Research laboratory discovers the benefits of decentralised boilers

The decentralisation of boiler houses at the Daresbury Laboratory of CCLRC near Warrington has been completed using Broag boilers worth around £145 000. Dating back more than 40 years, the original central oil-fired boilers were obsolete and proving inflexible in use, as well as giving rise to unacceptable heat losses in transmission, explains Henry Gun-Why, head of estates management at the laboratory. ‘The source of gas for the site was one-and-a-half miles away. Connecting it to site caused a great deal of disruption, but it’s been worth it to have much more efficient modern boilers sited just about where they are needed,’ he adds. The 14 gas-fired boilers have a total output of nearly 4500 kW and have been installed in 13 plantrooms dispersed over the 63-acre complex. All but the smallest are high-efficiency condensing boilers. In one area, the installation of a Gas 6002 ECO with 2 x 13 sections enabled most of the existing HTHW pipework to be utilised. Elsewhere, existing heat exchangers and all other redundant plant and pipework had to be removed. The Danesbury Laboratory is part of the Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils and specialises in synchrotron light sources and high-power computing.

Related links:

• www.broag-remeha.com