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Recommendation Report: Outdoor Cooling System for Souq Waqif

Partial Draft

Your Full Name

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COMM1020-XX

Ms. Andrea Comeau

February 28, 2022

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Table of Contents

Introduction.................................................................................................................................................3

Background..................................................................................................................................................3

Discussion....................................................................................................................................................4

Evaporative Coolers.................................................................................................................................4

Airbitat.....................................................................................................................................................5

High-Velocity Fans...................................................................................................................................5

References ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..……8

List of Tables and Figures

Figure 1: Evaporative cooler

Figure 2: Airbitat

Figure 3: High velocity fans

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Introduction

Qatar will be hosting the FIFA World Cup in 2022 with people coming from all over the world,

but one of the major issues in Qatar is the hot weather. One easy solution might be to install outdoor

cooling systems. These devices will cool outdoor areas such as patios for dining that are in the open air

where the temperatures range from 25-55 degrees Celsius, depending on the time year.

This recommendation report will analyze three possible solutions that will help restaurants in

Souq Waqif provide temperature relief for patrons dining on outdoor patios. Options of cooling

devices such as the evaporative coolers, Airbitat smart cooler, and high-velocity fans will be evaluated

using criteria of capacity, cost, and ease of use to find the most suitable outdoor cooling option for

patios in the tourist area of Souq Waqif during the extremely hot summers in Doha.

Background

In summer, the temperature can reach up to 50 degrees Celsius in Qatar and it is increasing

every year. Staying cool in summer can be challenging especially for cafes and restaurants with outdoor

dining arrangements. A solution is needed to turn the outdoor environment into a cool and comfortable

area for tourists and outdoor dining facilities. To find a way that will address this issue, cafes and

restaurants may need to use a type of outdoor cooling systems, such as an evaporative cooler which is

a device that uses water to cool the air.

 Singapore, which is located close to the equator, is facing similar issues of hot weather in

outdoor spaces, which was solved by using Airbitat. According to INO Sparks (Tay, 2016), after installing

the Airbitat Smart Cooler developed by an ST Engineering subsidiary, the Singapore Zoo was no longer a

hot and humid place to visit even though temperatures in the county hover around 30 degrees Celsius

all year round. This type of outdoor cooling might work to solve the problem at Souq Waqif in Doha,

Qatar where the temperatures are quite hot and often humid for about four to five months of the year.
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Discussion

This part of the report will discuss the three possible cooling devices that will be assessed as

possible solutions which include evaporative coolers, Airbitat, and high-velocity fans. These three

possible solutions will be evaluated using criteria discussed in this section and compared in a selection

matrix (comparison table) later in this report.

Evaporative Coolers

This solution is one of the most effective ways to cool the surrounding area because it improves

the air and filters it by making it 100% fresh (see Figure 1). In case the air is exceptionally dry, such as in

the northern region of the State of Qatar, where the relative humidity is often 30% or less, evaporative

coolers can decrease the ambient temperature by up to -1.1 °C even in hot and humid regions like Qatar

with the expected temperature reduction can be up to -12.2 °C -25°C (Zhang et al., 2018).

It has a high cooling efficiency, small floor coverage, low noise, and less initial cost and it can be

used in outdoor cafes as shown in Figure 1.

Figure 2

Evaporative cooler in a cafe

Note. Reprinted from Sylvane, n.d.

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Airbitat

Another option to solve the need for outdoor cooling is the Airbitat coolers. These units are

meant to be silent while providing powerful cooling in urban environments. Moreover, the airflow paths

within have been designed to reduce turbulence, noise, and to simplify the delivery of air. “The Airbitat

experience is extremely cool, but never noisy due to high low-noise German-engineered fans that are

encased within the housing” (Airbitat, 2021, para 11). Figure 2 shows the Airbitat smart cooling device in

an outdoor park area.

Figure 2

Photo of Airbitat

Note. Reprinted from

Airbitat, 2021

High-Velocity Fans

High-velocity fans, as shown in Figure 3, are used to simply move a lot of air in a short amount of

time and are designed to project air across wide distances such as restaurants and cafes with a large

open-door area. When it is not possible to set up a fan close to the target region, these fans are
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frequently used. Once the temperature rises, high-velocity fans can provide the feeling of coolness with

a low level of white noise (Brandwein, 2020).

Figure 3

Photo of High-velocity Fan

Note. Reprinted from Majeau, 2021

This next part of the report will explain the criteria for evaluating the three solutions discussed:

evaporative coolers, Airbitat, and high-velocity fans. The criteria of capacity, cost, and ease of use will be

defined and explained before being used in the selection matrix to make the final comparison and

recommendation.

Capacity

This criterion is about the capacity of the three solutions and how each device can reduce the

outside temperature using cubic meters per minute (m³/min) measurements. Cmm measures the

amount of fresh air cycled through your environment each minute. To determine the cmm, multiply the

square footage of the room by the ceiling height in meters. Then, divide this number by the number of

recommended air changes per hour (Sylvane, n. d.).

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Cost

This criterion refers to the purchase price or financial costs for each solution. Costs include the

tools and techniques needed to manufacture these devices. These costs may vary from one city to

another depending on the availability of tools, techniques, and the ease of manufacturing such devices

in different countries. Prices will be quoted in US dollars (USD).

Ease of Use

This criterion indicates how easy or difficult each device is to use. The classification section

named ‘extremely easy’ is for the devices categorized as the easiest to use. ‘Easy’ is for the devices

classified as easy to use, but it is considered more difficult than the previous one. ‘Moderately easy’ is

for devices that are classified as neither easy to use nor difficult, as it is located in the middle area

between them. ‘Difficult’ is for devices classified as difficult to use. ‘Extremely difficult’ is for the devices

that are considered the most difficult to use.

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References

Airbitat. (2021). Airbitat. https://airbitat.com/

Brandwein, S. (2020, July 25). Heat got you down? Time to give these high-velocity fans a spin. Bustle.

https://www.bustle.com/life/best-high-velocity-fans

Majeau, C. M. (2021, January 22). Best high-velocity fan. The Sleep Judge.

https://www.thesleepjudge.com/roundup/best-high-velocity-fan/

Sylvane. (n.d.). Best evaporative swamp coolers. https://www.sylvane.com/best-evaporative-swamp-

coolers.html

Tay, T. F. (2016, Aug 26). Outdoor cooling system on trial at zoo: S'pore-designed outdoor cooling system

now on trial uses 80% less energy than air-con.  The Straits Times. https://connect.cna-

qatar.edu.qa/login?url=https://www-proquest-com.connect.cna-qatar.edu.qa/newspapers/

outdoor-cooling-system-on-trial-at-zoo/docview/1814183070/se-2?accountid=12833

Zhang, R., Liu, Y., Li, J., Liu, Z., Xu, W., Qiao, B., & Feng, X. (2018). Load distribution of semi-central

evaporative cooling air-conditioning system based on the TRNSYS platform. Energies, 11(5),

1186. https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/11/5/1186
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Part 2

Comparison

The selection matrix in Table 1 compares the three possible solutions of evaporative

coolers, Airbitat, and high-velocity fans using the criteria of capacity, cost, and ease of use. A detailed

discussion of the results of this comparison table (selection matrix) follows Table 1 below.

Table 1

Selection Matrix

Evaporative Coolers Airbitat High-Velocity fans

Capacity (m³/min) 84.95 - 707.9 9.45 1189.3+

Cost (USD/per unit) $200 - 2000 $500 - 1500 $100 - 200

Ease of Use Easy Extremely Easy Easy

Note. Information from multiple sources: Airbitat, 2021; Dubovoy, 2021; Amazon, 2021.

Table 1 indicates the selection matrix of this report. It reveals the evaluation of evaporative

coolers, Airbitat, and high-velocity fans by their capacity, cost, and ease of use.

The cafes and restaurants can choose the most suitable device to be used according to their

budget and capacity.

Capacity

As shown in Table 1, high-velocity fans have the highest cubic feet per minute capacity

compared to the other two solutions that have a less capacity value, and the higher cubic feet per

minute is always the better because it provides a high and a heavy amount of filtered air (Brandwein,

2020).
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Cost

Table 1 shows that high-velocity fans have the cheapest price with a price range between $100-

200 USD which is quite a bit less expensive as compared to evaporative coolers and Airbitat. The cause

of the high price range for the evaporative coolers and Airbitat is that they have a smart control and a

digital screen display that allows the user to adjust the temperature and force level of the fans remotely

(Airbitat, 2021).

Ease of Use

As shown in Table 1, Airbitat is the easiest device to use in the list and the evaporative coolers

and high-velocity fans are considered easy to use for the user due to the manual adjusting of the

temperature that requires constant change depending on the ambient temperature. According to the

Operation Manager of Airbitat, “users of the device are pleased with how easy it is to operate the device

and how well it provides cooling air to the space as needed” (Chin, 2021, para 3).

Recommendation

The recommended solution for the outdoor cooling system in cafes and restaurants of Souq

Waqif is a high-velocity fan, the device can cover a wide area in a short period of time, and it has the

lowest cost of the three choices, as shown in Table 1. It also has the useful property of not emitting loud

and unpleasant noises. In compliance with the criteria capacity, cost, and ease of use it is the most

effective solution compared to the other solutions.

Conclusion

This report compares the three different outdoor cooling systems, namely: evaporative coolers,

Airbitat, and high-velocity fans. The solutions were assessed based on their capacity, cost, and ease of

use. Through this comparison, restaurants, and cafes in Souq Waqif can determine the appropriate

outdoor cooling system for them according to the requirements needed.

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This report discusses the mechanism of each device in terms of a simplified way on how it

operates and suggests places that it can be used. It also discusses the area that can be covered by the

device and the amount of noise does each device causes.

This report does not discuss the availability of each device and if it is harmful to the

environment or if it may cause pollution.

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References

Airbitat. (2021). Airbitat. https://airbitat.com/

Amazon. (2021a, November 4). Evaporative cooler. https://www.amazon.com/s?

k=evaporative+cooler&crid=259MPU5RBM01L&sprefix=evaportive+cooler%2Caps

%2C331&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

Amazon. (2021b, November 4). High-velocity fans. https://www.amazon.com/s?k=High-

Velocity+fans&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

Brandwein, S. (2020, July 25). Heat got you down? Time to give these high-velocity fans a spin. Bustle.

https://www.bustle.com/life/best-high-velocity-fans

Chin, T. (2021). Maxcool industries: Products. Max Cool.

https://www.maxcool.com.sg/product-details/airbitat-city-cooler-ctc02

Dubovoy, E. (2021, May 29). Evaporative cooler. https://evapolar.com/blog/swamp-cooler/

Majeau, C. M. (2021, January 22). Best high-velocity fan. The Sleep Judge.

https://www.thesleepjudge.com/roundup/best-high-velocity-fan/

Sylvane. (n.d.). Best evaporative swamp coolers. https://www.sylvane.com/best-evaporative-swamp-

coolers.html

Tay, T. F. (2016, Aug 26). Outdoor cooling system on trial at zoo: S'pore-designed outdoor cooling system

now on trial uses 80% less energy than air-con.  The Straits Times. https://connect.cna-

qatar.edu.qa/login?url=https://www-proquest-com.connect.cna-qatar.edu.qa/newspapers/

outdoor-cooling-system-on-trial-at-zoo/docview/1814183070/se-2?accountid=12833

Zhang, R., Liu, Y., Li, J., Liu, Z., Xu, W., Qiao, B., & Feng, X. (2018). Load distribution of semi-central

evaporative cooling air-conditioning system based on the TRNSYS platform. Energies, 11(5),

1186. https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/11/5/1186