Users guide to POST (Plant Operations Simulation Template)

A non-proprietary simulation template program named POST (Plant Operations Simulation Template) was developed for use with the Lotus 1-2-3* spreadsheet. The template provides for mathematical simulation of central heating/cooling plant equipment including boilers, cooling towers, and centrifugal chillers. It provides methods for configuring a simulation of a specific physical plant, defining operating conditions and time-dependent boundary conditions, running simulations, and graphing simulation results. POST is a flexible and highly portable analytical tool for plant equipment operators and engineers concerned with efficient operation of physical-plant systems. The Users Guide provides an overview of POST, and its companion template program SETUP, which is used to define the characteristics of component models. Information is presented on the menu commands used in POST, and three examples are provided. The examples show how the template program may be used to simulate the performance of a three-boilers heating plant and a central cooling plant consisting of two chillers and a cooling tower. Listings of the actual keystrokes for setting up and running both simulations are included.