Portable Cooling at a Difficult Time
When Jose Torres, a popular police officer in Westfield, Mass., was killed on traffic detail in July 2012, the Firtion Adams Funeral Home faced a difficult challenge. The only local venue large enough to accommodate the huge crowd anticipated at the service did not have air conditioning, and the town was in the midst of a sweltering heat wave. Portable cooling units donated by Atlas Sales & Rentals, Inc. enabled the community to go ahead with the funeral service in comfort.
“We met with local officials to decide where we could hold the service and televise it at the same time,” says James R. Adams, one of the owners of the funeral home. “Westfield State University was the only place this could happen. However, their main auditorium had no air conditioning, since A/C is not typically needed during the academic year.”
Three Office Pro 60 portable air conditioners manufactured by MovinCool/DENSO Sales California Inc., were brought in to help keep guests comfortable at the service. Designed to cool large spaces, the Office Pro 60 is a 5-ton air-cooled spot cooler rated at 60,000 Btus per hour. Upon hearing that the project had a tight budget, Atlas offered to donate the equipment for the event.
Operating noise had to be addressed because the microphones for the TV cameras were extremely sensitive, and air velocity through the units was a concern. By removing the front grills from two units, sound was diffused to a level where it did not interfere with the speakers onstage.
“Atlas installed the units the day before the funeral, and the university ran them all night to bring the temperature down to a comfortable level,” Adams says. “There were 600 people in the main auditorium and over 400 more watching the televised service from another nearby location at WSU. Despite outdoor temperatures in the 90s, the portable cooling kept the auditorium in the low-70s to maintain a comfortable indoor environment, even for the police force in full dress uniform. Also, Atlas’ solution to the noise problem was very effective: You really couldn’t hear the units at all. They worked very well for us.”