2009 March

The UCU Room Display provides attractive and readable room control display for individual fan-coil control. The UCU Room Display is connected to the advanced energy-efficient controller which is part of the UnitronUC32 BEMS. Its built-in space temperature sensor measures the room temperature which is then displayed on the very clear LCD screen.

Honeywell and its CentraLine brand for building controls have introduced an easy-to-use controller which manages the energy-efficient integration of renewable-energy sources with heating systems using gas or oil and with district heating.

A ducted VRF air-conditioning unit for hotel rooms from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Europe (MHIE) can have its controls and drain-pump connections on either the left- or right-hand side of the unit as required, allowing easy routing of both sets of pipework through a central service shaft. This features simplifies installation in adjoining rooms, where services such as air conditioning are run in pairs through central ducting.

Smart metering for power and lighting is integrated into a range of Type B 200 A final distribution boards from Eaton. This feature enables specifiers and installers to meet the energy-metering requirements of Part L2 of the Building Regulations without having to install separate distribution boards and feeders for each type of fuel.

In response to RIBA making sweeping changes to stages E to F of its Plan of Work, including post-completion stages L1, L2 and L3, BSRIA has updated its ‘Design framework for building services’. BG 6/2009 has been restructured to dovetail with changes to the 2008 Plant of Work and the 2007 CIC Consultants’ Contract.

Greenworks, which supplies sustainable solutions and water-conservation products, has published a guide to innovative products from over 20 leading manufacturers. This 50-page guide includes over 2000 products.

The Institute of Refrigeration has completely revised its A1/A2 and A3 refrigerant codes of practice following the publication of the revised European refrigeration safety standard BS EN 378:2008 ‘Refrigerating systems and heat pumps — safety and environmental requirements.

Henkel, maker of Loctite-brand products, has prepared a leaflet detailing how three of its products can make life easier for those involved with gas and plumbing installations. ‘Installer solutions’ shows how CORGI-approved Loctite 55 sealing cord replaces hemp, tapes and pastes to provide a secure seal for threads of up to 4 in.

BG Controls has revamped its web site to provide practical facilities-management tools online. Clients visiting bgcontrols.co.uk can download operation and maintenance manuals for their own sites and obtain additional site drawings when needed.

Daikin Europe has upgraded the design of its RZQ Super Inverter (single-phase) and RZQS Comfort inverter, developed for offices shops and restaurants, to increase their efficiency.

Riello UPS has developed a rating system to help IT managers select the most efficient uninterruptible power system for their installation.

Contactum has developed a wire-free light switch that does not need batteries. It uses an RF signal to control a relay in the ceiling rose and has a range of up to 30 m.

Grundfos offers a comprehensive series of wall-mounted frequency converters with e-pump functionality with its CUE range. These units can control the speed of virtually any Grundfos pump — irrespective of its size, power range or application area. Features include plug-and-pump installation and built-in control and monitoring. CUE units can be used in new and existing pump installations where an integrated solution will either not fit, is undesirable or is prohibited (e.g, ATEX areas).

ESBE has introduced a range of load units and load valves to maximise the energy efficiency of boilers using solid fuel (wood) and minimise their environmental impact. The range has been designed for optimal loading of accumulation tanks — from the smallest pellet stoves to 150 kW boilers.

Purmo UK’s Delta range of column radiators comprises four different styles — Laserline, Bench, Bar and Twin (pictured).

Airedale’s latest generation of precision cooling solutions for data centres and computer rooms are said to significantly reduce energy consumption and maximise uptime.

Advanced Engineering is introducing a range of compressor oils to the UK market. Fuchs Lubricants is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of specialist oils for niche applications, including what is said to be Europe’s biggest line of compressor lubricants — and which includes a full range of oils designed for use with air-conditioning systems using carbon dioxide as the refrigerant.

Ravenheat’s RVHT 1 wireless programmable timer/thermostat can be fitted easily to any heating system or make of combination boiler.

JG Speedfit plumbing, heating and underfloor-heating systems are said to be easy to use, quick and cost effective. There are over 200 products in the range. The Speed push-fit range of fittings and pipe are WRAS approved and Kitemarked to BS7291 Parts 1, 2 and 3, Class S.

The recent cold spell, one of the coldest since the Building Regulations of 2005, has seen a significant number of calls for frozen condensate pipes from boilers — according to Pump House.

The Cardiff branch of Lindab Ventilation has been substantially increased in size. New and much larger premises in the Capital Business Park offer scope for increased stocks — especially of fans and ventilation products.

Danlers designs and manufactures a range of indoor and outdoor electronic time-lag switches for lighting or heating loads, which are ideal for simply saving energy in stairwells, store rooms, student accommodation, smoking shelters etc.

Calon Controls, which specialises in energy-saving lighting and building controls, was visited by the Duke of Kent during his tour of the Daresbury Science & Innovation Campus in Cheshire recently. The company designs, develops and sells networked intelligent controls for lighting and room comfort under the Infranet Partners brand.

The ETC6000 series of electronic burner controls from Energy Technology & Control has been certified for inclusion in an SIL3 (safety integrity level) loop.

BSS Industrial has partnered with Hudevad to open a new warehouse in the Midlands dedicated to radiators. It is at Cyan Park in Coventry and will primarily store BSS Industrial’s own-brand range of radiators — BOSS RIOpanel.

Tyco Thermal Controls is rolling out a training and certification programme for installers of its Raychem electric underfloor heating systems.

The Fireray 5000 auto-aligning beam-type smoke detector is now approved for sale in France, Belgium, Sweden and Canada. It was originally certified by the LPCB (UK) and UL (USA), enabling its use in installations around the world already.

Trade Training Associates is an independent training company specialising in high-quality, industry-specific training and assessment in the gas, water and renewable-energy sectors, as well as LSC-funded apprentice and Train to Gain training and assessment. It operates from 1100 m2 of purpose-designed accommodation at North Tyne Industrial Estate, Benton and has been set up by Tynemouth man Ian Wood (right in photo) and co-director Blake Robinson.

Steinel has added a wall-mounted sensor to its IS range of infra-red sensors. It can detect motion over 360°, but this can be limited using the shrouds provided, and a ‘sneak-by’ guard can also be employed. The IS NM 360 offers simple selection of on time, twilight threshold and program on the removable sensor module, in addition to manual over-ride. The sensor range is 8 m.

The one-millionth ABB standard drive has rolled off the production line. It is some five years since the first drive of this family was made at ABB’s Helsinki factory, and the demand is so great that it is produced by five factories in three continents. The company claims that its standard drive is the world’s best-selling drive of all time.

Waterloo Air Products is expanding its European activities and has opened a new sales office in Germany. Located in Ratingen near Dusseldorf, Waterloo BV will be managed by Hans Peter Jacob and provide full sales and support for the German market.

BG Controls has been selected as a distributor for energy-management specialist EFT Control Systems. EFT provides energy-management solutions using sophisticated data-collection technology.

RIDI Lighting has provided a comprehensive lighting solution for the new Jennie Lee Building of the Open University. The 5000 m2 research department cost £13 million.

Control of relative humidity in the art gallery, art stores and cinema projection rooms in the new Derby Quad is provided by three resistive steam humidifiers supplied by JS Humidifiers. These Neptronic SKE humidifiers supply steam to air-handling units.

Natural ventilation based on the automatic operation of windows will significantly reduce the energy use and running costs of a multi-use development in Galway in Ireland.

A wide range of Oventrop valves was chosen by SIAS Building Services for the heating and cooling systems in the new Village Hotel at Elstree. It is the company’s closest hotel to London. Valves from 6 in down to 1/2 in have been installed for the hot-water and LPHW systems to serve the industry’s 120 bedrooms and leisure facilities.

Lindab spiral ductwork and air terminal devices have been installed as part of a major extension of the RNLI’s inshore lifeboat centre on the Isle of Wight. The systems were installed by ductwork specialist Air & Environmental Services as part of the heating, ventilation and fume-extract systems serving this new facility.

Eaton’s COPA clip-on plate wiring accessories are being installed as part of the Defence Estates programme to upgrade single living accommodation for service personnel. These accessories have a clip-on cover face with no visible fixings.

As part of the £4.5 million refurbishment of The Monument in the City of London, EMS Group has provided a wireless fire-detection solution. The EMS system was specified by the architect and M&E consultant.

The Hard Day’s Night Hotel luxury hotel in Liverpool has two Remeha Quinta 85 boilers specified installed by Brian Buckley Ltd.

The new Darwin Centre of the Natural History Museum is using Kingspan’s KoolDuct System of pre-insulated ductwork in an unusual way.

BG Controls is installing and monitoring building controls for 42 Vue multiplex cinemas across the country.

Nearly 300 apartments in Phase 1 of the Barking town regeneration project are connected to a district-heating network by SAV heating and hot-water modules as one of the main measures to reduce carbon emissions by 32%. Another measure is the on-site generation of electricity using renewable energy.

Calor has joined forces with Alpha Heating Innovation to provide an LPG-compatible renewable-energy system to supply heating and domestic hot water for tenanted properties owned by Rotherham Borough Council.

Temperatures in excess of 35°C on Pegler Yorkshire’s assembly line for radiator valves in Doncaster have been reduced by up to 13 K following the installation of Breezair evaporative cooling by CoSaf Environments.

To protect over 90 years of corporate history, Turkey’s largest conglomerate has chosen Wagner’s OxyReduct system for its new purpose-built 5000 m3 archive. Koç Corporation has installed the system to protect a valuable collection of documents, objects and works of art from the risk of fire. By creating an environment in which a fire cannot start, OxyReduct provides the ultimate form of fire protection.

The ground-source heat-pump system at Churchill Hospital in Oxford, thought to be the largest in Europe, includes Ciat Ozonair heat pumps and dry-air coolers. Eight heat pumps can provide over 2.5 MW of heating and cooling. There is space for another unit to increase the capacity to over 3 MW.

AET’s Flexible Space System has been installed in the £113 million Manchester Civil Justice Centre to provide efficient and highly adaptable air conditioning.

Goodenough College in central London has carried out a major upgrade of its fire-protection system using intelligent control panels from Advanced Electronics. The college has 650 post-graduate students from over 90 countries.

Dimplex air curtains can reduce the running costs of HVAC systems by up to 33%, according to an initial study carried out by the Carbon Trust. The savings are obtained by keeping treated air inside a building and separate from the draughts and chills of the external environment.

An exceptionally low air leakage will be achieved for the 26-storey building in the new Media City UK development at Salford Quays in Manchester using metal roofing and cladding from CA Group.