People refer to “Shangri-La” as a mythical paradise that offers a welcome escape from the pressures of the modern world. But for most people it’s just that — a fictional retreat.
Until you visit Sentosa. The Shangri-La Rasa Sentosa Resort & Spa is a true tropical playground — and the only beachfront resort in Singapore. Sentosa is a small island, the perfect setting for a real Shangri-La that’s family-friendly, with an array of fine dining and recreational activities just steps from your guestroom or suite.
There’s only one challenge to Shangri-La Sentosa: the weather.
Having a “Hot” Time Doesn’t Mean Sweating!
Resort guests expect and deserve pampering. That’s why they come to Shangri-La Rasa Sentosa: to experience relaxation and enjoyment of mythic proportions. They don’t want to think about Singapore’s hot, humid climate, or sweat while they’re staying here — unless they decide to indulge in a rejuvenating sauna or spa treatment.
Of course, Shangri-La Rasa Sentosa provides temperature-controlled guestrooms and suites. In fact, the resort is a SG Clean certified establishment, which means the resort, including its restaurants and spa, has met the highest requirements for implementation of cleanliness and hygiene practices, compliance with health and travel advisories, and more.
But meeting these requirements is expensive — and not only in terms of cost; all this energy usage comes with a high price tag for the environment.
A Cool Solution
Like most hotels on Sentosa Island, Shangri-La Rasa Sentosa sits right on the beachfront — and this means restaurants, rest areas, and recreational centers are all exposed to the harsh sunlight that any tropical island can receive.
The Shangri-La Rasa Sentosa was looking for an affordable and reliable cooling system. They engaged Enovatek Energy in November 2020 to help them reduce their air-conditioning costs and lower CO2 emissions.
Enovatek Energy proposed that Shangri-La Rasa Sentosa replace all its indoor beachfront areas with the Enovatek Energy Hybrid Solar Air Conditioner. This was the most viable product / option, as there were multiple shade-free areas on the property that had direct access to natural sunlight.
The Hybrid Solar Air Conditioner proposed runs on DC power, harvested from solar panels during the day. At night, or when there is insufficient sunlight, the air conditioning system switches to conventional AC, the grid.
On a cloudy day, the system still draws as much power as possible from the sun’s irradiance. Being an intelligent system, the algorithm will always draw as much power as possible from renewable sources first, and then tap into conventional AC power.
The solar air conditioning systems operate without inverters, batteries or controllers.
The air conditioning system being replaced was a big brand 1.5 HP or 12000 BTU split unit, the kind that can commonly be found in offices and homes around the world. Enovatek Energy thought it useful to collect data from this unit first, using a BCA approved energy-monitoring device.
The data collected from this split unit would serve as a basis for Enovatek Energy and the Shangri-La Rasa Sentosa to see how much energy was being used and how costly it is, in comparison to the newly installed 1.5 HP or 12000 BTU Enovatek Energy Hybrid Solar Air Conditioner.
Graph ref: 24 hour data capture – collected from existing split unit
Data from the current air conditioning system was taken over a period of three days. The average running power of the above-mentioned split air conditioning unit is between a consistent 1400-1800 watts, regardless of ambient temperature. This shows that the running cost of the air conditioning system is quite constant, with few variables.
To address the above problem, Enovatek Energy assembled a standalone structure to allow for 3 x 450 watts solar panels to sit on, due to the wooden roof, and to further save on PE costs. It was vital to find an area on the property that was close enough, yet not in the way of hotel guest activities and/or the Shangri-La Rasa Sentosa’s daily operations.
Saving Money and the Environment
After implementation, Enovatek Energy monitored the Hybrid Solar Air Conditioner for a period of one week, which included days of heavy rainfall as well as sunny days: typical tropical weather for Southeast Asia.
Ref images: solar panels, Hybrid Solar Air Conditioner & Compressor
The data seen below is from the newly installed Solar Hybrid Air Conditioning system. The data was collected on a typical bright and sunny day in Singapore, on the best day of the week. The Solar Hybrid Air Conditioning system managed to draw 100% power from the sun for approximately 10 hours in a 24-hour period.
The data also suggests that in AC mode, the air conditioner did not use more than 1200 watts, and used lower power when the outdoor ambient temperature was cooler.
The data collected below shows a return on investment in less than two years of running 24 hours a day. The data calculated took Singapore’s rainfall into account. The running cost was significantly lower than the big brand split inverter air conditioning, making it a good, green, long-term investment for the Shangri-La Rasa Sentosa.
Comparison Data
Aircon Type | Daikin Split Aircon | Enovatek AC DC Solar Hybrid Aircon |
Watts | 218663.80 | 68638.00 |
KW/ 10 Min | 218.66 | 68.64 |
KWH | 36.44 | 11.44 |
Per Day Cost | $6.195474 | $ 1.94474 |
KWH / Year | 13302.05 | 4175.48 |
Per Year Cost | $ 2261.348 | $ 709.831 |
ROI (Years) |
| 1.9 Years |
Carbon Emissions Comparison
Aircon Type | Daikin Split Aircon | Enovatek AC DC Solar Hybrid Aircon |
CO2 Emissions | 6917.065 KG | 692.98 KG |
Trees Saved Per Year | – | 7.91 |
In conclusion, it’s evident that the adoption of smarter technologies can significantly reduce electricity consumption and CO2 emissions. Enovatek Energy was happy to meet the Shangri-La Rasa Sentosa’s requirements, and do our small part in helping to reverse climate change, one air conditioner at a time.
Appendix A
The following readings were taken over a period of 24 hours logging every 10mins
Shangri La AC Power Data Monitoring | ||||
Date | Time | AC Voltage | AC Current | AC Watts |
31/7/2020 | 12:02:38 am | 237.53 | 5.6919126 | 1352 |
31/7/2020 | 12:12:38 am | 237.44 | 5.6186826 | 1334.1 |
31/7/2020 | 12:22:38 am | 237.63 | 5.6516433 | 1343 |
31/7/2020 | 12:32:38 am | 238.32 | 5.6088453 | 1336.7 |
31/7/2020 | 12:42:38 am | 239 | 5.5033473 | 1315.3 |
31/7/2020 | 12:52:38 am | 239.39 | 5.5006475 | 1316.8 |
31/7/2020 | 1:02:38 am | 239.37 | 5.506538 | 1318.1 |
31/7/2020 | 1:12:38 am | 239.63 | 5.4872094 | 1314.9 |
31/7/2020 | 1:22:38 am | 239.92 | 5.488913 | 1316.9 |
31/7/2020 | 1:32:38 am | 240.34 | 5.4622618 | 1312.8 |
31/7/2020 | 1:42:38 am | 240.36 | 5.4551506 | 1311.2 |
31/7/2020 | 1:52:38 am | 239.94 | 5.4705343 | 1312.6 |
31/7/2020 | 2:02:38 am | 240.33 | 5.4720593 | 1315.1 |
31/7/2020 | 2:12:38 am | 240.78 | 5.445635 | 1311.2 |
31/7/2020 | 2:22:38 am | 241 | 5.4485477 | 1313.1 |
31/7/2020 | 2:32:38 am | 240.9 | 5.4005812 | 1301 |
31/7/2020 | 2:42:38 am | 241.46 | 5.1809824 | 1251 |
31/7/2020 | 2:52:38 am | 239.08 | 5.2145725 | 1246.7 |
31/7/2020 | 3:02:38 am | 239.47 | 5.1943876 | 1243.9 |
31/7/2020 | 3:12:38 am | 239.26 | 5.1880799 | 1241.3 |
31/7/2020 | 3:22:38 am | 239.33 | 5.1857268 | 1241.1 |
31/7/2020 | 3:32:38 am | 239.26 | 5.0121207 | 1199.2 |
31/7/2020 | 3:42:38 am | 239.54 | 5.0910078 | 1219.5 |
31/7/2020 | 3:52:38 am | 239.71 | 4.8262484 | 1156.9 |
31/7/2020 | 4:02:38 am | 239.69 | 4.9630773 | 1189.6 |
31/7/2020 | 4:12:38 am | 239.43 | 4.5357725 | 1086 |
31/7/2020 | 4:22:38 am | 239.48 | 5.1027226 | 1222 |
31/7/2020 | 4:32:38 am | 239.62 | 4.8205492 | 1155.1 |
31/7/2020 | 4:42:38 am | 239.93 | 4.1749677 | 1001.7 |
31/7/2020 | 4:52:38 am | 239.7 | 4.6716729 | 1119.8 |
31/7/2020 | 5:02:38 am | 239.82 | 4.7860896 | 1147.8 |
31/7/2020 | 5:12:38 am | 239.89 | 4.1156363 | 987.3 |
31/7/2020 | 5:22:38 am | 239.75 | 4.8921794 | 1172.9 |
31/7/2020 | 5:32:38 am | 239.4 | 4.8650794 | 1164.7 |
31/7/2020 | 5:42:38 am | 239.17 | 4.5904587 | 1097.9 |
31/7/2020 | 5:52:38 am | 238.87 | 4.7448403 | 1133.4 |
31/7/2020 | 6:02:38 am | 238.74 | 4.5916059 | 1096.2 |
31/7/2020 | 6:12:38 am | 238.45 | 4.3103376 | 1027.8 |
31/7/2020 | 6:22:38 am | 238.1 | 3.9181016 | 932.9 |
31/7/2020 | 6:32:38 am | 237.77 | 3.9571855 | 940.9 |
31/7/2020 | 6:42:38 am | 237.72 | 4.0737002 | 968.4 |
31/7/2020 | 6:52:38 am | 236.6 | 3.7079459 | 877.3 |
31/7/2020 | 7:02:38 am | 236.38 | 3.7524325 | 887 |
31/7/2020 | 7:12:38 am | 235.09 | 4.2456081 | 998.1 |
31/7/2020 | 7:22:38 am | 234.69 | 5.1378414 | 1205.8 |
31/7/2020 | 7:32:38 am | 235.59 | 5.2841801 | 1244.9 |
31/7/2020 | 7:42:38 am | 236.25 | 5.1369312 | 1213.6 |
31/7/2020 | 7:52:38 am | 236.11 | 5.1450595 | 1214.8 |
31/7/2020 | 8:02:38 am | 236.47 | 4.3130207 | 1019.9 |
31/7/2020 | 8:12:38 am | 236.14 | 4.0399763 | 954 |
31/7/2020 | 8:22:38 am | 236.1 | 3.3883947 | 800 |
31/7/2020 | 8:32:38 am | 235.67 | 2.7882208 | 657.1 |
31/7/2020 | 8:42:38 am | 235.26 | 3.4238715 | 805.5 |
31/7/2020 | 8:52:38 am | 235.19 | 2.9116884 | 684.8 |
31/7/2020 | 9:02:38 am | 235.85 | 2.7691329 | 653.1 |
31/7/2020 | 9:12:38 am | 236.24 | 4.1335083 | 976.5 |
31/7/2020 | 9:22:38 am | 236.84 | 6.0222091 | 1426.3 |
31/7/2020 | 9:32:38 am | 235.89 | 7.2114121 | 1701.1 |
31/7/2020 | 9:42:38 am | 236.49 | 7.4383695 | 1759.1 |
31/7/2020 | 9:52:38 am | 236.08 | 7.4665368 | 1762.7 |
31/7/2020 | 10:02:38 am | 235.21 | 7.5970409 | 1786.9 |
31/7/2020 | 10:12:38 am | 234.94 | 7.6313101 | 1792.9 |
31/7/2020 | 10:22:38 am | 234.43 | 7.7238408 | 1810.7 |
31/7/2020 | 10:32:38 am | 235.36 | 7.6852481 | 1808.8 |
31/7/2020 | 10:42:38 am | 235.76 | 7.7192908 | 1819.9 |
31/7/2020 | 10:52:38 am | 235.56 | 7.7907964 | 1835.2 |
31/7/2020 | 11:02:38 am | 234.93 | 7.7976419 | 1831.9 |
31/7/2020 | 11:12:38 am | 234.91 | 7.7914946 | 1830.3 |
31/7/2020 | 11:22:38 am | 234.79 | 7.7452191 | 1818.5 |
31/7/2020 | 11:32:38 am | 234.5 | 7.7501066 | 1817.4 |
31/7/2020 | 11:42:38 am | 234.9 | 7.7058323 | 1810.1 |
31/7/2020 | 11:52:38 am | 234.37 | 7.8435807 | 1838.3 |
31/7/2020 | 12:02:38 pm | 234.29 | 7.6955909 | 1803 |
31/7/2020 | 12:12:38 pm | 235.11 | 7.759772 | 1824.4 |
31/7/2020 | 12:22:38 pm | 235.5 | 7.781741 | 1832.6 |
31/7/2020 | 12:32:38 pm | 235.34 | 7.8337724 | 1843.6 |
31/7/2020 | 12:42:38 pm | 235.37 | 7.6165187 | 1792.7 |
31/7/2020 | 12:52:38 pm | 235.22 | 7.6996004 | 1811.1 |
31/7/2020 | 1:02:38 pm | 234.64 | 7.6193317 | 1787.8 |
31/7/2020 | 1:12:38 pm | 232.07 | 7.717499 | 1791 |
31/7/2020 | 1:22:38 pm | 231.39 | 7.6355936 | 1766.8 |
31/7/2020 | 1:32:38 pm | 232.02 | 7.4877166 | 1737.3 |
31/7/2020 | 1:42:38 pm | 232.1 | 7.4269711 | 1723.8 |
31/7/2020 | 1:52:38 pm | 232.13 | 7.4092104 | 1719.9 |
31/7/2020 | 2:02:38 pm | 232.39 | 7.3673566 | 1712.1 |
31/7/2020 | 2:12:38 pm | 232.26 | 7.1678292 | 1664.8 |
31/7/2020 | 2:22:38 pm | 232.33 | 6.2441355 | 1450.7 |
31/7/2020 | 2:32:38 pm | 232.5 | 7.1604301 | 1664.8 |
31/7/2020 | 2:42:38 pm | 235.95 | 7.649502 | 1804.9 |
31/7/2020 | 2:52:38 pm | 236.53 | 7.6417368 | 1807.5 |
31/7/2020 | 3:02:38 pm | 236.93 | 7.6301017 | 1807.8 |
31/7/2020 | 3:12:38 pm | 236.4 | 7.6759729 | 1814.6 |
31/7/2020 | 3:22:38 pm | 235.07 | 7.7074914 | 1811.8 |
31/7/2020 | 3:32:38 pm | 234.01 | 7.7518055 | 1814 |
31/7/2020 | 3:42:38 pm | 231.51 | 6.1297568 | 1419.1 |
31/7/2020 | 3:52:38 pm | 235.38 | 7.7750871 | 1830.1 |
31/7/2020 | 4:02:38 pm | 235.7 | 7.7293169 | 1821.8 |
31/7/2020 | 4:12:38 pm | 236.25 | 7.6698413 | 1812 |
31/7/2020 | 4:22:38 pm | 235.9 | 7.7231878 | 1821.9 |
31/7/2020 | 4:32:38 pm | 235.79 | 7.6250053 | 1797.9 |
31/7/2020 | 4:42:38 pm | 236.32 | 7.6108666 | 1798.6 |
31/7/2020 | 4:52:38 pm | 236.89 | 7.5689138 | 1793 |
31/7/2020 | 5:02:38 pm | 237.4 | 7.5762426 | 1798.6 |
31/7/2020 | 5:12:38 pm | 237.35 | 7.5925848 | 1802.1 |
31/7/2020 | 5:22:38 pm | 237.22 | 7.5322485 | 1786.8 |
31/7/2020 | 5:32:38 pm | 237.69 | 7.5047331 | 1783.8 |
31/7/2020 | 5:42:38 pm | 238.34 | 7.4842662 | 1783.8 |
31/7/2020 | 5:52:38 pm | 238.9 | 7.4763499 | 1786.1 |
31/7/2020 | 6:02:38 pm | 239.04 | 7.460676 | 1783.4 |
31/7/2020 | 6:12:38 pm | 239.24 | 7.6362648 | 1826.9 |
31/7/2020 | 6:22:38 pm | 235.05 | 7.5128696 | 1765.9 |
31/7/2020 | 6:32:38 pm | 234.28 | 7.5473792 | 1768.2 |
31/7/2020 | 6:42:38 pm | 236.51 | 7.3345736 | 1734.7 |
31/7/2020 | 6:52:38 pm | 236.13 | 7.5970864 | 1793.9 |
31/7/2020 | 7:02:38 pm | 236 | 7.6648305 | 1808.9 |
31/7/2020 | 7:12:38 pm | 235.23 | 7.7222293 | 1816.5 |
31/7/2020 | 7:22:38 pm | 235.24 | 7.7065975 | 1812.9 |
31/7/2020 | 7:32:38 pm | 235.17 | 7.6761492 | 1805.2 |
31/7/2020 | 7:42:38 pm | 235.25 | 7.6433581 | 1798.1 |
31/7/2020 | 7:52:38 pm | 232.61 | 7.6802373 | 1786.5 |
31/7/2020 | 8:02:38 pm | 232.52 | 7.4501118 | 1732.3 |
31/7/2020 | 8:12:38 pm | 235.8 | 7.3320611 | 1728.9 |
31/7/2020 | 8:22:38 pm | 235.41 | 7.667049 | 1804.9 |
31/7/2020 | 8:32:38 pm | 236.19 | 7.6527372 | 1807.5 |
31/7/2020 | 8:42:38 pm | 236.51 | 7.6436514 | 1807.8 |
31/7/2020 | 8:52:38 pm | 236.65 | 7.6678639 | 1814.6 |
31/7/2020 | 9:02:38 pm | 236.52 | 7.6602401 | 1811.8 |
31/7/2020 | 9:12:38 pm | 236.69 | 7.6640331 | 1814 |
31/7/2020 | 9:22:38 pm | 236.44 | 7.6624091 | 1811.7 |
31/7/2020 | 9:32:38 pm | 235.66 | 7.6775864 | 1809.3 |
31/7/2020 | 9:42:38 pm | 236.26 | 7.6517396 | 1807.8 |
31/7/2020 | 9:52:38 pm | 235.94 | 7.689243 | 1814.2 |
31/7/2020 | 10:02:38 pm | 236.65 | 7.6408198 | 1808.2 |
31/7/2020 | 10:12:38 pm | 237.19 | 7.6133058 | 1805.8 |
31/7/2020 | 10:22:38 pm | 236.75 | 7.6042239 | 1800.3 |
31/7/2020 | 10:32:38 pm | 237.69 | 7.5678405 | 1798.8 |
31/7/2020 | 10:42:38 pm | 237.22 | 7.5722958 | 1796.3 |
31/7/2020 | 10:52:38 pm | 236.35 | 7.5963613 | 1795.4 |
31/7/2020 | 11:02:38 pm | 235.83 | 7.7212399 | 1820.9 |
31/7/2020 | 11:12:38 pm | 234.74 | 7.6527222 | 1796.4 |
31/7/2020 | 11:22:38 pm | 235.81 | 6.4861541 | 1529.5 |
31/7/2020 | 11:32:38 pm | 235.46 | 5.546165 | 1305.9 |
31/7/2020 | 11:42:38 pm | 236.05 | 5.7297183 | 1352.5 |
31/7/2020 | 11:52:38 pm | 236.72 | 5.7198378 | 1354 |
