Off-site heating solution scores top marks at secondary school

WOKINGHAM, U.K. - May 14, 2019 - PRLog -- Bridgemary is a secondary school run by The Kemnal Academies Trust (TKAT). When the time came to refurbish the school's dated plant room, reliability and high efficiency were the key requirements identified by the charitable Trust, combined with the need to complete the works within the school's six-week summer shutdown period.

Consultant engineer Fred Edwards at Ridge and Partners LLP specified replacing the two existing pressure jet boilers with six Remeha Quinta Pro 115 boilers on a Remeha bespoke-designed, wheeled rig unit.

Edwards selected multiple fully-modulating condensing boilers to replace the larger units, to achieve a greater turndown ratio and enable the boilers to adapt to fluctuating heat demand for more efficient energy use. This configuration will also improve seasonal efficiencies and heating reliability at the school, while enabling easier future maintenance and uninterrupted heating provision.

A key benefit of the off-site rig system is that all project and site requirements can be addressed and resolved from the outset, at the design stage. Only once the design is clearly defined and approved does production take place. Working with Ridge, Remeha prepared detailed 3D drawings of the rig layout to enable early visualisation. This is particularly useful for schools where boiler replacements need to be approved by a number of stakeholders.

The drawings then formed part of a comprehensive operations and maintenance documentation manual for Bridgemary School, to facilitate easier future maintenance and servicing.

Due to restricted space within the plantroom and a tight installation schedule, the project required a time and space-saving solution. The boilers were arranged in a compact back-to-back layout on the wheeled rig unit to accommodate the space constraints and achieve the most effective use of the available space.

There was also the need to segregate the primary and secondary circuits to optimise boiler performance and longevity. Plate Heat Exchangers (PHEs) are increasingly applied to refurbishment projects to achieve hydraulic separation between the boiler circuit and the heating circuit.

Integrated into the design at Bridgemary School are pumps specifically selected for the duty required for Plate Heat Exchanger operation, an expansion vessel, a pressurisation unit, and a dosing pot to ensure good condition water.

The PHE was selected by Remeha to meet the specified boiler output and temperature, and oriented on the rig to meet the consultant's requirements for non-disruptive future servicing. Air-dirt separation was installed to protect the PHE from the older retained secondary pipework.

To further reduce on-site time and labour for IDWE, the contractors on the project, the controls were pre-wired for faster, more straightforward connection to the new Building Management System control panel.

"Remeha's bespoke-designed rig system provides a time and space-saving solution to boiler replacement, making it easier to get the plant into small footprints," said Edwards.

For IDWE, a further benefit of the off-site fabricated rig was the ability to plan and schedule the project more accurately.

IDWE's Paul Neve said: "We use Remeha boilers a lot and always find them extremely reliable and problem-free. The bespoke rig solution was great – it was wheeled straight off the tail lift and into place, saving us a lot of valuable time."

Using an off-site manufactured heating technique like the bespoke rig on multiple boiler installations enables local authorities or trusts to refurbish more school heating systems within the same fixed time frame. At the same time, it provides greater planning flexibility for schools, specifiers and contractors as the safer conditions, combined with the rapid changeover removes the need for these projects to be restricted to the summer holiday period.

For Bridgemary School and other educational establishments, this solution provides the added benefit of factory quality assurance and pre-release testing as the rig is produced under factory conditions.

Edwards concluded: "Our experience of working with the Remeha team over the years has been consistently good, as they provide continued support from the initial selection through to commissioning."

For schools striving to improve their energy efficiency, an off-site heating solution like the bespoke rig delivers at every stage of the project – from design and specification, to installation, commissioning and future maintenance. And thanks to its inherent flexibility, it scores top marks for quality installation and long-term efficient building performance.

-ENDS-

remeha.co.uk (http://www.remeha.co.uk) – T: 0118 978 3434 – E:  info@remeha.co.uk

About Remeha (http://www.remeha.co.uk)

Remeha has been reliably engineering high-performance and high efficiency heating solutions since 1935, providing the most energy-efficient, sustainable and economical heating solution for every commercial requirement. At the heart of its comprehensive product portfolio is the class-leading, fully modulating, low NOx Remeha condensing boiler range. Built around a single design concept, these boilers can be combined with Remeha's complementary high-performance renewable and low carbon heating solutions to create the low carbon plant room. This includes its combined heat and power (CHP) range spanning 5.5kWe to 150kWe, HIUs and gas absorption heat pumps.