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Uttoxeter Racecourse

Uttoxeter Racecourse backs a cool winner with Daikin R32 splits

On any racecourse it’s the Stewards who have the final say – and in the interests of fairness, they need to keep a cool head. But after nearly 30 years in cramped, flat-roofed, ‘temporary’ accommodation – also housing a growing collection of video screens and other electronic equipment – the Stewards at Uttoxeter Racecourse needed more than just head cooling.

Uttoxeter Racecourse backs a cool winner with Daikin R32 splits

The solution for the Stewards’ room – and the nearby jockeys’ weighing room – was a pair of future-proof R32 split air conditioning systems with wall-mounted fan coil units, from Daikin UK .The weighing room has a 3.5kW system while the Stewards have a 4.2kW system. The systems were installed by the course’s regular air conditioning contractor, Complete Cooling Services, of Ilkeston.

Charlie Moore, clerk of the course

"The whole building used to get unbelievably hot because of the flat roof. In addition, the Stewards’ room has a roof light. It’s a smallish room, but it has five TV screens and there are usually at least six people present during a race. If there’s an inquiry, there may be four or five hot jockeys too. My instruction was that the new system should not be noisy – otherwise the Stewards would want to turn it off, especially when they were recording an inquiry. The systems have made a huge difference. They work well to cool the rooms when hot, and warm them when cold. The new R32 systems from Daikin UK are not only whisper-quiet, but very flexible in terms of air direction and speed. They are very good.”

No hesitation in recommending R32 solution

Complete Cooling Services managing director Graham Hill says: “We have been working with Uttoxeter Racecourse for about six years, maintaining a number of R410a split units serving various facilities. “We had no hesitation in recommending the new R32 systems for this installation because the technology is very similar to R410a systems. But R32 systems are more energy efficient and require a smaller refrigerant charge. They are also much ‘greener’.”