Carrier Cooling Solutions help preserve Vatican art pieces

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The upcoming papal visit to the Philippines has generated renewed interest in the Vatican City —including its precious works of art. 

The walled city within the enclave of Rome receives up to 20,000 visitors a day. These huge crowds bring in a mix of dust, body sweat, and carbon dioxide, which end up on the surface of the paintings and can harm them over time.

Earlier this year, the Vatican partnered with Carrier Corporation to install top-end HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning) units in the Sistine Chapel in an effort to properly preserve Michelangelo’s frescoes.

According to Concepcion Building & Industrial Solutions, proper ventilation and heating plays a critical role in preserving works of art.

“In light of the oncoming papal visit, our brand is proud to have played a role in helping protect the Vatican’s art pieces,” said Rajan Komarasu, Group Director of Concepcion Building & Industrial Solutions.

Jointly developed by museum experts and the Carrier Air Conditioning Company, the Vatican’s new air-conditioning system regulates humidity and temperature to help preserve some of the most famous art pieces in history.

High-tech cooling for the Sistine Chapel

Carrier installed and designed the Sistine Chapel’s first air-conditioning units in 1993. At the time, the HVAC system was engineered to accommodate a maximum load of 700 visitors.

Over the last two decades, however, the foot traffic in the renowned chapel has significantly increased. In fact, visits are estimated to have grown by over 300 percent from the 1980s.

To address these changes, Carrier has installed a new system using two AquaForce® 30XWV water-cooled chillers–an enhanced HVAC system that enables optimum temperature control which prevents climate fluctuations in the process. It also comes with air-filtration technologies that prevent the proliferation of airborne contaminants.

“Foot traffic is a major consideration for buildings in general when installing a HVAC system,” said Komarasu. “Cooling solutions need to be able to manage temperature and energy consumption in wide variances of traffic.”

In the Philippines, Carrier commercial air-conditioning is part of Concepcion Building & Industrial Solutions, which provides local companies and establishments with an end-to-end integrated business solutions portfolio, ranging from HVAC to escalators and elevators.

The outfit, which was established earlier this year, anchors its product values on energy efficiency, reliability, and operational stability.

Papal Coverage in Smart Araneta Coliseum

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The much-awaited event in the Christendom is set to happen this January, as Pope Francis conducts his first-ever apostolic visit to the country.

It is a chance to keep abreast of Pope Francis’ Papal visit to the country, LIVE on big screen.

To celebrate this global event, The Araneta Center, together with official media partner TV5, invites everyone to an exclusive coverage of the papal visit at The Smart Araneta Coliseum from January 16 to January 18, 2015. The event starts at 9 am until 1 pm, but gates will open as early as 7 in the morning. 

The papal streaming gives viewers the opportunity to vicariously share in Pope Francis’ meaningful journey through the Philippines, which will become the 3rd Asian country the Pope visits this year as head of the Catholic Church, after Sri Lanka and South Korea.

Also featured in the event is the “Tu Es Petrus Tour of Papal Relics”. Petrus is a Latin derivation of the name Peter that refers to all the Pope successors in the Catholic Church.

These relics include not only the mortal remains of the Popes who previously visited the country, bearing the title of “Saint” or “Blessed”, but also some of the things they touched or used. These were all authenticated and recognized by the Church, thus highly esteemed and valued for their sacredness.

Present in the exhibit are first and second class relics, from major to minor kinds, including blood stains, hair strands, and skull cap of Pope John Paul II, as well as the sacred zucchetto of Pope Francis and Pope Benedict XVI.

This once-in-a-lifetime experience is in line with The Araneta Center’s public service efforts and genuine desire to fulfill its corporate social responsibility.

Admission is absolutely free! Tickets are now available in Gateway, Ali Mall and Farmers Plaza concierge. T-shirts will also be given away to participants for free to serve as memento of the said event.

The relics are also available for viewing at the Gateway Activity Center from January 19 to January 31, 2015.

For more information on the Papal coverage at The Big Dome, visit www.aranetacenter.netand www.dearpopefrancis.ph

For Pope Francis Ph Visit, January 15, 16, and 19 are special nonworking days in NCR

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Malacañang has declared January 15, 16, and 19 as special nonworking days in the National Capital Region in view of the visit of Pope Francis to the Philippines.

Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa, Jr. issued Proclamation No. 936 on Monday, declaring three of the five days that the Pope will be in Manila as special nonworking days in NCR.

(http://www.gov.ph/2014/12/23/proclamation-no-936-s-2014/ )

His Holiness Pope Francis will bring his message of “mercy and compassion” to at least 11 different venues in the province of Leyte and Metro Manila during his Apostolic Visit to the Philippines on January 15-19, 2015.

Pope Francis is expected to arrive in Manila from Sri Lanka, the first leg of his Asian trip, by plane past 5 p.m. on January 15, and will go on a motorcade to his official residence in the Philippines.

President Aquino will be welcoming Pope Francis upon his arrival at Villamor Airbase on January 15, Thursday. The President will lead the welcome ceremony for the Pope at the Palace’s Kalayaan Grounds the next day, Friday.

Tens of thousands are expected to see and hear Pope Francis deliver a speech at the University of Santo Tomas in January.

Pope Francis will visit the Philippines on Jan. 15 to 19

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Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle announces that Pope Francis will visit the Philippines on January 15 to 19, 2015.

Pope Francis

During a media briefing in Manila on Tuesday held in Intramuros, Manila,  Tagle said the Catholic hierarchy was encouraging the Filipino faithful to prepare for the Holy Father's visit by starting to pratice acts of "mercy and compassion." 

"We have received a letter from the Vatican City and the following message is being announced: 'Accepting the invitation of the civil authority and the bishops, his Holiness Pope Francis will make an Apostolic visit to Sri Lanka from January 12 to 15 and to the Philippines from January 15 to 19, 2015',” Tagle said.

According to the CBCP news, Pope Fancis' visit carries a message of pastoral love, mercy and compassion from a Pope with the scent of a Good Shepherd (cf. John 10). Even though, this will be the fourth papal visit to our nation, for Pope Francis he will be the third Pope to visit our country. As the Successor to the Chair of Peter, the Holy Father is coming to strengthen his brothers and sisters (cf. Luke 22:32).

 Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, with Papal nuncio Archbishop Giuseppe Pinto announces Pope Francis’ visit to the Philippines set on January 15 to 19, 2015 during a media briefing in Intramuros Manila last Tuesday.

“The program of the visit will be made public by the Holy See later in the year. Thanks be to God.” 

According to Tagle, the Pope's visit would coincide with with the 20th anniversary of the World Youth Day celebration held in the Philippines in 1995. The late Pope John Paul II, who was declared a saint this year by Pope Francis, led the event two decades ago in Manila.

The central theme of the Papal visit was “mercy and compassion." 

“That has been the recurring theme not only of the teaching, of the homilies, but also of the actions of His Holy Father, so the bishops thought of using this as the theme,” Tagle said.

While no specific events have been finalized, Tagle said Pope would visit areas affected by super typhoon Yolanda in the Visayas as well as some places in Manila.

Asked what Filipinos can do to prepare for the visit, Tagle said, “We could prepare best by undergoing spiritual renewal, tasting the mercy of God, returning to God through the sacrament of reconciliation.”

He also urged Filipinos to engage in “specific actions of mercy,” as he reminded Catholics of the unique style of Pope Francis, which was already obvious on the first day of his papacy.

“He wants to journey with the people where they are,” he said.

Tagle noted that when Pope Francis blessed the mosaic of St. Pedro Calungsod at St. Peter’s Basilica back in November, he took time to include Filipinos in his prayers.

He said the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines encouraged the Filipino people to start observing acts of “mercy and compassion” as early as now in preparation for the Pope's visit.

“Spiritual preparation is the most important through spritual renewal, returning to the word of God, frequenting the eucharist, adoration, returning to God through the sacrament of reconciliation and confession, these are some of the ways by which we can prepare spiritually.” 

“Another way is for us to engage in specific actions of mercy. Sanayin natin ang ating sarili sa pagiging tao ng habag at pakikiramay...feeding the hungry, visiting those in prison, giving counsel to the suffering,” Tagle added.

Tagle said Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas as well as Pasig Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara will lead the Catholic Church's preparations for the Pope's visit.

President Benigno Aquino III has already designated Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. as the government's lead point person in the preparations for the visit.

“The government joins the Filipino people in welcoming the Vatican's announcement that His Holiness Pope Francis will make an Apostolic visit to the Philippines. Filipinos will most certainly accord to Pope Francis the warmest hospitality and manifest the fervor of their faith as they welcome the first Pontiff from South America,” Presidential Communications Operations Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said during the press conference.

“President Aquino is calling on all concerned government offices and the citizenry to work closely with the Papal Visit committee in ensuring the success of the Apostolic visit of Pope Francis,” Coloma added.

The theme of Pope Francis' visit is " Mercy and Compassion."

 

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CBCPNews @cbcpnews