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Heating the patio at the Perch restaurant : a triple bottom line assessment of patio heating technologies Cockcroft, Meghan; White, Brian; Dolinsky, Erik; Abualsaud, Ayaat
Abstract
The Alma Mater Society (AMS) of the University of British Columbia has nearly completed the construction of the new Student Union Building (SUB), located on UBC’s Vancouver campus. The Perch restaurant, located in the new SUB, will provide students and visitors with healthy and environmentally responsible fare. Keeping with UBC’s image as a leader in sustainability, the AMS requested that select students research into sustainable heating solutions for the Perch restaurant’s rooftop patio, which would allow the Perch to expand patio sales periods, both daily and seasonal. Given various restraints, including structural and power access limitations, our team has proposed two alternatives to traditional freestanding propane heaters: freestanding electric heaters, and a radiant floor heating system. Each of the three options is assessed according to their triple bottom line attributes: economic feasibility, environmental impact, and social reception. Net present worth of each option is calculated, from calculating cost and predicted revenue, in order to measure each option’s economic feasibility. End-‐use and Upstream emissions of each product is analyzed, in order to calculate each option’s environmental impact. Product performance from a customer satisfaction standpoint and general public reception of each option forms a basis of the social reception of each product. After careful consideration of each product’s merits and shortcomings, the two electric options seem to be the most sustainable. The use of electricity as a fuel source provides a much cleaner upstream emission levels, especially after BC’s hydroelectric dam system is taken into consideration. In financial terms, all three options are similar, but with little adoption cost and low fuel price, freestanding electric heaters prove to be the most economically feasible option. In terms of customer experience, restaurant-‐goers tend to favor higher heat concentration provided by freestanding heaters; however, debate over the use of patio heaters has grown, giving patio heaters a bad reputation for heating the open air. Although there is one clear option for the Perch restaurant patio, given the brevity and low frequency of intended use (due to Vancouver’s weather patterns), relatively high cost of purchasing and operating, and purely negative environmental impact, it is recommended that the AMS forego purchasing an outdoor heating solution for the Perch restaurant patio. Disclaimer: “UBC SEEDS provides students with the opportunity to share the findings of their studies, as well as their opinions, conclusions and recommendations with the UBC community. The reader should bear in mind that this is a student project/report and is not an official document of UBC. Furthermore readers should bear in mind that these reports may not reflect the current status of activities at UBC. We urge you to contact the research persons mentioned in a report or the SEEDS Coordinator about the current status of the subject matter of a project/report.”
Item Metadata
Title |
Heating the patio at the Perch restaurant : a triple bottom line assessment of patio heating technologies
|
Creator | |
Contributor | |
Date Issued |
2014-11-27
|
Description |
The
Alma
Mater
Society
(AMS)
of
the
University
of
British
Columbia
has
nearly
completed
the
construction
of
the
new
Student
Union
Building
(SUB),
located
on
UBC’s
Vancouver
campus.
The
Perch
restaurant,
located
in
the
new
SUB,
will
provide
students
and
visitors
with
healthy
and
environmentally
responsible
fare.
Keeping
with
UBC’s
image
as
a
leader
in
sustainability,
the
AMS
requested
that
select
students
research
into
sustainable
heating
solutions
for
the
Perch
restaurant’s
rooftop
patio,
which
would
allow
the
Perch
to
expand
patio
sales
periods,
both
daily
and
seasonal.
Given
various
restraints,
including
structural
and
power
access
limitations,
our
team
has
proposed
two
alternatives
to
traditional
freestanding
propane
heaters:
freestanding
electric
heaters,
and
a
radiant
floor
heating
system.
Each
of
the
three
options
is
assessed
according
to
their
triple
bottom
line
attributes:
economic
feasibility,
environmental
impact,
and
social
reception.
Net
present
worth
of
each
option
is
calculated,
from
calculating
cost
and
predicted
revenue,
in
order
to
measure
each
option’s
economic
feasibility.
End-‐use
and
Upstream
emissions
of
each
product
is
analyzed,
in
order
to
calculate
each
option’s
environmental
impact.
Product
performance
from
a
customer
satisfaction
standpoint
and
general
public
reception
of
each
option
forms
a
basis
of
the
social
reception
of
each
product.
After
careful
consideration
of
each
product’s
merits
and
shortcomings,
the
two
electric
options
seem
to
be
the
most
sustainable.
The
use
of
electricity
as
a
fuel
source
provides
a
much
cleaner
upstream
emission
levels,
especially
after
BC’s
hydroelectric
dam
system
is
taken
into
consideration.
In
financial
terms,
all
three
options
are
similar,
but
with
little
adoption
cost
and
low
fuel
price,
freestanding
electric
heaters
prove
to
be
the
most
economically
feasible
option.
In
terms
of
customer
experience,
restaurant-‐goers
tend
to
favor
higher
heat
concentration
provided
by
freestanding
heaters;
however,
debate
over
the
use
of
patio
heaters
has
grown,
giving
patio
heaters
a
bad
reputation
for
heating
the
open
air.
Although
there
is
one
clear
option
for
the
Perch
restaurant
patio,
given
the
brevity
and
low
frequency
of
intended
use
(due
to
Vancouver’s
weather
patterns),
relatively
high
cost
of
purchasing
and
operating,
and
purely
negative
environmental
impact,
it
is
recommended
that
the
AMS
forego
purchasing
an
outdoor
heating
solution
for
the
Perch
restaurant
patio. Disclaimer: “UBC SEEDS provides students with the opportunity to share the findings of their studies, as well as their opinions, conclusions and recommendations with the UBC community. The reader should bear in mind that this is a student project/report and is not an official document of UBC. Furthermore readers should bear in mind that these reports may not reflect the current status of activities at UBC. We urge you to contact the research persons mentioned in a report or the SEEDS Coordinator about the current status of the subject matter of a project/report.”
|
Genre | |
Type | |
Language |
eng
|
Series | |
Date Available |
2015-07-07
|
Provider |
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
|
Rights |
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.5 Canada
|
DOI |
10.14288/1.0108855
|
URI | |
Affiliation | |
Campus | |
Peer Review Status |
Unreviewed
|
Scholarly Level |
Undergraduate
|
Rights URI | |
Aggregated Source Repository |
DSpace
|
Item Media
Item Citations and Data
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.5 Canada