,” said Robert Seiberlich, President of Seiberlich Trane Energy Services.
The Chase Center on the Riverfront is a 90,000 square foot facility with over 30 packaged HVAC units serving various exhibit spaces, offices, an auditorium, lobbies, and conference rooms. Not all spaces would be used and the spaces that were occupied would be well below maximum occupancy. Only select units needed to be targeted for the air quality study.
Seiberlich Trane Energy Services knew the spaces well having serviced the Chase Center on the Riverfront since it opened over 20 years ago. Additionally, as part of an energy project completed in 2018, Seiberlich Trane Energy Services (STES) replaced 24 of the packaged HVAC units with new Trane units. With in-depth knowledge of the equipment operation and spaces being utilized, STES focused its evaluation on the key contributors to air quality: Ventilation, Filtration, and Humidity.
The first change was to reprogram the HVAC units from their current operation of bringing in the minimum air to satisfy comfort, to instead provide a constant volume of air to the spaces. The HVAC units were set to bring in the maximum amount of air flow to the spaces in order to maximize air change outs. The second change was to upgrade the filters to the highest Minimum Efficiency Reporting Values or MERV rating. It was determined that MERV 13 filters would be the best filters for the units to allow proper operation with maximum filtration. The final step was to determine the maximum amount of outside air that could be brought into the space without causing humidity issues. This would allow the units to dilute the buildup of indoor contaminant with fresh outdoor air.
Thanks to the coordination with the Chase Center personnel and DNC organizers, Seiberlich Trane Energy Services completed all work and changes prior to the convention beginning. This was all done while needing to follow the Secret Service protocols for COVID-19 safety and restricted access for event security. Layered on top of this was the COVID-19 protocols that STES had already established for its personnel in line with CDC and state guidelines. In the end, the Chase Center on the Riverfront was able to deliver a premier space for the national event with the best air quality possible for all live attendees at the event center.
“Seiberlich Trane Energy Services has been our partner at the Chase Center for over 20 years, and their staff consistently goes above and beyond to accommodate the needs of their clients”, said Megan McGlinchey, Executive Director of the Riverfront Development Corporation of Delaware, which owns and operates the Chase Center on the Riverfront.