The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas creates an unprecedented experience in a state-of-the-art concert venue. A $60 million expansion that opened with Paul McCartney on April 19, 2009 created one of the most sophisticated entertainment venues in Las Vegas.

When the mechanical engineering designers — FEA Consulting Engineers of Henderson, NV — were deciding on the right airside system to keep the top-notch talent comfortable in the Las Vegas heat, they turned to Mechanical Products Nevada, Inc. and to FANWALL TECHNOLOGY by Nortek Air Solutions’ brand Huntair, Inc.

FEA Consulting Engineers is known for providing exceptional mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and low voltage engineering services. They provided the mechanical engineering design for the Joint and meeting rooms as well as the hotel’s North and Tower expansions, casino expansion, and pool expansion.

The Hard Rock Hotel & Casino is a pre­mier destination entertainment resort located on one of Las Vegas’ fastest growing entertainment corridors. The original Joint concert venue opened in February, 1995. The Joint was the first rock ‘n’ roll venue in Las Vegas built at a high-end boutique property and has attracted top-notch performers.

The new Joint essentially doubled its original capacity to accommodate an audience of 4,000 and includes VIP hospitality suites and the latest in video, sound, and lighting systems. The new Joint’s venue can serve a variety of pur­poses, from hosting concerts, wrestling, and boxing events to corporate or trade show events.

Low sound levels, reliability, and tight temperature control were high priorities to Vic A. Sibilla, PE, COO and Owner, FEA Consulting Engineers, in selecting the air conditioning system. Sibilla first learned of FANWALL TECHNOLOGY by Huntair during a local touring show­case of technologies with Cory Nehls, VP, Mechanical Products Nevada, Inc. “I was so impressed when I first saw and heard the FANWALL array running that I couldn’t wait to find the right application. Engineers tend to be very traditional when it comes to ‘new’ technology, but this equipment definite­ly made an impression,” Sibilla commented.

A visit to Huntair’s factory in Portland, OR, was arranged with a representative from the hotel’s engineering team, Sibilla, and Nehls. “We were all impressed with the quality of the FANWALL product at the factory,” Nehls said, “and had a chance to listen to a unit operating in the lab.”

“The owner was drawn to the low sound and the low maintenance fea­tures of the FANWALL array, especially the fact that there were no belts to worry about or bearings to grease,” Sibilla added. He went on to say, “The Joint can’t tolerate any downtime or acoustical problems, especially during a performance, and the FANWALL direct drive fans were the best technology available to mitigate those risks.”

With an April opening set, the air han­dlers were needed in a very short time and Huntair provided a fast produc­tion cycle to keep the project on track. The job consisted of 14 Huntair air handlers — eight for the Joint concert area and six for the Joint meeting rooms. Air handlers ranged in size from 6,500 to 34,000 cfm.

Sibilla summed up the project by saying, “The owner is so impressed at how quiet these units operate that he wishes he could change out all of his fans at the hotel to a FANWALL array.”

• Increase uptime with fan redundancy
• Reduce maintenance expense with no belts or bearings to maintain plus commonality of parts between fan cells
• Lower sound levels eliminate sound traps and associated energy loss
• Eliminate expensive fan isolation or pads
• Reduce energy bills with higher fan efficiencies
• Reduce electrical demand and backup generator size with lower connected load
• Gain back valuable real estate with smaller fan footprint
• Avoid demolition/cranes during upgrade
• Minimize system downtime during retrofit