Chilled water piping in Abu Dhabi City 

Chilled water piping in Abu Dhabi City: local context

Abu Dhabi City covers the main island's grid of streets, from the Corniche towers and government buildings to dense mid-rise blocks built from the 1980s onward, along with hotels, hospitals and private palaces. Many buildings are now 20–40 years old, so replacement and upgrade work runs alongside new towers. Manolia's work in the capital includes building works for a G+3P+24 office tower, MEP works for a 28-storey tower and HVAC works for Al Bahar Palace.

• Older towers on the island often need chiller and cooling tower replacements, re-piping of corroded risers and new BMS controls, delivered while tenants stay in place.
• Fire and life safety upgrades are approved and witnessed by ADCDA, and refurbishments commonly bring smoke control, alarm and sprinkler systems into line with the current UAE Fire & Life Safety Code.
• Palaces demand concealed, quiet HVAC with precise zoning, robust standby capacity and finishes that tolerate no visible ductwork or grilles out of place.

Building types we serve in Abu Dhabi City

For hotels and serviced apartments, the work concentrates on quiet guestroom fan coils, kitchen and laundry extract, hot-water generation at scale, BMS supervision and phased handover to the operator.

Scope of work

• Pipe sizing review against design flows and allowable pressure drop, with velocity checks to limit noise in risers and erosion at fittings.
• Underground pre-insulated chilled-water networks between buildings, with trench coordination, leak detection wiring where specified and protected crossings.
• Chemical cleaning and flushing to remove mill scale, debris and welding residue, with water treatment introduced after flushing.
• Strainer and coil bypass arrangements during flushing so debris is collected in temporary screens rather than lodged in new fan coil and AHU coils.

Systems we install

• Expansion vessels and pressurisation units
• Energy meters at building or tenant connections

UAE site and climate challenges

• Buried networks in saline or high-water-table ground face corrosion, so pre-insulated systems with protective jackets and sealed joints are used and trenches are backfilled with suitable material.
• Riser shafts open to outdoor air during construction fill with dust and humidity, so insulation is installed only after shafts are closed and pipes are clean and dry, avoiding trapped moisture under the vapour barrier.
• Two-pipe versus four-pipe distribution: almost all UAE buildings need cooling only, so two-pipe is standard, but hospitals, laboratories or palaces needing reheat for humidity control may justify a separate heating loop.

Relevant Manolia projects

Al Salam Tower, Sharjah

Sharjah · HVAC · Completed

Chiller plant and roof chilled-water network for a 52-typical-floor tower.

Hassani Group factories & HQ, DIP

Dubai Investments Park (DIP) · MEP · Completed

Factory complex, HQ and staff accommodation, all served from one central cooling station.

Frequently asked questions