D&M deploys energy-efficient lighting and electrical systems for regional NSW hotel

Privately held Australian commercial contractor D&M Electrical Communications deployed energy-efficient electrical systems for the refurbishment of Westside Hotel in Dubbo, New South Wales. This included main supply and installation of switchboard, distribution boards, all lighting, power, emergency systems, data and C-Bus controls.

The competition to win the tender was fierce but Colbros Electrical managed to bag the contract to undertake the electrical design and construct works for the refurbishment and extension of the hotel and subcontracted D&M to supply and install all electrical works for the project.

As the hotel was operational while the refurbishment was taking place, the contractors had to make sure that their work had a minimal impact on daily trade. To overcome the challenges of the hotel continuing to trade as normal, some works had to be completed at night and a lot of temporary cabling had to be installed. Robert Ellison, D&M’s Service Manager, said the project was very demanding as the hotel stayed fully operational while the project was being undertaken - a lot of work had to be done before- and after-hours.

One major inconvenience during the execution of the project was that in an act of vandalism the old existing main switchboard room was set on fire. This meant that D&M had to accelerate the process of installing the new main switchboard to allow the hotel to operate as normal. The company also designed and installed an interface between the fire panel and the security system so that when the fire alarm is activated it contacts the security company.

One of the key features of the project was the use of energy-efficient lighting systems with the majority of lighting being either LED or gas-fired. D&M supplied, installed and commissioned a C-Bus system that catered for six different lighting setting for daytime, afternoon, evening, bistro open/closed, cleaning and hotel closed. As a part of the project, the company had to supply, install and commission a load shedding system where if the pub was starting to reach its capacity load, parts of the mechanical plant would be switched off to ensure that the main circuit breaker to the hotel would not trip under load. The installation also comprised a building management system (BMS) - to control the A/C units - which was integrated with a smart meter contained in the main switchboard enabling load shedding.

Separately, D&M had to also relocate the Keno, TAB and poker machine systems. This meant that Keno, TAB and poker machine standards in cabling had to be followed. An AV system was set up throughout the hotel to allow different sections to play TAB, television channels, background music and PA system. Exposure to these systems greatly benefited the company staff as they were provided special training to meet the project requirements.

D&M has already bagged top state and national award for best commercial project (where the applicant’s contract value is less than $500,000) at the 2011 National Electrical and Communications Association (NECA) annual industry excellence awards. In November 2011, NECA recognised 10 companies from across Australia as being the best of the best in the electrical and communications industry at the annual awards. “All of these projects showed genuine skill and are classic examples of why Australian companies are leading the world in electrical and communications installations. The NECA Excellence Awards always highlight the cutting edge of our industry, and in 2011 the winning companies have demonstrated that what was once only a futuristic dream is now a reality for homes, commercial installations and big industrial projects,” said NECA CEO James Tinslay.