2015
Soldier Performance Enhancement Chamber Singapore
Awarded the largest single order for environmental test chamber by the Defence Science Organization or DSO in 2015 for enhancement of soldier performance and military equipment. Order size of $ 1.1 Million. Equipment provides environmental simulation and control of the following parameters :
- solar simulation
- temperature
- humidity
- CO2
- wind
Equipment supplied provides conditioning control for up to 4 soldiers and 4 observers with CO2 maintenance of below 2000 ppm for up to 1 hour of rigorous training with heat simulation from the solar lamps provided.
The equipment is still put to continuous use, after 10 years upon commissioning.
Hence this is a testament to its reliability and QRA's long term service support to the client with the highest standards expected and delivered.
3D Drawing of Soldier Performance Enhancement Chamber
3D Isometric Drawing Proposal for European Client
Front View of Proposed Chamber for European Client
2016
Sports Singapore Athletic Chamber
Sports Singapore Athletic Chamber was commissioned in 2016. The first of its kind then in Asia, the chamber boasts the capability of:
- temperature control
- humidity control
- altitude zimulation
- CO2 control
- wind speed control
Front View of Sports Singapore Chamber
The chamber has been used extensively since 2016 for the sole purpose of enhancing the endurance capability of the national athletes in the fields of
1. Long distance running
2. Sprinter
3. Canoeists
4. Badminton
5. Table tennis
6. Cycling
The science behind the equipment is relatively new, and the main research is based on the Live High and Train Low and High regimen whereby the athletes are subjected to phases where they can live in altitude houses simulating 3000 m or higher altitudes, train at sea level and then at higher altitudes such as 3500 m to get the maximum benefit.
The ultimate goal is to change the physiology of the athlete temporarily so that the haemoglobin content is increased naturally and hence their bodies are more productive in carrying oxygen to all parts of the limbs and brain for more efficient work rate.
After several weeks of Live High Train Low and High, when the athlete is ready for his race, his performance can improve temporarily up to 30 percent more than his previous best times on the track or in the court.See Graph Example below:
Interior of Chamber with Treadmills High Speed Fans and Measuring Equipment
We at QRA are most proud to state that we have supplied the best quality and most reliable chamber to the highest sports authority in Singapore.
2017
Doha Qatar Aspire Hospital for Sports Rehabilitation
January to May 2017, QRA International was involved in the successful consultation, technical discussion, sale, delivery, installation, commissioning and after sales service warranty on an environmental chamber with scrubbers systems for athletic conditioning and rehabilitation. Our customer is a world class FIFA sanctioned Sports Rehabilitation Hospital in the Middle East.
The Control Room showing Control Panel and Scrubber
The chamber was purchased to research and rehabilitate the bodies of elite athletes by use of temperature and humidity conditioning. The various parameters were controlled:
- Temperature (0 to 50 C)
- Humidity (20 - 95% rH)
- CO2 (2000 ppm after 1 hour)
The chamber internal size is 3900 mm width x 3600 mm depth x 2600mm height. The challenges of designing and installing such a chamber was there from the start. The height of the room housing the chamber was in total only about 3800 mm high and the existing facilities like lighting, air ducts and water sprinklers were already installed.
Furthermore, the chamber was located on the 2nd Floor of an established hospital and there was a need to have a recirculating chiller at the roof of the building or in the HVAC plant room located some 2 floors higher.
Chiller Located 2 Floors Above Chamber
The project began full swing in January 2017 and the assembly of the panels, LCD controller, compressor and humidification system took place onsite end March 2017. Coordination with the on-site partner was frequent and the chamber manufacturer sent an installation team. QRA International also sent its system integration team (2 persons). Together with its very capable on-site partner (IB Trading and Contracting) the project was a multinational team effort.
Installation Team setting up the Polyurethane Panels
Upon arrival at seaport, the chamber was then transported by land to the Sports Rehabilitation Hospital. At the loading bay, the chamber was then unpacked and brought up to the 2nd floor in stripped down panels and components. Total team of multinational support staff ranged from 6 to 12 at the job site. From setting up of the panels to the connection of the cooling refrigeration system plus piping onsite the entire setup took approximately 10 days. It was then handed over to the commissioning team to start the equipment plus coordination between the CO2 control elements and environmental settings.
Non Slip Epoxy Floor and Auto Sliding Door Inside Chamber
The commissioning team then proceeded to run a series of Temperature and Humidity setpoints which were required by the customer during their normal operating conditions of athlete conditioning and rehabilitation.
The setpoints for the enduser is normally discussed prior to the purchase of the entire system for verification and system buy-off. Important information such as number of athletes, type of tests, equipment inside the chamber, test duration as well as control of temperature, humidity, wind (not in this requirement), sunlight (not in this requirement) and CO2 minimization can all be discussed prior to order confirmation.
The Control Panel of the Chamber and Scrubbers
Fine Tuning of the compressor, the temperature and humidity as well as the CO2 scrubbers were then called upon. Finally, a demonstration of the entire system capabilities was shown to the end users at the hospital. The scientists, researchers and staff left with a satisfied outcome.
Scrubbers before Installation
QRA International’s own automatic scrubbers (principal HYDROCELL Oy) were employed to keep the levels of CO2 down to acceptable levels of 300 ppm to 600 ppm (parts per million). The chamber was designed to control the environment with 2 athletes engaged in either running in a treadmill, or in cycling mode continuously at high intensity for up to 2 hours per test. The CO2 emitted from these athletes could be easily 20 times the percentage of CO2 freely available in the air inside the chamber.
Automatic regeneration of the scrubbers are set each evening and the regeneration takes up to 4 hours. After regeneration, the scrubbers are as effective as new and they are practically maintenance free.
The end users started the usage of the chamber approximately 2 weeks upon delivery of all the equipment and several adjustments were made to accommodate the end users requests in detail.
All in all, the complete system from order to satisfactory handover took approximately 5 months.
2018
ISO 9001 - 2015 Certification
2018
Canberra University Australia Sports Research Institute
Heat Conditioning Tests of Athletes
Client requested a heat conditioning chamber for temperature and humidity control to couple with their existing hypoxic system. QRA provided the temperature and humidity controller inside the room for the proper heat conditioning studies of athletes and sportsmen with the following parameters controlled:
- temperature control
- humidity control
- altitude control (up to 8000 m)
Hypoxic Control System
There were challenges aplenty, such as the remote location of the Lab, as well there not being an access route via cargo lift onto the second floor Lab. The temperature and humidity cassette system had to be man packed up onto the second floor, as was the control panel, piping, air ducts and miscellaneous items.
The existing compressor and condenser were located on the floor below, exposed to the elements.
Coordination for shipment was finally overcome and the commissioning of the system was also finally achieved after some design modifications.
Completed Chamber Room with Controller and Hypoxic Panel
The clients were satisfied with the end result and are rigorously using the upgraded chamber system even today. This is a testament to QRA's reliable system architechture and quality products sold to the international market.
We are currently providing yearly preventive maintenance to the client with good outcomes.
Building Exterior showing Lab on 2nd Floor
Customer Buy Off Trip to S Korea for Inspection of Equipment
2019
Walk In Chamber to Oil and Gas Giant OMS
QRA successfully quoted, supplied, delivered, installed, trained and commissioned the high temperature to the Japanese Australian company OMS for a Walk - In chamber to heat stress the oil manifold distribution vessel.
Customer training was carried out at principal place of manufacture, S. Korea and the final installation and commissioning was done onsite in Singapore with a presentation to all present about the operational aspects, troubleshooting, and routine maintenance required for the proper utilization of the equipment for the future.
Equipment Training On Site at Customer Location
The equipment was designed to heat and cool metal manifold distribution vessels of several tons of mass from - 60 deg C till 185 C. 2 end users from the customer side went for the buy -off and the manufacturer provided a simulated metal load of equivalent mass to benchmark the performance.
The entire Walk-In chamber was shipped totally welded from factory and installed together with air cooled water chilled onsite at customer's location.
The training onsite comprised one full day of classroom, and onsite handson training for 20 staff of the customer.
Final completion of project from start to end : 4 months.
The Walk In Chamber
2015 - Today
2015 Lab with 3 Equipment
Expansion of Labs and Equipment
From a single small Laboratory setup in 2015 of 3 chambers, QRA has expanded its fleet of laboratory equipment to the current 20 test chambers and in 2 separate locations in Singapore.
There are plans to start a third lab in 2025 with the good support given from key clients.
All our equipment are fully owned, with excellent performance and regular preventive maintenance carried out twice yearly.Brands used are from Germany, South Korea, Singapore and Republic of China.
Calibration of each and every equipment is carried out judiciously with no compromise to non conformance.
2024 Lab No. 1 QRA International
Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Industry Focus
Compliance to ASTM F 1980 - 21 is key to the Biomedical, Biotech and Pharmaceutical Industry here as well as internationally.
New equipment to comply with other new tests are routinely sourced and procured.
We at QRA will never rest until the customer is satisfied and served to the best of our ability.
2024 Lab No. 2 QRA International
Additional tests such as the following will be added in the near future
- Peel Test
- Bubble Test
- Drop Test
Look out from this website for further updates.
Vision 2030 is the vision set and we fully intend to achieve that goal