September - Modern Building Services

Existing oil-fired boilers will already have space for fuel storage, so replacement with biomass boilers is an option. Hoval BioLyt wood-pellet boilers are available with outputs from 10 to 70 kW. They switch off and reignite automatically and can achieve an efficiency of up to 95%. To maintain efficiency, heating surfaces are self cleaning.

Out with the old . . .

Refurbishing or upgrading existing heating plant provides the opportunity to deliver very significant increases in efficiency but there are a number of factors that need to be taken into account. Kevin Stones takes a look at the key considerations.

At the headquarters of Norwich Union in Norwich, the refurbishment of seven existing buildings to deliver new office accommodation has been made possible with active multi-service chilled beams incorporating a range of factory-fitted services.

Multi-service chilled beams enhance refurbishment opportunities

Multi-service chilled beams remove the need for suspended ceilings, resulting in greater room height and more usable space. But their benefits in refurbishment projects don’t stop there, as Terry Farthing explains.

The chilled-water air-conditioning in this 1980s office building at Ruislip has been replaced with a Daikin VRVII heat-recovery system supplied by Space Airconditioning.

Space Air supplies heat recovery air conditioning to upgrade 1980s office building

As part of the comprehensive of the 2700 m2 Apollo office building in Ruislip, Space Airconditioning supplied equipment for a Daikin VRVII heat-recovery heat-pump air-conditioning system to replace a chilled-water fan-coil system.

The realities of installing new CHP plant into an existing building — one of two 1.6 MW(e) units for the Pimlico district-heating scheme is lowered through a tight hole into the plant room.

Adding the benefits of CHP to existing buildings

Heather Jefferson explains how best to exploit the energy-saving potential of CHP plant in existing buildings to produce power, heating — and cooling.

New lighting and controls has halved energy consumption for lighting in the RS Components warehouse at Corby.

RS Components takes dim view on high lighting costs

The quality of lighting has been significantly improved and energy costs halved in the main distribution centre of RS Components at Corby by upgrading from high-pressure sodium to Venture Lighting’s pulse-start metal-halide lamps and Ventronic dimming system.

By prolonging the life of lamps, lighting control reduces the problem of their disposal.

Making light of maintenance costs

There are more benefits to be gained from controlling lighting than energy savings. The reductions in maintenance costs can be even more important. Mark Andrew explains how good lighting control can help slash maintenance costs.

New lamps for old fittings

The benefits of modern fluorescent tubes can be exploited without having to replace lighting fittings using Save It Easy components from ECSL.

Cold though the waters of Loch Ness are, on which the Inchnacardoch Hotel stands, the is now shortage of hot water inside following the installation of an Andrews LGP storage water heater.

Andrews water heater is a Loch Ness attraction

The hot-water system servicing a prestigious hotel overlooking Loch Ness has been has been upgraded with an Andrews Hi-Flo LPG-fired storage water heater. It supplies the 15 guest room in the Inchnacardoch Lodge Hotel, the kitchen and all the hotel’s domestic hot water.

Standard-efficiency boilers could match the performance of condensing boilers in replacement projects — Graham Williamson.

Getting the best from replacement boilers

Despite the heating industry’s excellent response to Part L2 and L2a of the Building Regulations, which has seen the move towards high-efficiency boilers gather pace since April 2006, Graham Williamson argues that standard-efficiency appliances still have a major role to play in the non-domestic sector.

Lots of daylight introduced into the staff room at a school in Norfolk by two Solatubes has transformed this previously dreary space in a bright and attractive environment.

Brighter outlook for school in Norfolk

A windowless staff room in a Victorian school building has been transformed into a bright and attractive environment following the installation of two Solatube daylighting systems to replace flexible tubes that had been installed even though Solatube had been specified.

Servicing success — with the support of training provided by Glow-worm, Torfaen County Borough Council in Wales services virtually all the boilers in its housing stock last year.

Torfaen Council comes near to achieving perfect service

With the support of boiler manufacturer Glow-worm providing full training for all its engineers, Torfaen County Borough Council in South Wales achieved an almost perfect record for boiler servicing last year. All but a handful of its properties had their domestic heating boilers serviced on or before time — with a 99.9% independently verified score on a stock of over 7300 units.

As part of an ongoing programme by Coventry City Council, Weatherite Building Services has installed a new kitchen ventilation system in Westwood School.

Weatherite makes its contributions towards school dinners

Having waited for a school building in Coventry to be stripped of asbestos, Weatherite Building Service was able to install a new kitchen ventilation system at Westwood School.

As part of the transformation of two historic buildings into Bruges’ only 5-star hotel, Raychem electric underfloor heating has been installed in the bathrooms of all 95 rooms.

Raychem provides 5-star heating

Raychem electric underfloor heating systems have been installed in all 95 bathrooms of the Kempinski Hotel Charles V in Bruges, Belgium. The development involves the restoration and redevelopment of a former convent and a castle in the medieval city centre to create what will be Bruges’ only 5-star hotel.

At the heart of the new back-up power system at the German Embassy in London is a 203 kVA diesel generator from Scorpion Power Systems.

Scorpion safeguards power at German Embassy in London

Scorpion Power Systems has replaced a standby power system at the German Embassy in Belgrave Square, London, which was obsolete and unable to support the building’s growing infrastructure, with a technologically advanced power support system. It was the decision of Frank Bernhardt, engineer at the embassy, to replace the old generator with a back-up power system that would support operations facilities, telephones and essential services.

KoolDuct pre-insulated ducting has been installed throughout the refurbishment of the student-union building at Brunel University.

KoolDuct features benefit student-union refurbishment

As part of the £10 million refurbishment of the student-union building at Brunel University, Kingspan’s pre-insulated ducting system was installed to distribute air throughout the building, including the student nightclub Academy.

The DALI protocol is the basis for the lighting-control system supplied by Simmtronic for the refurbishment of 10 floors in this building in the City of London.

Simmtronic controls lighting in City refurbishment

Luminaires on 10 refurbished floors of the 36 000 m2 One Exchange Square building in the City of London are controlled under DALI protocol by Simmtronic systems using Tridonic ballasts. This 12-storey building has recently been acquired by KanAm Grund, one of Germany’s leading fund managers for open-ended real-estate funds and asset manager of international real-estate investment.

Replacing heating under fixed seats in this dining room at the training site of Bolton Wanderers’ with Dunham Bush fan convectors has made much more space available.

Dunham Bush scores at Bolton Wanderers

The newly refurbished dining room at Bolton Wanders’ training complex is heated by CM fan convectors from Dunham Bush. The units were selected for their small footprint, high heating capacity and low-noise operation.

CBI calls for bursaries for science and engineering students at university

To encourage more students to study science and engineering, the Confederation of British Industry has proposed a bursary of £1000 a year per student. The suggestion has been made against the background of a decline over many years in the study of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects. Its total cost is put at around £200 million a year.

Wilo sales manager to run in the New York Marathon

Former heart-surgery patient Kevin Padmore, OEM sales manager for Wilo Intec (right), will be a Heart Runner in this year’s New York Marathon to raise funds for the British Heart Foundation. He will don his official BHF Heart Runners vest, along with French colleague Vincent Fleurier, to run the course on 4 November. He is aiming to raise at least £2500 to help the charity in its fight against heart and circulatory disease, the UK’s biggest killer.

A £10 million contract for the Paradise Project in Liverpool has been awarded to Balfour Kilpatrick

Balfour Kilpatrick wins Paradise contract

Balfour Kilpatrick has been awarded a £10 million contact to supply and install HVAC, electrical and plumbing services for the Paradise Project in Liverpool. This large £920 million retail-led mixed-use development comprising over 30 buildings, each with its own distinct character.

British Property Federation supports Government plans to scrap ‘Merton rule’

The British Property Federation has backed Government plants to scrap the ‘Merton rule’, which requires a building to generate 10 to 20% of its energy through onsite renewables, on the basis that investing in inefficient onsite renewable-energy sources is simply not the best way to reduce carbon emissions.

Getting out of the office more often are (from left) Brian Taylor and Jason Kemp of Flakt Woods distributor SK (Sales) to catch catfish on the River Ebro in Spain, under the expert guidance of Gary Allen of Regency Angling.

You should have seen the one that got away...

Brian Taylor of national ventilation specialist SK (Sales) hauled in a catfish of 132 lb when Flakt Woods took four staff from two key distributors to chase the massive catfish on the River Ebro in Spain.

Bailey results include record order book

Building-services provider NG Bailey’s operating profit for the year to 2 March 2007 rose by over a third to just over £12 million from just under £9 million the previous year. Net assets rose from just over £68 million to nearly £83 million.

Committed to raising installation standards and promoting best practice — Robert Higgs (left), chief executive of the Heating & Ventilating Contractors’ Association, and Mick Langford, sales director of Daikin UK.

HVCA and Daikin sign commitment to raise industry standards

The Heating & Ventilating Contractors’ Association and air-conditioning specialist Daikin UK have signed a partnership to highlight their shared commitment to raising installation standards and promoting best practice across the UK contracting sector. The agreement is called ‘Striving for excellence’.

Receiving Ability Project’s sustainability award at NG Bailey’s national supplier conference is area manager Gordon Walker (left) from Martin Bailey.

NG Bailey acclaims Ability’s fan-coil-unit technology

Ability Projects has won NG Bailey’s sustainability award for 2007 at its recent national-supplier conference in Leeds. The award was for the EC Matrix modular and electronically balancing fan-coil system for air conditioning.

Hurleypalmerflatt appointed for NHM upgrade

Hurleypalmerflatt has been appointed as lead consultant and M&E engineer on the £1 million improvements to the Earth Gallery offices at the Natural History Museum in London.

Construction industry devises strategy for a sustainable future

Reducing waste on site, using sustainable materials and increasing skills in the workforce are some targets set out for the construction industry in a draft strategy for sustainable construction prepared by the Government and the industry.

Buro Happold scoops award for Perth Concert Hall

Perth Concert Hall in Scotland, for which Buro Happold was building-services consulting engineer, has won the project-of-the-year category at the International Building Services Awards for 2007.

Scotland looks to adopt Scandinavian energy standards

Climate-change minister in Scotland, Stewart Stevenson, wants to see new houses in Scotland meet Scandinavian standards, enabling householders to significantly reduce their energy user and bills.

Building the future of Airedale Service — the company’s first two apprentices are Shaun Woolacott (left) and Stuart Onyett.

Airedale Service recruits its first-ever apprentices

Airedale Service has taken on its first-ever apprentices. They are Stuart Onyett, 19, and Shaun Woolacott, 17 — both of Kent. Their recruitment is part of a new grow-your-own policy adopted by Airedale Services. Adrian Trevelyan, Airedale service and maintenance manager, explains, ‘We have adopted this approach because of the difficulty of recruiting good services engineers where we need them and because we have to travel them into these areas.’

Briggs & Forrester reaches The Pinnacle

Briggs & Forrester has won a £7.5 million contract for the design and installation of mechanical, electrical and public-health services at The Pinnacle in Milton Keynes. The contract was awarded by Marriott Construction.

Welcoming plans for the implementation of the Leitch review — Keith Marshall of SummitSkills.

Leitch implementation plan is welcomed by SummitSkills

SummitSkills, the Sector Skills Council for the building-services-engineering sector, has welcomed the Government’s plans for the implementation of the Leitch Review and the recommendations it makes for the sector.

Instilling a safety culture — Balfour Kilpatrick has delivered its behavioural safety training module to over 2100 operative at over 140 sessions.

Balfour Kilpatrick works to boost behavioural safety

Attitudes to safety within Balfour Kilpatrick have been boosted by the delivery of a behavioural safety training module to 2150 operatives of this multi-services contractor and its subcontractors.

MP Ian Pearson (second from left) is introduced to a joint initiative by AmbiRad and CA Building Products to exploit solar energy to halve the energy needed to heat industrial and commercial buildings. He is pictured with (from left) Mike Brookes (managing director of AmbiRad), Brian Watson (commercial director of CA Group) and Frank Staniland (sales director of AmbiRad),

Companies partner to promote solar heating technology

Industrial-heating manufacturer AmbiRad Group and CA Building Products, which makes metal envelope systems for buildings, have joined forces to promote an energy-saving heating system for commercial and industrial buildings.

There is need to gamble with the future of the planet if building-services engineers bring their expertise to bear on delivering sustainable buildings. Two helpful publications from CIBSE are ‘Introduction to sustainability’ and CIBSE Guide L. www.cibse.org

Helping building-services engineers to deliver sustainable buildings

Promoting and delivering sustainable buildings is a key role, even a responsibility, of building-services engineers. Dave Cheshire and Hywel Davies share their ideas on what they should be delivering — and how.

Even with the most efficient boiler plant, fuel use can be reduced considerably with a chimney-automation system to ensure the correct ratio of fuel to air.

Another approach to reducing the energy that goes up the flue

Peter Roege discusses a new approach to improving boiler fuel efficiency by 30%

Reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions below agreed targets opens up the possible of emissions trading. Andy Beddard, Dalkia contracts manager, hands a cheque for over £130 000 to Robin Smith, estates manager for Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Trust in the energy centre of the Royal Victoria Infirmary.

From energy saving to carbon reduction

As an energy-service company, Dalkia has been managing energy and saving money for clients for many years. The current concern with climate change and carbon emissions simply puts a new perspective on its work.

Natural ventilation meets intelligent control — Opening windows to provide natural ventilation is a key part of the environmental strategy of the offices of Kildare County Council at Aras Chill Dara. Their operation is controlled by the building-management system in response to carbon-dioxide levels and temperature, with SE Controls’ OSO controllers opening and closing the windows. To provide occupants with individual control, the system is interfaced with the PC network — so that individual switches are not required on the walls by the windows.

Building the intelligent bridge to sustainability

Passive technology alone cannot meet sustainability objectives. Alison Nicholl explains why intelligence-based solutions are also needed.

The single integrated intelligent building-management system designed and installed by Bailey in its south-east headquarters enables a single computer to manage fire alarms, public address, access control, heating and lighting.

Delivering the benefits of intelligent buildings

Chris Wootton explains the benefits of intelligent buildings — and how to enjoy them.

A KNX-based system is used in Bridgewater Place in Leeds to link over a thousand devices to control lighting.

KNX put through its paces to control lighting in Leeds

To respond to the multi-tenanted patterns of occupancy of the 33-storey Bridgewater Place development in Leeds, Electrak has supplied a KNX intelligent lighting control system.

Occupancy control of up to 1.5 kW of lighting can be provided by this PIR sensor from Danlers.

Occupancy sensors reduce lighting energy consumption

A range of passive infra-red occupancy switches for lighting control is made by Danlers. They are easy to install and can use existing wiring in a building. Applications include saving energy in offices, factories, schools etc.

Open systems — the way forward

Anders Norén explains how using a number of open protocols to bring together a host of building services is the key to interoperability.

The Honeywell Buildings Integrator that pulls all the various applications at Wembley Stadium into one common operating platform can be accessed from PCs in the event, security and police control rooms.

Honeywell enables the ultimate in teamwork at Wembley Stadium

The new Wembley Stadium is more than just a 90 000-seat venue. It is a huge building complex with a vast range of services that can interact with one another through the intelligent building system that has been installed.

The flexibility of Siemens Desigo TX-I/O modules means that only four are needed for integrating plant and field devices.

Siemens I/O modules are highly versatile

The latest addition to the Siemens Desigo building-management system is the Desigo TX-I/O range of modules. They provide high flexibility, greater user friendliness and lower energy and capital costs.

Major projects in Bristol and Leicester will be IT intelligent

Redstone Converged Solutions is installing converged IT and communications infrastructures for projects in Bristol and Leicester. A range of third-party systems will connect directly to the network — including security, CCTV surveillance, HVAC, audio visual and people counting.

LonMark opens UK testing centre

LonMark has opened its first proficiency testing centre in the UK. It is at Echelon’s office at Watford and provides LonWorks training and examinations to enable participants to become LonMark certified professionals. This examination is recommended for any specialist engaging in the design, specification, integration or installation of Lon control networks.

Controller simplifies installation and commissioning

The ‘click-and-go’ concept of the Lion controller for HVAC control and energy management from CentraLine by Honeywell dramatically reduces the time and cost of system installation and commissioning.

The hygiene requirements of hospitals are addressed by specially made chilled beams supplied by Trox for the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital in Brighton.

Chilled beams address hospital hygiene issues

Trox has supplied chilled beams with design modifications to enable them to be easily maintained and cleaned to the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital in Brighton. The beams will help the hospital meet increasing demands to reduce air-borne contaminants in clinical environments by not allowing room contaminants to migrate to and from the ceiling void or supply ductwork when they are cleaned.

Providing environmentally friendly and energy-efficient cooling for this Remploy factory in St Helens are six Breezair evaporative coolers.

Evaporative cooling tackles overheating in 3000 m2 factory

Breezair evaporative-cooling units installed in the St Helens factory of Remploy Household & Toiletries are reducing temperatures by around 8 K throughout the 3000 m2 production area. They were installation following consultations with CoSaf Environments.

Carbon emissions from Hillsborough Castle in Lisburn are being reduced by the installation of Nu-way wood-pellet boilers.

Renewable energy heats Northern Ireland Office

Nu-Way has won the contract to supply renewable-heating equipment for the Northern Ireland Office at Hillsborough Castle. Wood pellets are the fuel for Ecoflex and EcoMass 750 boilers which will provide heating for this 18th-century mansion house, home to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

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