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HVAC Design with HAP and Elite
A practical 30–40 hour HVAC design programme for mechanical engineers, MEP engineers, and HVAC designers — building professional load calculation and system design capability through Carrier HAP and Elite Software workflows, from thermal fundamentals through duct design, equipment selection, and a complete capstone project.
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Description
Programme Highlights
Complete HAP + Elite Workflow
A single structured programme covering both Carrier's Hourly Analysis Program and Elite Software's HVAC design suite — the two load-calculation and system-design platforms most widely used across GCC mechanical design offices.
ASHRAE-Aligned Design Methodology
Every calculation and design decision is grounded in ASHRAE fundamentals — thermal comfort, ventilation rates, and load-calculation methodology — adapted throughout to the extreme design conditions of the Gulf climate.
Full System Design Chain
From psychrometrics and load calculation through duct sizing, equipment selection, and documentation — a complete, end-to-end HVAC design workflow rather than isolated software training.
Capstone Building Zone Project
A hands-on capstone exercise that applies the complete design workflow to a realistic sample building zone, producing a portfolio-ready design-basis report and equipment-selection schedule.
Course Curriculum — 8 Modules
HVAC Design Fundamentals
This module establishes the physical and engineering foundation that underpins every HVAC design decision made across the remaining programme. Thermal comfort theory is introduced through the ASHRAE comfort model — the interaction of dry-bulb temperature, humidity, air movement, and metabolic and clothing factors that define acceptable indoor conditions for GCC commercial, residential, and institutional buildings. Psychrometrics is covered in depth: reading and constructing psychrometric charts, sensible and latent heat relationships, moisture content and dew point, and the mixed-air and coil-process calculations that recur throughout HAP and Elite workflows. Load sources are catalogued systematically — solar and conduction gains through the building envelope, internal gains from occupants, lighting, and equipment, ventilation and infiltration loads, and the latent-load emphasis that Gulf climate design demands given consistently high outdoor humidity across coastal cities in Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Qatar. System selection principles close the module: the comparative logic behind all-air systems, air-water systems, chilled-water systems, and VRF, and the project factors — building type, climate zone, energy-code requirements, and owner operating-cost priorities — that drive selection on real GCC commercial and residential developments before any software calculation begins.
Design Data & Standards
Accurate HVAC design begins with accurate input data, and this module builds the discipline of assembling and validating that data before any calculation is run. Weather data selection covers ASHRAE climatic design conditions for major GCC cities — summer and winter design dry-bulb and coincident wet-bulb temperatures, and the extreme design-day considerations that Riyadh, Jeddah, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Doha require given the region's exceptionally high cooling-load severity. Occupancy profiles are addressed by building type: office, retail, hospitality, healthcare, and residential occupancy schedules and diversity factors that shape peak versus average load assumptions. Building envelope data collection covers wall and roof construction assemblies, glazing performance (U-value, SHGC), and the insulation requirements mandated by the Saudi Building Code (SBC 601) and Dubai Municipality green building regulations. Schedule development — occupancy, lighting, equipment, and ventilation operating schedules — is practised as a structured input exercise. The module closes with the ASHRAE reference framework most relevant to GCC practice: ASHRAE 55 for thermal comfort, ASHRAE 62.1 for ventilation rates, and ASHRAE Fundamentals load-calculation methodology, establishing the documented assumption set that every subsequent HAP and Elite model in the programme is built upon.
HAP Load Calculation
This module builds full working competency in Carrier's Hourly Analysis Program (HAP), the industry-standard load-calculation software used across GCC mechanical design offices. Project setup covers weather-location selection, design-condition configuration, and project-level default assumptions that govern every space in the model. Space definition is covered systematically: room dimensions and orientation, wall and roof construction assignment from the HAP construction library, window and glazing input including shading-device configuration, and internal-load entry for occupants, lighting, and equipment matched to the occupancy profiles established in the previous module. Schedule assignment links each space to the correct operating patterns, and system definition covers air-handling system configuration, zone grouping, and the sizing-method selection that determines how HAP allocates supply airflow across zones. Load-report generation and interpretation is practised in depth: reading peak cooling and heating load summaries, understanding the sensible-latent split that drives coil selection, and identifying the dominant load components on a given space — the diagnostic skill that lets a designer sanity-check software output against engineering judgment before results are carried forward into equipment selection, a critical quality-control step on GCC commercial projects where oversized cooling equipment drives significant lifecycle energy-cost penalties.
Elite HVAC Workflow
With HAP competency established, this module builds equivalent working fluency in Elite Software's HVAC design suite — the second core platform referenced in the programme brief and widely used across GCC design consultancies for its integrated load-to-duct workflow. Input strategy is addressed comparatively: how Elite's project, room, and construction-input structure differs from HAP's, and the practical decision of which platform to deploy on a given project based on client software standards, deliverable requirements, and integration needs with drafting platforms. Load calculation in Elite is covered end to end — replicating the space and system definitions built in HAP to validate cross-platform consistency, a quality-control practice that experienced designers use to catch input errors that either tool alone might not surface. Duct-sizing concepts within Elite's workflow are introduced: how calculated airflows feed directly into the duct-sizing module, the equal-friction and static-regain sizing methods available, and how Elite's integrated approach reduces the manual data-transfer errors common when load calculation and duct sizing are performed in separate, disconnected tools. Software-output interpretation closes the module: reading Elite's load summaries, duct schedules, and system reports, and understanding how its integrated output format differs from HAP's — knowledge that lets designers move fluidly between both platforms depending on project and client requirements across the GCC mechanical design market.
Air Distribution & Duct Design
With load-driven airflows established, this module addresses the physical design of the duct distribution system that delivers conditioned air to each space. Airflow and friction-loss fundamentals cover duct friction chart usage, velocity and pressure-drop relationships, and the equal-friction and static-regain design methods most commonly applied on GCC commercial projects. Diffuser and grille selection addresses throw and spread patterns, noise-criteria (NC) rating selection appropriate to space type, and the coordination between diffuser selection and ceiling-void constraints typical of GCC hospitality and retail fit-outs. Duct routing is covered as both a technical and coordination discipline: minimising pressure loss through fitting selection and layout geometry, routing strategy within limited ceiling-void depths common in Gulf high-rise and mixed-use developments, and the clash-avoidance coordination required with structural, electrical, and fire-protection trades. System balancing principles close the module: balancing damper placement, the testing-and-balancing (TAB) process that verifies as-built airflow matches design intent, and the documentation TAB contractors require from the design team to execute commissioning efficiently on handover-critical GCC projects where compressed construction schedules leave little tolerance for balancing rework.
Equipment Selection
With load and duct design complete, this module addresses the equipment-selection decisions that translate calculated loads into a buildable mechanical system. Air handling unit (AHU) selection covers capacity matching against calculated loads, coil selection (chilled water versus DX), fan selection and static-pressure budgeting, and filtration considerations specific to the higher ambient dust loading typical of Gulf desert environments. Fan coil unit (FCU) selection addresses zone-level capacity matching, ducted versus cassette configuration, and the FCU-density decisions common in GCC residential and hospitality projects. Chiller selection covers capacity staging, water-cooled versus air-cooled selection logic (heavily influenced by regional water-scarcity and cooling-tower maintenance considerations), and the district-cooling interface increasingly specified on major Gulf mixed-use and downtown developments in place of standalone chiller plants. DX system selection addresses split, VRF, and packaged-unit application ranges appropriate to smaller and mid-scale GCC projects. Pump selection covers chilled-water and condenser-water circuit sizing, and the module closes with controls coordination: how equipment selections interface with the building management system (BMS) points list, sequence-of-operation development, and the controls-contractor coordination that ensures selected equipment integrates correctly with the broader building automation strategy on Gulf commercial developments.
Documentation & QA/QC
Professional HVAC design output requires documentation discipline equal to its engineering rigour, and this module builds the complete deliverable package expected on GCC mechanical design projects. Design-basis documentation is covered first: recording design conditions, code references, load-calculation assumptions, and system-selection rationale in a structured design-basis report that supports permit submission and client review — a mandatory deliverable on projects reviewed by Saudi municipal authorities and Dubai Municipality. Calculation-report compilation addresses assembling HAP or Elite output into a client-ready format: load summaries, equipment sizing justification, and the supporting schedules that demonstrate calculation traceability. Schedule and drawing production covers equipment schedules, duct and diffuser schedules, and the coordination between calculation output and drafting deliverables that keeps design documentation internally consistent. The module closes with a structured review checklist methodology: the QA/QC discipline of independently verifying load inputs, cross-checking equipment selection against calculated capacity, confirming code-compliance references, and catching the coordination errors — mismatched schedules, inconsistent design conditions, missing diversity factors — that cause costly rework during construction-phase review on Gulf commercial and institutional projects where design liability rests directly with the engineer of record.
Capstone HVAC Design
The capstone module consolidates every preceding stage of the programme into a single, complete HVAC design exercise applied to a realistic sample building zone drawn from a GCC commercial or residential typology. Participants execute the full workflow independently: assembling design data and assumptions per the standards established in Module 2, building a complete HAP or Elite load-calculation model for the assigned zone, generating and interpreting load reports, sizing and routing the duct distribution system, and selecting appropriately sized AHU, FCU, or DX equipment matched to calculated capacity. The exercise deliberately mirrors the constraints of real GCC project work: a defined climate location, a realistic envelope and occupancy profile, and the documentation expectations covered in Module 7. Instructor-guided review sessions walk through common design errors — undersized latent capacity, inconsistent diversity assumptions, duct routing conflicts, and equipment oversizing — providing the corrective feedback that consolidates technical competency into professional design judgment. Participants complete the capstone with a full design-basis report, calculation summary, and equipment-selection schedule for their assigned zone — a portfolio-ready deliverable that demonstrates end-to-end HVAC design capability directly transferable to mechanical design offices and MEP consultancies operating across Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, and the wider GCC construction sector.
Software, Standards & Platforms
Course Outcome
On completing this course, you will be able to perform complete HVAC load calculations in Carrier HAP and Elite Software, design and size air-distribution duct systems, select appropriately sized AHUs, FCUs, chillers, and DX equipment, and produce professional design-basis and calculation documentation — skills directly applicable to mechanical design engineer, MEP engineer, and HVAC designer roles across consultancies and contractors operating throughout Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, and the wider GCC construction sector.