Energy Engineering in Telephone Equipment Buildings

Telephone equipment buildings comprise assemblies of communication equipment, inter-connecting cabling, power plants and mechanical and electrical support systems. These buildings are geographically placed and specifically designed and constructed to function as special purpose equipment-building systems. As a result, the planning of such facilities requires different considerations than those found in conventional architectural and building design activities. An overriding consideration in their planing and design is the concern for efficient energy utilization. This paper describes energy usage in the equipment-building systems of the Bell Telephone System and presents the result of energy related systems engineering studies. Included are cost/performance studies of equipment room spatial systems and air conditioning, building cooling and insulation and solar energy.