Cooling towers are an essential component of many industrial facilities and commercial buildings in Malaysia. They are responsible for removing excess heat from a building or an industrial process, ensuring that machinery and equipment operate at optimal temperatures. Without proper cooling systems, the temperature would be unbearable for both humans and machines.
Whether you’re planning to install a new cooling tower, repair or replace an existing tower, an important question you might have is: “How much do cooling towers cost in Malaysia?”
In this post, we’ll break down the factors that contribute to the cost of a cooling tower.
How Much Do Cooling Towers Cost?
To be transparent, the prices vary in different markets and locations – due to differences in local market needs, currency exchange rates, manufacturing costs, shipping, and a myriad of other reasons.
Plus, cooling towers come in all types and sizes, from small-scale to large-scale towers – depending on the needs of a facility.
Therefore, the best way to get a quotation is to speak to one of our friendly cooling tower specialists.
Factors that contribute to the cost of a cooling tower
Figuring out the average cost of a cooling tower can be difficult. Cooling tower companies generally associate cost with the tonnage of the tower, but there are other factors as well from the type of cooling tower, construction material, installation conditions, if disposal of an old tower is needed to ongoing maintenance cost.
With these variables, it’s best to get a quote directly from a cooling tower manufacturer, so feel free to drop us a message anytime.
Generally, here are factors that contribute to the cost of a cooling tower system.
1. Type of Cooling Tower
Selecting the right type of cooling tower depends on factors such as the cooling load, available space, water quality, and specific requirements you need for your facility or building.
Our clients in Malaysia usually choose between two types of induced draft cooling towers – crossflow or counterflow. Induced draft cooling towers are widely considered to be more efficient and economical to build than other types such as forced draft and natural draft cooling towers.
Comparing crossflow and counterflow cooling towers, counterflow models generally are 10-15% more costly than crossflow models due to their internal water distribution system and sophisticated compact structure.
Crossflow cooling towers, although cheaper, have a larger footprint. Equipment space could sometimes be seen as an opportunity cost to the owner, as the cooling tower area could be turned into retail space for generating income.
When considering the costs, the overall system costs shall be considered, rather than the cooling tower on its own. For example, even with its compact size, a counterflow cooling tower with its pressurized hot water nozzles will increase the requirement for pump heads, which directly leads to higher installation costs and operating costs.
On the other hand, crossflow cooling towers require a lower pumping head, thus reducing operational costs.
2. Size of Cooling Tower
Choosing the right size of cooling tower is crucial. How big should a cooling tower be to support an application as efficiently as possible?
Under sizing the cooling tower may lower the initial cost but can be detrimental to the system. For example, if an undersized cooling tower isn’t providing enough cold water to cool the condenser loop of an office building’s HVAC system, the chiller could shut down.
This leads to pricey repairs and unhappy tenants or staff. As for process cooling, insufficient cooling tower capacity can cause expensive production losses due to damage caused to the processing equipment.
So, how to size cooling towers? Four key parameters are required:
- Inlet hot water temperature
- Outlet cold water temperature
- Ambient wet bulb temperature
- Water flow rate
When selecting the size of a cooling tower, the highest wet bulb temperature should be used for sizing purposes. Although this results in a higher capital investment, it ensures the cooling tower works sufficiently even on the most humid and hottest day of the year.
Global warming shall also be taken into account when sizing up cooling towers. A cooling tower sized today is likely to be undersized 20 years later due to rising global temperatures.
Other than the cooling tower capacity, the physical size of a cooling tower also affects costs. Generally, a cooling tower with a larger footprint is more expensive due to the increased material used in the cooling tower.
An energy-saving cooling tower typically has a bigger cooling tower footprint but uses less power, making it a more efficient and worthwhile choice.
In general, as the tonnage of the cooling tower increases, the cooling tower costs per ton goes down. A cooling tower with a small single-cell capacity will cost more per ton than a cooling tower with a large single-cell capacity.
3. Construction Material
The usual choices of materials to build a cooling tower are metal and fiberglass (FRP – “Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic”).
Going for the cheapest material isn’t always the right decision. Because cooling towers become an integral part of your facility or building, you would want them to provide a long service life and to withstand the weather conditions and water quality of your area.
If you decide to go with a metal cooling tower structure, the most economical cooling tower structural material is hot-dipped galvanized steel. Other upgraded (and costlier) options include 304 stainless steel and 316 stainless steels.
As you know, metal can rust and corrode. A cooling tower’s lifespan is affected when aggressive chemical solutions are emitted to treat algae and scale problems. This poses damage to metal surfaces. On the other hand, without chemical treatment to remove biological growth, fouling build-up inside the cooling tower affects cooling efficiency. Hence, selecting the right water treatment specialist is crucial to prolong the lifespan and efficiency of your cooling tower.
Fiberglass cooling towers may provide a better alternative to metal if environmental conditions such as salt air and harsh process chemicals are present. Fiberglass is able to weather harsh environmental conditions. Due to its lightweight, fiberglass cooling towers weigh less than steel towers and installation is often faster and easier, which is an added cost advantage.
4. Noise
With an increasing concern for noise pollution, cooling tower manufacturers now have options for noise-reducing solutions which come with a cost. Noise abatement for cooling towers include basin noise-absorbing mats, air intake and air discharge silencers, fan discharge ducts, and other acoustic treatments.
5. Technology and Efficiency
Advanced and custom-built cooling towers that incorporate energy-efficient features, such as variable speed drives and EC fan technology increase the cost of a cooling tower.
Again, while these features bring a higher initial cost, it also led to substantial savings in operational and maintenance expenses over the long run.
6. Installation & Location
The installation complexity of the cooling tower, including its location – whether in a challenging or confined space, may require specialized equipment, procedure, and increase in labor. This drives up the installation cost.
Installation costs vary from project to project, that’s why we advise arranging for a site visit to determine the exact cost of installing a cooling tower at your facility or building.
7. Maintenance Cost
While maintenance cost is not an upfront cost for cooling towers, it’s something important to factor in when budgeting for a cooling tower.
Opting for higher-quality materials and cooling tower parts can contribute to lower maintenance costs, which saves you money over time.
The Right Cooling Tower Investment
Before committing to purchasing a cooling tower, it’s important to conduct a comprehensive assessment of your cooling needs, facility or building space, and long-term operational goals to maximize the benefits of the cooling tower.
Cooling towers are considerably affordable and an effective way of reducing heat from various industrial processes and buildings. As cooling towers are used in more and more applications worldwide because of their cost-effective solution to remove heat, the selection and sizing process becomes more important.
Every scenario is unique in its way and this is where our cooling tower specialist team at Threcell comes in to help provide detailed cost estimates and advise you toward a solution that aligns with your requirements and budget.
Need a more detailed cost? Drop us a message and get help from a cooling tower specialist now.