Crossing the finish line in record time and scoring the decisive goals: GEA and partners take refrigeration to new level at Erfurt Ice Sports Center

A cool marvel: The technical equipment of the Gunda Niemann Stirnemann Hall

The hall interior temperature can be heated to 10°C via 77 ceiling air heaters. A ventilation system consisting of ten decentralized units with an air flow rate of 8,000 m³/h each ensures good fresh air quality in the hall even when the maximum spectator capacity is utilized. Air dryers are integrated in the ventilation units. This prevents condensation from forming on the supporting structure and "raining" onto the ice surfaces.

The ice machine house is located next to the southeast curve of the circular rink. All three ice surfaces are cooled from this location. Ammonia is used as the coolant. In total, cooling pipes with a length of almost 100 km are installed under the ice surfaces. The cooling capacity of all cooling units is 3,068 kW. The heat generated during ice preparation is extracted from the coolant by a heat recovery system and used to heat the speed skating rink.

Each of the three ice surfaces can be iced separately and cooled to the desired ice temperature. If required, the osmosis plant can be put into operation for ice preparation. This makes it possible to remove almost all salt components from the water and significantly improve the ice's sliding properties.  

Ice cold planned and implemented

In 2019, the engineering office Möller & Meyer from Gotha was commissioned by the city of Erfurt to develop a renovation concept for the refrigeration system in the ice sports center in Erfurt and to break down the corresponding costs of the individual trades and services. The aim of the project was to replace the screw compressors that had been in operation since 1997, as maintenance and repair costs had risen sharply in recent years. In addition, energy costs were to be saved by the sum of all measures in the end.

Several variants of the refurbishment and their dependencies were then examined and compiled in terms of costs and schedule dependencies. An important point here was the operator's objective that the refurbishment be carried out during the operational break in May/July 2021. By September 2019, the planning could be completed in this respect and handed over to the client. With the documents, explanatory reports were written for the requested funding sources in order to transparently present the conversion measures. The state of Thuringia and the federal government then reviewed the documents and approved the corresponding funding in 2020.

With the release of the funds, the specifications for the conversion measures compressor replacement and new construction of control technology could be drawn up and published in the fall of 2020. The contract was then awarded to Gesellschaft für Kälte- und Klimatechnik (GfKK), Cologne, in a public tender in February 2021.

In mid-February 2021, the concrete implementation began. In the course of work preparation and ordering, it was possible to quickly start clarifying all relevant boundary conditions for a smooth rebuild. This was done with a clear project schedule, drawn up and followed up by the engineering firm Möller & Meyer.

On May 4, 2021, the old cooling generation plant of the Erfurt Ice Sports Center was decommissioned. However, this did not happen at the push of a button on an immediate date, but with many intermediate dates and a corresponding coordination of all companies and third-party trades involved.

Thanks to the targeted efforts of all the companies, planners and builders involved, the complete conversion of the facility was completed on August 23, 2021, with expert acceptance and handover to the builder. As of this date, a new and energy-efficient refrigeration system will be available to amateur, professional and school sports. It will "faithfully provide its service" for the coming decades.