2023 April

With the ban on T8/T5 imminent, LED Tubes look like a quick win for refurbishment projects. Graeme Shaw, Technical Director at Zumtobel Group UK & Ireland, discusses the in-depth considerations that need to be taken into account before pressing the order button.

Adam Taylor, CEO at ARM Environments, explores the two main reasons why HVAC systems cost more than necessary when it comes to energy use and planned maintenance.

The UK should look to its engineering community for solutions to many of the serious social and economic challenges it is facing, according to the President of the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA).

Daikin has signed an agreement with Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) in a first-of-its-kind public and private joint approach to decarbonisation.    

Veolia is helping Scottish Water to achieve Net Zero by increasing the amount of renewable energy generated at Scotland's largest Wastewater Treatment Works (WwTW), Seafield in Leith.

The Building Controls Industry Association (BCIA) has released two new Technical Guides to add to its portfolio of online Guides available to download.

The Viessmann Group continued to grow in 2022, increasing its total revenue to EUR 4 billion, an increase of 19% over 2021’s turnover of EUR 3.4 billion. In its 105th anniversary year, the family company grew from 13,000 to 14,500 employees.

Tom Harmsworth, UK Managing Director of WeMaintain, discusses the role of office buildings now they are under the microscope more than ever and property managers face a multitude of challenges. 

The demarcation of responsibility for repairs and maintenance in commercial buildings is something of a grey area, particularly where there are multiple business tenants. Steven Booth, Managing Director at Guardian Water Treatment, discusses what the law tells us about who is responsible and explains how Facilities Managers can tie up the loose ends and improve accountability. 

The Building Engineering Services Association (BESA) has urged the UK government to keep “a sense of perspective” in the face of a growing row over the European Commission’s decision to speed up the phase down of global warming gases used in refrigeration and air conditioning equipment.

Hong Cheng of LG Electronics says that Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) is an energy-efficient HVAC system with sophisticated controls and sensors integrated together. It can effectively control the indoor temperature to create micro-climate zones to suit each individual according to each occupant’s specific needs, in different zones of a building.

Better collaboration between system designers, specifiers and contractors is essential for ensuring the optimum health of heating systems.

In buildings where the heat demand for domestic hot water exceeds that for space heating, a different design approach is required to ensure the optimum use of low carbon heating technologies. Ian Dagley, General Manager at Hoval Ltd, considers some of the options. 

Michael Anderton, General Manager UK&I of HVAC Building Solutions at Johnson Controls, discusses how commercial buildings are experiencing a revolution in terms of how they operate and step up to their sustainability responsibilities. 

Designed to help clients navigate complexity, global professional services firm RPS is delighted to be launching its first podcast – Building Sustainably: The Road to Net Zero. 

The Department for Education’s announcement of £500m for schools to reduce their energy use falls far short of the funding needed for a nationwide retrofit programme to reduce costs and emissions, says schools' climate campaign, Let’s Go Zero. 

Sustainability and M&E firm CPW has solidified its presence in Nottingham with its recent relocation to a new city centre office space.

Building services engineers will now be able to use the Construction Industry Council’s (CIC) new online Health and Safety Certification training and exam to qualify for their Engineering Services SKILLcard.

In response to increased demand and the company’s continued growth, Modutherm has launched a new and exclusive range of commercial heat pumps. 

Hamworthy Heating has released a new Tyneham Heat Pump brochure, which highlights its latest monobloc air source heat pump offering, developed to meet the market demand for energy-efficient heating products.

Variable speed drives are known culprits for the increasingly widespread problem of harmonics. However, according to ABB’s Chris Plumb, HVAC Drives Key Account Manager UK, new innovations in drive technology have now made them part of the solution.