2017 February

Sauter’s ecos505 room controller is a single device that can integrate all systems for room automation with demand-led control of room climate, lighting and sunshading. It is a freely programmable BACnet building controller.

Rinnai continuous-flow water heaters can be fully connected with building-management systems across multiple platforms — including popular protocols such as Modbus and BACnet. No longer need water heaters be isolated in lonely plant rooms.

Marflow Hydronics has further developed its web site to enable customers to download relevant technical information, including BIM models, via a new product-downloads section. In addition, all product pages can be captured in PDF format and used as a data sheet.

Micronic flowmeters have been used at Heathrow Airport’s Terminal 4 to survey energy usage in the heating system. The facilities staff at the terminal have a 5-year plan running to 2019, entitled Quinquennium 6, which includes the redesign of the medium-temperature hot-water system, which previously ran at 120°C. The requirement was to run the system at a lower temperature to be more cost effective, more environmentally friendly and — crucially — safer.

Sauter’s Vialoq AVM 215 valve actuator provides 500 N of actuating power and has a nominal stroke from 8 to 20 mm. Its compatibility with commercially available valve types makes it well suited for retrofit projects. Synchronous motors are available for 24 or 230 V power supplies.

Sauter’s ecoUnit-Touch room-operating unit has a slick design and can be operated like a smartphone with the touch of a finger. It enables individual room settings to be made easily and elegantly, without impairing the energy efficiency of the system.

Sabien Technology is the exclusive UK distributor for the Endotherm energy-saving heating additive for commercial multi-site heating systems. The agreement with Endo Enterprises (UK) is to supply the additive, which has won a CIBSE award, for commercial boiler heating systems.

The supply of hot water for the Malvern Hills Caravan Club site is now plentiful and consistent following the installation of four Rinnai continuous-flow water heaters to replace two storage water heaters. The site has 210 pitches and is especially busy from Easter right through to October.

Renovating lighting in its national distribution centre is achieving energy savings of over £150 000 a year for distributor Wolseley UK. The savings come from an overhaul of lighting infrastructure inside and outside its main warehouse in Leamington Spa and surrounding offices. Supported by FM company Cloudfm, the quality and quantity of lighting was assessed to look for alternatives to reduce energy use and maintenance.

Water-treatment regulations and product standards are almost entirely absent in the non-domestic market. Chris Shelton of Sentinel Commercial explains the financial and operational benefits of proactively embracing a best practice approach to water treatment — and how it can be easily and cost-effectively implemented.

Bristol Airport has gone beyond basic requirements in its suitability for use by people with disabilities by installing a Clos-o-Mat Palma Vita wash-and-dry toilet in place of a conventional peninsular WC. The facility measures 3 x 4 m and includes a height-adjustable adult-sized changing bench and ceiling track hoist that are key to a compliant Changing Places.

An energy check carried out by Grundfos Pumps on an 11 000-student campus at a university in the north west of England highlighted potential energy savings of over 64 MWh a year, with a return on investment of just three years. The savings were achieved by exchanging a number of circulators for more efficient models.

Identifying installation issues with pipework at the commissioning stage is vital to prevent time–consuming remedial work after the fit out is complete. Scott James of Viega UK looks at what to consider when specifying pipework and how modern installation methods can help save time and money during and after the project.

Viega now offers its Megapress press-in connection in the UK. The system makes it a simple job to add extra sensors, thermometers, drainage valves or pipe connections to thick-walled pipe. A press-in connection can be installed in a couple of minutes, with an estimated time saving of 80% compared to welding a connection.

Xylem has extended its Ecocirc XL and XLplus range of wet-rotor circulator pumps, enabling increased energy savings for commercial HVAC users. There are two new product groups for hot and cold HVAC applications.

Over the next two years, legislative changes will drive manufacturers to design even more energy-efficient water heaters. Here, Jonathan Tedstone of Andrews Water Heaters looks at what’s in store.

Evinox’s ModuSat heat interface unit takes around 15 seconds to reach 55°C from the tap opening, providing an impressive dynamic response. PID control logic, in combination with PICVs and a fast-acting actuator, modulates the primary flow rate to match the demand for hot water or heating demand, with very rapid response to changing loads.

Potterton Commercial has made its easier for installers working on light-commercial project with the introduction of its best-value 50 kW Paramount Four boiler and flue offer. For a limited time, contractors can get a free horizontal or vertical flue when they purchase the boiler.

Rinnai’s Infinity range of A-rated continuous-flow gas-fired water heaters, are well suited for small business and domestic properties that require high volumes of water at intermittent times of the day. The water is delivered at accurate temperatures for optimum user comfort and safety. Applications include cafes, pubs, restaurants, offices, shops, hairdressers, small commercial units, caravan parks and leisure facilities.

The failing cast-iron drainage system in the 25-storey Millbrook Tower in Southampton has been replaced using a high-density polyethylene system that was installed without the temporary re-homing of any residents. Built over 50 years ago and formerly the tallest building in Southampton, it has a cast-iron drainage system that had started to rust.

Heating and hot water for the Richmond Villages retirement complex in Ashton-on-Trent is provided by InTec 34C combination boilers from Alpha Heating Innovation. The development by Richmond Villages is designed so that residents can enjoy an independent and full lifestyle.

An energy-efficient heating system should be at the top of the agenda for any building-services professional. However, improving the efficiency of a heating system is about more than just installing a high-efficiency boiler, as Steven Evans of Potterton Commercial, explains.

Variable-flow systems have the potential to reduce pumping energy significantly, but only with the right kind of balancing valves — properly used. Martyn Neil of Danfoss explores the role of differential-pressure control valves in the energy performance of commercial HVAC systems.

Airbloc has launched a new common controller for the AC and ACR range of air curtains. It replaces the current AC Panel and the Smart Elec panel.

When the hit television show ‘Car SOS’ decided to relocate to larger premises, it opted for the installation of Combat suspended warm-air heaters to maintain a comfortable workshop temperature.

Combat’s NRG heating controller maximises fuel savings by using self-learning technology. It varies the start-up time to ensure that the building comes up to the required temperature precisely at the beginning of every programmed ‘on’ period.

Nittan Europe’s evo+ range of fire-alarm control panels is now fully approved and certified to BS EN 54-13:2005, the European standard that ensures optimal fire-system performance. This standard specifies requirements for the integrity of a fire-detection and fire-alarm system when connected to other systems, ensuring components are compatible and fully connectable.

Samsung’s Wind-Free air conditioning units deliver cold air through 21 000 micro holes in the front of the unit to achieve ‘still air’ in normal cooling mode. ASHRAE defines ‘still air’ as air currents at speeds below 0.15 m/s, which are not senses as cold draughts.

Panasonic’s ECOi EX series of VRF air-conditioning systems includes three sizes of single outdoor units from 8 to 20 hp that can be combined up to a total of 80 hp. There is a host of energy-efficient features.

Mitsubishi Electric’s EA Series 4-way-blow ceiling cassette for its Mr Slim range is designed to ease installation, operation and control. These units have a new square grille design and a host of new features and efficiency improvements.

Daikin Applied’s EWAD-TZ B range of air-cooled chillers is an upgrade from the TZ and CZ ranges and offers cooling capacities from 170 kW up to 1.1 MW. EERs are up to 3.9 with ESEERs up to 5.7. The screw compressor has refrigerant-cooled inverter technology.

Schneider Electric’s Canalis KR busbar trunking is designed for high-power distribution in harsh environments and critical applications. It can be installed almost anywhere and distribute power to places where it would not have been cost effective or even possible before. It can be installed edgewise, flat or vertically without derating — including through floor slabs or fire-barrier walls. The flexibility of the solution reduces installation costs, time and upheaval.

Grundfos MGE motors qualify for the IE5 classification for motor efficiency that came into effect on on 1 January 2017. these motors have ratings from 250 W to 22 kW. Selecting a pump with these motors will achieve a 10% energy savings and up to a 25% reduction in payback time.

Ereba monobloc air-to-water heat pumps can provide low-carbon heating and cooling for small commercial premises and homes. they are available with capacities from 4 to 21 kW from Ciat Ozonair and Toshiba Air Conditioning. They have a Eurovent-certified COP for heating of up to 4.3, giving them an A+ efficiency.

Airflow Developments has added variable-air-volume (VAV) dampers to its Duplex vent range of commercial MVHR units. The VAV systems constantly monitor the air supplied and share this information with the ventilation unit to optimise air quality and comfort by enabling the ventilation to respond effectively to the demands of each area/room in the building.

An animation from Mitsubishi Electric highlights how commercial premises can benefit from renewable heating using heat pumps to help reduce energy bills and qualify for 20 years of Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) payments. Heat pumps are recognised by the EU and UK governments as renewable because they maximise the amount of heating for the electricity used.

Heatrae is supporting efforts to embed smarter ways of working in the construction industry by launching a library of BIM files for its electric water-heating products and has gone above and beyond immediate public-sector requirements by investing in the higher-level BIM standard.

The Building Engineering Services Association has published the UK’s first test standard for heat interface units (HIUs). It is regarded as an important step towards improving the overall performance of district-heating schemes in the UK and has been adopted from a test regime developed by energy consultant FairHeat.

Condair, formerly JS Humidifiers, has developed an app that determines how much energy could be saved by evaporative cooling in the exhaust air duct of a ventilation system combined with heat recovery compared with mechanical cooling using a compressor.

Following the success of a major lighting upgrade at Hackney Community Collage during the second half of 2015, Hackney Community College embarked on a second project to upgrade internal and external lighting to LED to reduce energy consumption. Expected savings for the first project were £70 000 a year, with a return on investment of 2.8 years. The latest project is expected to save £25 000 a year. Both projects were carried out by Energys.

Keswick’s Theatre by the Lake by the foreshore of Derwentwater at Keswick has recently seen the addition of a £700 000 cafe. Designed by architect Andreas, the concept is sympathetic to the building’s location, with wood, natural light and natural ventilation prevailing in the monopitch structure, which reaches 10.7 m at its highest point.

The earliest possible warning of fire in three buildings of the visitor centre constructed by English Heritage at Rievaulx Abbey in the North York Moors National Park is provided by a system based around three networked Morley-IAS SX Connexion (DXc) panels from Honeywell. The system serves the museum, shop and tearoom of the visitor for the abbey, which was built by a group of 12 Cistercian monks in 1131.

To ensure adequate air circulation around the eight chillers on the roof of the energy centre of the BBC Media City as part of the £80 million redevelopment of the former BBC White City, Gilberts Blackpool has installed new louvres on all four sides. The 7700 m2 energy centre provides power, heating, cooling and other services to the entire 7 ha Media Village site. Most of the chillers, installed in 2009, needed premature replacement, as an existing rendered blockwork wall was restricting the passage of air.

Two coal-fired boilers at West Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service’s headquarters in Birkenshaw have been replaced with Remeha high-efficiency condensing boilers and hot-water cylinders as part of wider efficiency measures. There were originally three coal-fired sectional boilers; one had been replaced with a biomass boiler, another had failed, and the third was struggling to meet the heat demand adequately or efficiently.

So great was the risk of complete boiler breakdown in a plant room at Abbey Hill Academy in Stockton-on-Tees that replacement was a high-enough priority to secure funding from the Conditioning Improvement Fund provided by the Education Funding Agency (EFA). The new equipment consists of Hamworthy cast-iron condensing boilers and direct-fired water heaters, which were identified as the best solution to be fitted to the existing heating system.

Smith’s Caspian low-level fan convectors provided the heating solution for the refurbished library of Ashlyns School in Berkhamsted, Herts. They replaced three old and dysfunctional fan heaters and a radiator. Caspian high-level fan convectors were originally considered for this project but changed to low-level units because the existing pipework could not be changed.

With its CHP system having operated for over 120 000 h over 22 years, Churchill College at the University of Cambridge decided to replace it. A new 15-year CHP contract has been agreed with Veolia, which continues the energy-services contract started in 1993.

Waterloo Air Products supplied 10 000 air-distribution products for the new Francis Crick Institute in London. The equipment plays a big part in creating the right airflow to meet the conditions needed for research in this state-of-the-art laboratory building. It is one of Europe’s leading biomedical laboratories and carries out important research into the biology underlying human health and disease.

Cool Designs, which distributes the Toshiba range of air-conditioning and heat-pump systems, has developed a controller that can be used with Toshiba’s full commercial range of splits, heat pumps and VRF systems. The controller optimises indoor comfort for individual rooms in a building and reduces energy use.

Timely notification about any events concerning a building-services infrastructure is vital. However, Peter Moore of Trend Control Systems is concerned that too many individual alarms are deterring end users from configuring a building energy management system (BEMS) to undertake the monitoring of their key compliance needs.

When KCE FM won the facilities-management contract for an office building in London’s Park Lane, one of the immediate tasks was to reduce energy consumption and enhance comfort. With the help of the existing Trend BMS, energy costs for 49 Park Lane were reduced by over 21% compared with the same period a year earlier.