Jean Christophe Carette shares the secrets of successful hydronic balancing.

The use of metal piping for water, waste and drainage applications has declined in recent years as more specifiers and contractors begin to appreciate the many benefits of modern plastic systems. Adam Turk looks at some of the reasons behind this and makes a surprising discovery.

Grundfos has added two new models to its IMpress range of pressurisation sets. These sets have intelligent micro-processor control.

The Terrier push-fit range of thermostatic radiator valves from Pegler can accept several different types of pipe, enabling installers to reduce the number of valves they need to consider. Possibilities include plain or chrome-plates copper tube to BS EN 1057 or PB and PEX plastic pipe to BS 7291 Parts 2 and 3. A simple tool enables pipes to be disconnected.

The Friaphon sound-attenuated drainage systems from Durapipe has been specified for a private opera house in the back garden of Martin Graham, who owns Longborough Festival Opera.

Is proportional balancing still the best approach to commissioning variable volume systems? Martin Lowe, technical manager at Marflow Hydronics, suggests a faster and more practical method.

As part of a major regeneration of the Rathbone Hospital site in Old Swan, Liverpool, A range of Oventrop valves have been installed, including Aquastrom T Plus multi-function domestic-hot water valves to avoid the risk of legionella bacteria growing.

The flexibility and ease of installation of Victaulic’s grooved joint system for pipes is being used to good effect in the Beijing Olympic National Stadium in China.

Pumps last many years, and the rate of technological change is also measured in years. Glynn Williams discusses developments that have a major impact on the performance and energy efficiency of pumps.

As part of the programme of Hounslow Home to achieve the Government’s ‘decent homes’ standard for the London Borough of Hounslow’s 16 500 housing stock, Grundfos variable-speed pumps using differential-pressure control have been installed as part of two plantroom refurbishments.

Hepworth Building Products has extended its Hep2O range with the addition of a universal spigot elbow.

Proportional balancing and variable flow do not go together, but it is taking time for a more effective approach to setting up waterborne systems to be widely adopted.

The Purus connector for connecting and sealing pipes of different diameters is now available in the UK.

BSS Industrial offers its Boss cPVC piping system as an alternative to copper and steel. Installation is said to be simple, with no need for expensive tools.

Warrens has launch an own-brand range of products called Warrior. Some of the first products to be offered include gate, globe, check and ball valves.

Intaeco is a newly established company set up to supply plumbing and heating products with a sustainable-energy focus. Its product range is said to be of particular interest to the renewable-energy market and those with an interest in sustainable building practices.Intaeco is a sister company of Intatec, which specialises in anti-scale taps, showers and valves.

There are many benefits in taking the assembly of piped services off site, as Cal Bailey explains.

Steve Buckley explains how the drive to cut carbon footprints has led to DALI lighting control becoming more relevant across the board.

Dynalite Europe has installed a lighting-control system incorporating its Mapview energy-management software to replace an existing system in the Edinburgh International Conference Centre.

Richard Forster delves into the issues comparing compact fluorescent and tungsten-filament lamps — and in doing so challenges conventional perceptions concerning efficiency and mercury.

25% has been lopped off the electricity bill of the main training centre of the London Fire Brigade in Southwark following the installation of Ex-Or lighting controls.

Megaman’s emergency pack for use with its integral compact fluorescent lamps incorporates an emergency module, batteries and an LED indicator to provide a system that is easy to connect.

For the first time in over a hundred years, the look and feel of general lighting solutions are poised to change as LED technology develops. Steve Landau sets the scene.

Ridi’s Aida-Vario range of suspended luminaires for recessed ceiling grids is designed to meet the requirements of CIBSE LG3a and LG7 lighting codes. These fittings can be lowered to maximise ceiling illumination or fully recessed.

To optimise the use of natural light in its stores, B&Q has installed the Synapsys IP (SIP) DALI system to integrate DALI (Digital Addressable Lighting Interface) lighting devices with the building-management system.

Simmtronic Specs3 fully addressable lighting-control systems are being installed by Haden Young in the Cat A fitout of 150 Cheapside — a 19 000 m2 corporate office development overlooking St Paul’s Cathedral in London.

Hamilton Litestat has added to its GridIt wiring-accessories a 1 to 10 V grid module for use with analogue regulated fluorescent ballasts. This manually operated high-frequency ballast controller provides an effective and economical way to dim fluorescent lamps.

Greenstock now offers a long-life high-pressure-sodium lamp from Aura. It has a 48 000 h life, based on a 12 h switching life. Light output is said to be 22% higher than standard SON lamps at 147 lm/W, with a 15% depreciation over its life.

Cooper Lighting & Safety has added high-frequency control gear and triphosphor lamps to the Crompton Modulay range of recessed luminaires to improve energy efficiency.

Delivering to Code 6 of the Code for Sustainable Homes requires a fundamental and joined-up rethink of how homes are designed and built. One example was in evidence at the recent EcoBuild exhibition.

With Level 6 of the Code for Sustainable Homes, zero carbon, being the standard to be achieved by 2016, leading lights in the industry have been addressing the issue of how to achieve this requirement in an affordable manner.

An impressive example of how the code can be met was very prominent at the recent EcoBuild exhibition at Earls Court in London with what was promoted as ‘the UK’s first affordable and commercial viable Code 6 house’.

Tony Barnes shares his experience of the application of ground-source heat pumps for domestic heating and reducing carbon emissions.

Airedale International Air Conditioning has taken a major step forward in energy-efficient chilled-water air conditioning with the development of a range of chillers based on the Danfoss Turbocor compressor combined with a series of energy-efficiency features engineered by Airedale.

Nathan Hudson believes that the most obvious ways of saving money on electrical-distribution systems are usually not the best.

A number of top firms in the industry have signed up for a new flexible learning programme aimed at addressing the growing shortage of qualified building-services engineers, launched by the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers.

Buro Happold raised £1383 for the charity RedR (Register of Engineers for Disaster Relief) with a company-wide ‘wear red for RedR Day’ in February. This was the second time the price has run a RedR Day since the scheme started three years ago.

Dalkia has reinforced its position in public-sector property manager by retaining its contract with the Welsh Assembly Government. This contract will allow Dalkia to provide flexible and effective services to the WAG, building on its long-term relationship with the Welsh regional government.

The extension of Enhanced Capital Allowances to include electrical systems may be one of the most important changes under the new system, according to property tax and finance specialist Davis Langdon Crosher & James.

Modern Building Services has launched a new service to simplify the task of matching the staffing needs of companies in the building-services industry and engineers. A new area on our web site enables engineers in the industry to post their CV and those looking for staff to access those CVs.

Birmingham building-services provider JS Wright has completed the £4.6 million fit-out of the 14-storey Park Plaza County Hall Hotel near the London Eye. The 2-year project was the biggest in JS Wright’s 118-year history and has resulted in the company’s work in London accounting for 70% of its forecast turnover of £19 million for 2007/8.

The UK’s first centre of excellence in low-carbon technologies for buildings is set to open at London South Bank University. The Centre of Efficient & Renewable Energy in Buildings will open in 2009. It will be a unique resource for teaching, research and demonstration of low-carbon energy technologies in the built environment.

Against the background of the introduction of Energy Performance Certificates for buildings, the CBI has launched a guide for business, with commercial real-estate advisor CB Richard Ellis.

The price of ductwork systems could rise by 10 to 15% as a result of rising steel prices, according to the Association of Ductwork Contractors & Allied Services (ADCAS). The association represents ductwork suppliers and suppliers of associated components and warns that the impact of rising steel prices cannot be avoided.

Prêt a Manger has appointed specialist maintenance provider M. J. Quinn Integrated Services to look after air conditioning, refrigerated display cabinets and general refrigeration in its 160 shops throughout the UK

Grundfos has opened a £12 million 1700 m2 factory in San Luis Potosi, Mexico.

There is huge potential to save energy in shopping centres using a combination of natural and mechanical ventilation to maintain indoor environmental quality, according to a new study. The beneficial effects of natural ventilation in buildings such as schools have been well documented, but until now there has been little work on how the system can be applied to large areas with a mixture of enclosed areas and common internal open spaces — such as shopping centres.

The Association for Consultancy & Engineering has continued its drive to have more engineering disciplines included on the Government’s list of professions suffering from skills shortages.

Five major trade associations are supporting RAC09 at the NEC from 24 to 26 February 2009 and being promoted as the premier event for low-carbon cooling solutions.

Balfour Kilpatrick has been awarded a £4.5 million contract to design, supply and install mechanical and electrical services for a new community hospital by Robertson Capital Projects.

Following consultation with members, the council of the Heating & Ventilating Contractors’ Association has pledged its support to the development of a single organisation to represent mechanical and electrical contractors — brought about by the convergence of the HVCA and the Electrical Contractors’ Association.

As part of its initiative to sell safety-critical gas parts only to CORGI-registered installers, Parts Center, part of the Wolseley Group, is hosting CORGI days at all 200 of its branches from 28 April to 2 May.

A combination of biomass and gas-fired condensing boilers supplied by Hoval meet the space-heating and hot-water requirements of the new Newark Beacon business innovation centre in Nottinghamshire. It is one of a network of business innovation centres in the region. Its 2884 m22 of accommodation across two floors comprises four light workshops and 27 office suites, as well as conference and cafe/break-out facilities. Sustainability and achieving a high BREEAM rating were key design criteria.

Contributing to the energy-efficient operation of the extension and refurbishment of the visitor centre at Kenfig Nature Reserve near Bridgend is the use of Passivent natural ventilation. The project has won two environmental awards — the National Gold Green Apple Award for the Built Environment & Architectural Heritage and the Consortium of Local Authorities of Wales Award for Sustainable Building of the Year.

To protect the power supply for the imaging facility of the Zoology Department of Cambridge University a Chloride 30 kVA 70-NET uninterruptible power supply has been installed. Batteries can supply power for nine minutes to prevent data loss and damage to four computer-controlled confocual microscopes, equipped with light detection and lasers.

The application of free cooling in a store of Wilkinson is having a dramatic effect on the use of mechanical cooling, leading to it being rolled out to 148 of its stores with ducted ventilation systems. The preliminary trial of a system installed by GK Industrial reduced the use of the cooling system from 45 hours to nine hours a week, a reduction of nearly 80% and achieving a cost saving of £4.30/m2, based on current energy prices. Wilkinson has nearly 300 stores in the UK.

As part of the campaign by Marks & Spencer to become carbon neutral within five years, Eurex Energy has supplied Airvolution low-energy air-conditioning systems to several stores. Eurex installed and commissioned the systems, which required remodelling the existing air-distribution system from total loss to supply-and-extract air distribution, with energy being reclaimed from the extract air. It is common for retail stores to be served by fresh-air systems, with the conditioned air being driven out through the main doors into the street.

60% of the energy needed for heating, cooling and domestic hot water for new buildings at a school in Sheffield is provided by a ground-source heat-pump installation. Sharrow School is little more than a mile from the city centre.

Britannia kitchen ventilation has engineered a special solution to provide ventilation for a new kitchen for the Grade 1 listed Wadham College of Oxford University.

John Lewis’s new store in Cambridge is three times larger than its previous store in the city. Its 13 400 m2 is air conditioned throughout by Daikin VRV and Sky Air air-conditioning systems designed and specified by CSA Consulting Engineers of London and installed by Daikin D1 installer Breathe Air of Cambridge.

Hoval SR combination boilers have been specified by consulting engineers Hannan & Associates for the rapidly expanding network of JJB Fitness Clubs. They are serving central air-handling plant, DHW systems and swimming pools and spas.

Energy-efficient water heating, with fast recovery, for various buildings of Stramillis University College in Belfast is provided by a range of Lochinvar equipment.

Village hotels are a breath of fresh air

Over 2500 m of Electrak’s 63 A underfloor busbar has been installed throughout all six floors of office accommodation in Fort Dunlop, one of Birmingham’s iconic buildings, which has been transformed by Urban Splash. The system was chosen by electrical contractor Mitie Engineering for its ease of installation and cost effectiveness.

To minimise disruption during installation and avoid damage to the historic Cunard Building in Liverpool, EMS Group has installed a wire-free analogue addressable fire-detection system.

Evaporative cooling has been installed to cool the top floor of Stylo Barratts’ 3-floor distribution warehouse in Bradford and improve air quality. This floor measures 85 x 75 m and is the main picking area. It has a large number of skylights and an extensive single-skin roof, so it became extremely hot in summer.

To minimise the energy consumption of his super-efficient home-heating system, Dr Michael Lamperth, a world-renowned developer of energy-efficient vehicle technologies, uses wireless Honeywell heating control of individual radiators. These controls heat rooms only when required and only to the temperature that has been preset for that time of day.

Trox has completed the supply of £1 million-worth of airside fan-coil units and diffusers for various contracts for Bankside 1/2/3 on London’s South Bank.

Following a comment in an Ofsted report that the fabric of the school building was contributing to classrooms feeling hot and stuffy, Manor Green Primary School in Tameside, Greater Manchester, has installed 10 Vaillant climaVAIR high-efficiency wall-mounted heat-pump systems with a total cooling duty of 52 kW. The rest of the Ofsted report was excellent.

As part of the renewal of heating systems in the 152 buildings that make up Colchester Barracks, AmbiRad radiant heating has been installed in the large workshops and stores.

As part of a major upgrade of the UK headquarters in Redhill of global engineering, consulting and construction company Black & Veatch, the radiator heating system and boilers have been removed and replaced with Daikin VRV systems to provide both heating and cooling.

Evinox is providing Belmont Homes with the Geminox Modusat for heating and cooling at Coast, its latest development in Hove. The Modusat units in the 68 apartments will be supplied with hot water from four Geminox boilers providing just 400 kW overall.

Portakabin’s expertise in modular buildings has been utilised in the delivery of a 1800 m2 project for the Ministry of Defence within 30 weeks. The building includes a stylish barrel roof, large picture windows for increased natural light and a barrelled canopy.

Johnson Controls has introduced to the European market a range of total building solutions for operating buildings effectively and efficiently.

Xpelair’s Digitemp air-conditioning units are self contained and can be installed against outside and outside wall with two 155 mm-diameter holes providing connections to the outside. They use R410A.

Lindab has added perforated ceiling diffusers to its Comfort range of air terminal devices. The range includes models with circular and square faces and a special swirl type for delivering very cold air.

Airwell has joined the VRF air-conditioning market with the launch of the Flow Logic range of inverter-driven systems. Three different core systems can be tailored to meet cooling needs from 11 to 134 kW and heating from 12 to 150 kW. They use R410A.

LG Air Conditioning’s AC Smart central controller can individually monitor and control up to 64 indoor air-conditioning units. Its capabilities include setting heating or cooling mode, temperature, fan speed and fault checking. It can be accessed remotely using a web browser.

The Artel range of through-the-wall’ air-conditioning units is now available in the UK through DPAC.

Dunphy has designed a touchscreen controller for its Radiotronic 6000 digital burner/boiler management systems. This panel has all the functionality of a standard PC, including IP-addressable web access. The 48 cm screen has 1080 x 1280 pixels and 65 000 colours.

Danlers makes a range of time-lag switches that are easy to install and ideal for saving energy in stairwells, store rooms, student accommodation etc.

Aermec’s WSH range of water-condensed heat pumps comes in 10 sizes with cooling capacities from 166 to 672 kW and heating from 183 to 784 kW. They are available in the UK through AiAX.

Ferroli claims plug-and-play simplicity for installing its AquaSolXs solar water-heating system for domestic and smaller commercial installations.

Martindale’s E-ZE 150 electrical socket tester gives an accurate indication of earth-loop impedance — as well as wiring faults such as a reversed phase and neutral, reversed phase and earth, open earth etc.

AMS Pumps has become the first national distributor to work with Armstrong Pumps to stock branded replacement heads for next-day delivery — rather than up to four months.

Danler’s PIR occupancy switches for automatic lighting control can be installed using the existing wiring in a building. They can be used to save energy in offices, factories, schools etc.

Pictures taken using a mobile telephone can be uploaded in real time to an online gallery operated by Red Zebra Mobile so that they can be viewed anywhere by work colleagues, supervisors and management.

An evaporative humidifier from JS Humidifiers is said to have an energy consumption 150 times less than equivalent electric steam humidifiers.

Elkay’s Aquasafe electrical connectors enable electrical power to be used outdoors for purposes such as patio heaters and water pumps. They are available for 240 V a.c. or 12 V d.c.

Stokvis Energy Systems has introduced the A range of booster sets, which are designed to automatically control the pressure in a water distribution system, using pressure switches or variable-speed drives.

Asbestos surveying, management and environmental consultancy Redhill Analysts has been awarded RoSPA’s (Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents) Silver Award for Occupational Health & Safety.

Glow-worm’s Ultrapower and Ultracom boiler ranges have been officially tested and sanctioned as delivering less than 40 mg/kWh of NOx, enabling social-housing and private developers to claim an extra point within the Code for Sustainable Homes registration.

Aermec’s HE range of air-to-water heat pumps for underfloor heating and cooling is available in 10 sizes with cooling capacities from 7 to 48 kW and heating from 6 to 40 kW. Chilled water is delivered at 20°C.

The Buderus GB162 wall-hung gas-fired condensing boiler has won one of the world’s best known design awards for its excellence of technical design. The prestigious iF product-design award was presented at a high-profile award ceremony in Hanover.

Following the decision by Wolseley Parts Centers to supply sensitive spare parts for boilers only to Corgi-registered installers, ATAG Heating UK has appointed Parts Centers as a main supplier of its spares in the UK.

Wagner has added a range of silent air-sampling smoke-detection units to its popular Titanus family. The new units have high-performance fans and additional soundproofing to produce a silent-running system. The silent-running versions are available for the Top-Sens and Pro-Sens systems.

Merlin Power Management has responded to customer requests for a contracted service to guarantee the refilling of a customer’s fuel tanks for generators or other equipment within a designated time period.

Zip Heaters (UK) Ltd offers an exceptional range of boiling, chilled and hot water products, including the innovative new HydroTap — but it doesn’t end there. Zip has reinforced its belief in customer service by introducing a national product-support scheme, which provides breakdown cover, filter replacement and scale management for the lifetime of an appliance.

HCP has launched a brochure on its ceiling-mounted range of radiant-heating panels, which have outputs in the region of 480 to 500 W/m2. This method of heating is said to be one of the most comfortable and energy-efficient available.

Power Electrics (PE), one of the UK’s biggest independent generator specialists, has opened a sale, hire and service centre in Abergarw trading estate in Bridgend.

Raychem’s self-regulating freeze-protection systems have gone modular with the launch of Flexiclic. The new format makes it easier and quicker to install electric frost protection to exposed pipework and on roofs. Modules click together to create the required layout, and click-together T and 3-way junctions enhance system flexibility and deliver lower total installed costs.

Rapid Walkway is a versatile and economical solution to roof access problems. It provides a formal route for maintenance engineers and a safe pathway for personnel. The galvanised steel frame and anti-slip glass-fibre grid are simply bolted together and mounted on anti-vibration blocks. This spreads heavy loads on delicate roofs without penetrating the surface. The modular design enables a team of two to construct a 30 m run in under an hour. Optional safety hand rails can be easily fitted during or post installation. Rapid Walkway is delivered from stock, flat packed in 1, 2 and 3 m lengths and 90° corner sections.

Unnoticed by visitors to the centre of Stratford upon Avon are 47 cottages (same dating back to the 17th century) where actors and theatre staff are housed during the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) season. The RSC has now started a programme of improvements to the cottages and their heating and plumbing works.

As developers continue to put the squeeze on the amount of space allocated to panel building, Katko has added the ideal solution to its comprehensive range of load break switches.

Cable-management specialist Marshall-Tufflex has published a briefing document to help electrical contractors and building designers pick their way through the maze of information about EMC capability, fire performance and environmental issues.

CIBSE has published a guide to fan-coil units as part of its Technical Memorandum series. TM43 sets out to describe all aspects of fan coil unit technology and provides manufacturers, designers, site personnel and operators a comprehensive guide.

Johnson Controls’ general product catalogue is now available online. It contains over 200 pages of building controls, HVAC and refrigeration equipment.

Glow-worm has prepared a free 20-page booklet on solar energy. Called ‘Getting ready for solar’ it answers many questions about solar thermal, renewable energy and micro-generations.

The Solatube range of tubular daylight systems is explained in a 16-page brochure from Solalighting.

ABB’s 2008 issue of its drives and motors catalogue runs to 44 pages and provides technical details of its range of low-voltage AC drives from 180 W to 2800 kW and motors from 60 W to 710 kW. It also presents ABB’s range of DC and medium-voltage AC drives.

Mitsubishi Electric has published a CPD-accredited guide to renewable energy sources. Commercial director Donald Daw says, ‘The energy debate is complex, but one thing is clear — however we are generating and using energy now, we won’t be doing it the same way in 10 or, even, five years’ time.