West Yorkshire Archive Service - HVAC Shutdown Case Study by Katie Proctor, Conservator
West Yorkshire Archive Service - HVAC Shutdown Case Study by Katie Proctor, Conservator
The West Yorkshire History Centre holds the archival collections of the West Riding of Yorkshire and is one of five offices of the West Yorkshire Archive Service. It is the largest local authority archive outside of London and comprises over 10 million documents.
In September 2023, the team at the West Yorkshire History Centre began trialling an HVAC shutdown in the three strong rooms to understand how the storage environments would react and what impact it would have on energy consumption. This was undertaken at a time when rolling blackouts had been suggested nationwide, making it an opportune moment to assess how the storage environments would fare without mechanical environmental management.
Katie Proctor, Conservator at the West Yorkshire Archive Service, also serves as the building manager for the History Centre, providing oversight of all systems. Additionally, Katie has the advantage of being able to communicate directly with HVAC engineers regarding system operations and how to disable them.
For the initial trial, the systems were turned off overnight across one week. Environmental monitoring devices in the strong rooms, as well as on shelves and inside boxes, detected no change in the environmental conditions. In fact, the readings were steadier, suggesting that the HVAC system itself was the primary cause of any fluctuations. Following this, the HVAC system was shut off completely over a three-week period, during which the environment remained incredibly stable. This resulted in a 29% reduction in energy usage compared to the same period in the previous year.
In December 2023, the HVAC systems were turned off entirely, and they have remained off since.
No funding was required for this project; however, it enabled the team to secure funding from the local authority for a building management system that will allow for more precise control over the HVAC systems. This system is scheduled to be installed in February 2025.
As a local authority archive, the goal was to contribute to Wakefield Metropolitan District Council’s pledge to become carbon neutral by 2030. Since the building falls under WMDC’s jurisdiction, reducing its carbon footprint supports the district’s overall environmental commitments.
One of the main initial challenges was understanding how HVAC systems functioned and their impact on the storage environment. Fortunately, during the Covid-19 pandemic, various online learning events were attended, including one by the American Institute of Conservation, which provided valuable knowledge about HVAC systems and their operations.
By understanding the system and the building’s construction, potential concerns within the strong rooms were identified. Due to the concrete structure and four-hour firewalls, a relatively passive storage environment had inadvertently been created. Encouraged by archive and conservation colleagues in a newly formed HVAC shutdown group, and given the autonomy over the systems, an opportunity to experiment was possible.
Being onsite allowed for real-time monitoring of the storage environment readings, enabling immediate responses to any concerning changes. However, the biggest challenge was accessing energy usage and cost data. As part of a council, obtaining this information was difficult. It was evident that the environment remained stable when the HVAC systems were off, but initially, quantifying the energy reduction and cost savings was a challenge.
Through perseverance, access to the council’s energy portal for the building was eventually gained, providing insight into the savings.
This trial has now provided a yearly pattern of environmental changes, allowing for the establishment of an optimised HVAC schedule with the help of the new building management system.
Following the success of this project, the team is keen to replicate the process across other offices in West Yorkshire. With eight storage locations across the district, there is significant work ahead to further reduce energy consumption.
The HVAC shutdown has now been in effect for a year and has reduced energy consumption by an average of 53% per month. This has led to substantial financial savings for the service—£23,000 was saved in the fourth quarter of 2023-2024 alone. At a time of severe budget cuts and financial constraints, these savings have been particularly significant.
A similar shutdown is now being trialled in another storage environment at the Leeds archives. Additionally, the initiative is planned to extend to the large central archive store, aiming to replicate the energy consumption reduction across the district.
Given that all storage environments differ significantly, a careful and measured approach will be taken at each site. Being part of the HVAC shutdown group has been invaluable, allowing the team to learn from colleagues working in diverse environments and facing unique challenges. Sharing successes, failures, and lessons learned has been instrumental in shaping future strategies.
December 2024