CASE STUDY
Caseys Furniture Store
Implementation of rooftop air handling integrated with heat pump technology and large scale solar PV installation across two retail sites.
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BACKGROUND
THE CLIENT
Established in 1921 by John Casey, Caseys Furniture has been a cornerstone of the Irish furniture retail landscape for over a century. Born from humble beginnings, the company has grown into a renowned name, synonymous with superior service and the creation of comfortable living experiences for generations of Irish families
Under the continued leadership of the Casey family, now in its third generation the company remains committed to its founding principles. Caseys Furniture is celebrated for its superb quality furniture, excellent value, and a commitment to providing an unparalleled retail experience
With a new purpose-built store in Limerick (2005) and a state-of-the-art warehouse (2017), Caseys Furniture continues to expand its reach and enhance its service offerings.
PROJECT REQUIREMENTS
The Caseys Furniture building in Limerick is a modern, highly glazed retail environment with significant solar gain during summer afternoons and substantial heating demand during winter months. This creates a requirement for reliable, year-round heating, cooling and effective ventilation across both the ground and first-floor retail areas.
Across both sites the existing air-handling, heating and cooling plant was nearing endof-life, resulting in unreliable cooling performance and insufficient heating capacity during colder periods.
Project Requirements
Replace the ageing AHU and chiller with a fully integrated modern solution
Improve airflow to ensure consistent comfort and temperature control throughout the store
Deploy a high-efficiency heat pump system to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions
Meet peak seasonal heating and cooling demands
Maximise reuse of existing ductwork to minimise disruption to trading
Integrate on-site solar PV to reduce running costs and support the electrical load of the new HVAC system
In parallel with the HVAC upgrade, the client also wanted to address rising and volatile energy costs. Strong daytime electricity demand from retail operations and HVAC usage made the building well suited to on-site solar generation. This enabled Caseys to reduce immediate electricity bills, limit exposure to future price increases and offset the additional electrical demand created by the heat-pump system. Solar generation also lowers peak grid import requirements, helping to manage maximum import capacity charges while significantly reducing the site’s carbon footprint.
A high-capacity Thermocold Airtop rooftop unit was selected, providing efficient, lowcarbon heating, cooling and ventilation from a single, fully integrated system.
GRANT FUNDING
GRANT FUNDING
GRANT FUNDING & COMPLIANCE
As part of Casey’s Furniture’s wider sustainability and decarbonisation strategy, both the Limerick and Cork projects secured support through Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) non-domestic grant schemes, covering renewable energy and low-carbon heating upgrades.
Rather than treating solar and HVAC as separate investments, RVR and ProSolar developed an integrated, phased approach aligned with the client’s long-term energy and operational goals.
IntegratedFundingStrategy
The projects supported a joined-up transition across:
On-site renewable energy generation
High-efficiency heat pump and rooftop HVAC systems
Electrical and system upgrades
Ventilation and airflow improvements
Long-term carbon and energy performance
This approach ensured the sites were future-ready, supporting electrified heating and reducing exposure to energy price volatility.
End-to-EndSupport
RVR and ProSolar managed the full funding and compliance process, including:
Identifying appropriate SEAI schemes
Designing systems aligned with eligibility and performance criteria
Preparing and managing grant applications
Coordinating inspections and approvals
Managing ESB Networks grid and export applications
Following successful inspection and commissioning, both sites now generate renewable energy on-site, export surplus electricity and operate with improved efficiency.
EQUIPMENT
HVAC EQUIPMENT
For the system nits are state-of-theart rooftop HVAC systems designed to provide highly efficient heating, cooling, and ventilation. These systems are specifically engineered to handle airflow capacities ranging from 2880 m³/h to 44000 m³/h, making them suitable for a large range of commercial applications.
Airtop units incorporate integrated control systems that optimize performance while minimizing energy consumption. Whether the requirement is for heating during the colder months or cooling in the summer, these units deliver year-round comfort with significant operational savings.
HVACForAllBuildingTypes
Versatile, packaged solutions for medium to large buildings including new builds & renovation projects.
GrantEligible
Airtop units are classified as heat pumps and are eligible for grant assistance
EconomicalSolution
With high efficiency and energy savings, the Airtop offers a cost-effective solution.
HeatPumpWithAHUFunction
Combining the efficiency of heat pump technology with the versatility of air handling units
CompactRange
Enjoy maximum flexibility with the Airtop; available in three frames to suit any space.
CustomOptions
Including auxiliary heating options, energy recovery and economizer
SOLAR PV EQUIPMENT
JINKO SOLAR 480 WP N-TYPE
The Jinko Tiger Neo N-type 480Wp panels represent the latest in solar cell technology, delivering exceptional efficiency of 22.24% through advanced N-type mono-crystalline cells. These panels feature Hot 2 0 technology that significantly reduces lightinduced degradation.
With a 12-year product warranty and 30-year linear performance guarantee (maintaining 87.4% output at year 30), these panels provide long-term reliability for commercial installations. The robust construction withstands wind loads of 2,400 Pa and snow loads of 5,400 Pa, while salt mist and ammonia resistance make them ideal for Ireland's median wind conditions.
264 of these panels were installed at Caseys Limerick, with 132 at the Cork warehouse.
HUAWEI INVERTER
The SUN2000-100KTL-M1 is a highly efficient (98.8%) string inverter designed for optimizing large-scale solar deployments. Its 8 MPPTs maximize energy harvest across diverse panel configurations and environmental conditions
HighCapacity: 40kW output with flexible voltage options (480V/400V/380V)
AdvancedMonitoring: String-level diagnostics and mobile app interface for streamlined O&M
RobustDesign: Fuse-free architecture and IP66-rated enclosure for enhanced reliability
SafetyFeatures: Integrated surge protection on both AC and DC sides
This inverter has proven an excellent solution for commercial and industrial projects seeking high performance, simplified management, and long-term reliability.
2 of these inverters were installed in Limerick, with 1 of these being installed in Cork.
CASEYS FURNITU
264 solar panels were ins large flat roof surface maximum solar capacity o
The K2 Systems D-Dome was used to mount the p West-facing orientations degrees.
The panels were secured ballast (weight) on the rather than any mechanic the surface of the roof.
On the same day as AIRTOP unit was craned solar panels, mounting fra the solar installation wer the roof.
This structure contained the solar inverters, G10 Relay (for ESB Networks compliance) as well as the main electrical distribution board, with the main supply cable to the
This pre assembly made for a neat installation on the roof, specifically designed to sit on the generator’s plinth, and also greatly reduced the time that was required to be spent on-site on the electrical installation
The mounting of the solar panels on the 3 roofs took 2 weeks
This solar PV array is projected to generate approximately 105 MWh (105,000 units of electricity) each year, and is realistically expected to repay its initial investment in 4.5 years.
CASEYS FURNITURE CORK
132 solar panels were installed on the roof of Caseys Furniture Warehouse Cork for a maximum solar capacity of 63.36 kWp. 66 panels were mounted on the east-facing side of the trapezoidal metal roof, with the same number of panels mounting on the west-facing side of the roof.
These were connected to a 40 kW solar inverter located at a mezzanine level of the warehouse, with Firefighter’s Safety Switches installed for rapid array shutdown
The Clenergy Mycrorail system was used to mount the solar panels to the roof, with panel installation taking 4 days Electrical installation took 3 days
This solar PV array is projected to generate approximately 53 MWh (53,000 units of electricity) each year, and is realistically expected to repay its initial investment in 4.2 years.
