Plant Room
A plant room is a room or space in a building dedicated to the mechanical equipment and its associated electrical equipment, as opposed to rooms intended for human occupancy or storage.
Plant rooms typically house the following equipment:
- Air handlers
- Boilers
- Chillers
- Heat exchangers
- Water heaters and tanks
- Water pumps (for domestic, heating/cooling, and firefighting water)
- Main distribution piping and valves
- Sprinkler distribution piping and pumps
- Back-up electrical generators
- Elevator machinery
- Other HVAC (heating, ventilation and air-conditioning) equipment
Equipment in plant rooms is monitered by the BMCS (Building Management and Control System) and administered by staff from Property.
[ Expand all ]
Components
Planning
Planning
| Site factors |
- Ensure ease of access for maintenance and/or replacement of equipment is addressed in locating new plant rooms. - Consider future expansion possibilities when locating and sizing plant rooms. |
|---|---|
| Room and Spaces Planning Requirements |
- Allow 800mm minimum circulation width through plant room space - 1m preferred. - Consider equipment and parts replacement when planning circulation zones. |
| Other | - Allow for a minimum of 20% additional space on boards and in cabinets for equipment expansion. |
Building fabric
General
| General |
- To suit overall building fabric. - Consider ventilation requirements to plant rooms. |
|---|---|
| Design principles |
- Provide appropriate protection for plant equipment. - Provide appropriate amenity for service technicians. |
| Materials & finishes | - Louvred facades are generally acceptable. |
More information about building fabric General
Roof
| General |
- Required where plant room is exposed and equipment is not recommended for external placement. - Light weight roof to designer's specification. |
|---|
External Walls
| General |
- Louvred or naturally ventilated facade preferred. - Screening devices to be used where plant is externally located and in public view. |
|---|
More information about External Walls
Internal Walls
| Impact Resistance | - Ensure walls are durable enough to withstand minor impacts with tools and equipment. |
|---|---|
| Fire Rating | - To suit overall building design. |
| Wall Finish | - Unfinished walls are acceptable. - Painted finish preferred. |
More information about Internal Walls
Floors
| General Selection Requirements | - Floors are to be low maintenance finish and comply with slip resistance standards. |
|---|---|
| Variations | - |
| Preferred Material Selection |
- Painted and/or sealed concrete preferred - Preferred colour: Taubmans Stone Age  |
| Concrete | - Painted or sealed concrete finish. |
| Entry Floor Mats | - |
| Resilient Floor Finishes | - Floor to be spill resistant. |
| Other | - |
Ceilings
| Ceiling Finishes | - Unfinished concrete acceptable |
|---|---|
| Ceiling Heights | - To suit equipment. |
| Non Combustible / Fire Rated | - Non combustible ceiling linings are required |
Openings
Windows
| Window Selection Requirements | - Louvred or ventilated facades are preferred. |
|---|---|
| Glazing | - Glazing not required. |
| Visual Privacy | - Equipment to be concealed from public view. |
More information about Windows
Doors
| Doors Type | - Louvre doors where external |
|---|---|
| Door Function | - Lockable - swipe access preferred. |
| Fire / Acoustic Rated | - Fire rated / acoustic doors as required. - Fire rated door if required to BCA requirements |
| Frame Type | - Steel or aluminium framed |
| Door Hardware | Lock type Storeroom lock Keying / locking - Master keying - Other - |
Fittings
Fittings
| General Design Principles | - Maintain 2100mm above FFL below elevated plant equipment. |
|---|
More information about Fittings
Signage
| Design Principles | - |
|---|---|
| Macquarie University Signage and Wayfinding | - |
| Door Signage | - Number Sequential within block - Title on entry door "PLANT ROOM" |
Security
Security
| Security type / group | - Maintenance access only. |
|---|---|
| CCTV | - Not required by default |
| Access control | - Swipe access preferred |
| Intruder detection | -Not required |
| Keying | - Refer to Doors |
Acoustics
Acoustics
| Noise level | - Acoustic attenuation required when in proximity to teaching or office spaces. |
|---|---|
| Noise emittance | - Consider noise emittance when plant room is adjacent or near to a teaching or office spaces. |
| Room to room | - Minimise sound transmission to adjoining spaces. |
Services
Ventilation
| Natural ventilation | - Preferred. Plant rooms require constant ventilation. |
|---|---|
| Supply air | - Natural/passive preferred. |
| Exhaust | - Required in plant rooms where equipment generates heat. |
| Controls | - Localised and via BMS. |
More information about Ventilation
Conditioning
| Mechanical cooling | - Unconditioned space. |
|---|---|
| Mechanical heating | - Unconditioned space. |
More information about Conditioning
Water
| Potable cold water | - Hose connection required for cleaners and technicians. |
|---|---|
| Potable hot / warm water | - Not required. |
Drainage
| Sanitary drainage |
- Floor waste required. - Drain to taps for hose connection. |
|---|
More information about Drainage
Fire protection
| Fire detection | - To designer's specification |
|---|---|
| Fire suppression | - Not required |
| EWIS | - Not required |
| Portable fire equipment | -To designer's specification |
| Other | - |
More information about Fire protection
Illumination
| Lighting / lux levels | - Min 150 lux required |
|---|---|
| Lighting controls |
- Switch on wall near entry door - Auto-off after 1 hour - Manual override |
More information about Illumination
Power
| Type | - DGPO required for cleaning and maintenance staff |
|---|---|
| Quantity |
- Min of 1 x DGPO per plant room. - Larger plant rooms may require additional DGPO's |
| Other | - Power to plant equipment to designer's specification. |
Communication / AV
| Voice | - Not required |
|---|---|
| Data |
- Min 2 data ports required per plant room. - 1 port for equipment monitoring - 1 port for test point. |
Commissioning
Commissioning
| Building Commissioning | - |
|---|---|
| Services Commissioning | - |
| As Built Documentation | - |