Do you think it would have been cheaper in the long term, e.g. 10-20 years, for them to install & run the HVAC continuously? Was the redesign terribly difficult & expensive?
It's been a decade so my memory is fuzzy, but it was likely on the order of $1-3million (USD) and 3-6 months. Not sure what HVAC would cost over that time.
The real problem is that these types of adaptations are only in spec over some range. Any deviation from that range can be problematic and non-linear.
