  The energy efficiency of ice hockey arenas is a central concern for the
administrations, as these buildings are well known to consume a large amount of
energy. Since they are composite, complex systems, solutions to such a problem
can be approached from many different areas, from managerial to technological
to more strictly physical.
  In this paper we consider heat transfer processes in an ice hockey hall,
during operating conditions, with a bottom-up approach based upon on-site
measurements. Detailed heat flux, relative humidity and temperature data for
the ice pad and the indoor air are used for a heat balance calculation in the
steady-state regime, which quantifies the impact of each single heat source. We
then solve the heat conduction equation for the ice pad in transient regime,
and obtain a generic analytical formula for the temperature profile that can be
used in practical applications.
  We then apply this formula to the resurfacing process for validation, and
find good agreement with an analogous numerical solution. Since it is given
with implicit initial condition and boundary conditions, it can be used not
only in ice hockey halls, but in a large variety of engineering applications.
