A Perfect Solution for a Non-Profit

The Jersey City Child Development Center (JCCDC) is located halfway between the Lincoln and Holland Tunnels near Hoboken and the Hudson River. It is one of 19,200 Head Start Program Centers in the U.S. run by the Administration for Children and Families under the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. With 2003 enrollment of close to one million, and a budget of over $6.7 billion, Head Start serves the child development needs of pre-school children (birth through five years) and their low income families.

Project History
Since 1990, the 80 rooms of the JCCDC building had been cooled by 74 wall-mounted, ductless units from another maufacturer serviced by Khaled Mustafa, owner, MECCA Air, Inc., Clifton, N.J.

By summer 2002, MECCA had to deal with major expenses in replacing parts of the existing worn-out units. Wishing to save money for the non-profit development center, Mustafa turned to his friend Andy Mayer, ABCO Distributors, Totawa, N.J., for advice. Mayer contacted Bob Manning, mid-Atlantic regional manager, Mitsubishi Electric Cooling and Heating Solutions, Suwanee, Ga. The three men met that summer at the center.

Discovering the Ideal Replacement Solution:  a Perfect Fit
To keep replacement and construction costs at a minimum, Mustafa recommended the team use as much of the existing piping and wiring infrastructure as possible. A “believer” in Mitsubishi Electric HVAC’s split-ductless systems­—he has two units in his own home and one in the MECCA office—Mustafa asked Mayer and Manning what they thought of replacing all the existing units with a 1:1 split-ductless system. Everyone agreed that this was a solid solution, and the three designed the replacement system, which eventually included 74 indoor and outdoor (cooling only) M-Series units. A budget was submitted to the JCCDC managers, and they decided work would start immediately to replace 24 of the most unhealthy Sanyos. This installation by MECCA was completed by late December 2002.

On Budget by Creative Use of the Existing Piping & Wiring
The last 50 units would have to wait for the next fiscal year. Working from late summer until October 2004, MECCA took out the old units and replaced them with the balance of the new split-ductless units. To take advantage of the existing piping and electrical infrastructure, MECCA installed a single wall-mounted unit in a room and linked it directly to its corresponding compressor unit on the roof through the accessible infrastructure. “Ultimately, we were successful in using 90 percent of the existing piping and 75 percent of the electrical wiring,” Mustafa said. “It worked extremely well. We were able to bring it in under budget and the client was extremely happy with the job.”

Two Years and We’ve Yet to Receive a Service Call
“We did the original installation two years ago, and we’ve not received one service call,” Mustafa said. “Every unit started up perfectly. They are simple to install, and if you do the job correctly, the split-ductless units will perform for years with total reliability. I love their quietness and appreciate the consistent back-up technical support we always get from Mitsubishi Electric HVAC.”

No One Does it Better
ABCO’s Mayer said, “no one does it better than Mitsubishi Electric HVAC! Their split-ductless systems are the best on the market. I’ve installed them personally, and if you do it right, you’ll never have to go back because you’ll never have any problems.”