Efficient boilers do not necessarily make for an efficient heating system — Graham Williamson.

In any building with sophisticated and extensive building services, there are ample opportunities to exploit variable-speed drives to improve the quality of the environment — and reduce energy costs.

The ability of an underfloor heating system to provide a comfortable environment and avoid the swings of temperature that would be harmful to exhibits at the National Railway Museum at Shildon is demonstrated by the recently installed Giacomini system.

Fig. 2: First-floor office space on the corner of the first floor of Passivent’s building in Manchester has provided a successful trial of mixed-mode. The inlet grills for the passive ventilation are just visible above the window line, and the ventilation stack can be seen just above the roof line.

Building-management systems as a means of complying with energy legislation — Ted Scheidegger.

Portsmouth City Teaching Primary Care Trust, where Keston Boilers has become the preferred supplier for heating requirements.

The operational features of Ultramax gas-fired condensing boilers from MHS Boilers provide energy-efficient heating for the new Pier 6 development at Gatwick Airport.

The benefits and application of variable-speed drives for HVAC applications can be examined using this new CD-ROM from Danfoss.

Up to 80% of the tank volume of Maxxflo storage water heaters can be generated in condensing mode.

The free-cooling capabilities of Airedale’s Ecotel units for applications such as computer rooms and telephone exchanges can be exploited for 90% of the year.

Helping the Oxford Radcliffe Hospital NHS Trust comply with the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 is the commissioning of the specialist electrical-testing and inspection division of Parkersell to test, trace, report and action repairs of fixed electrical installation in its hospitals. The work includes all equipment up to 415 V. The service provided by Parkersell includes producing periodic inspection reports on the fixed electrical installations, which are tested to ensure they continue to function safely and correctly.

The high-density electrical loading in high-rise buildings such as Canary Wharf inevitably increase short-circuit current ratings.

Raring to go — Dave Milbourne believes that D-Line surface trunking is a significant new alternative to traditional methods of routing electrical cables. It is available in a range of aesthetic finishes and colours and comes in van-sized 2.4 m lengths.

Reducing electromagnetic disturbance — even with power cable and data cable laid quite close together, properly earthed basket tray considerably reduces electromagnetic disturbance — an effect which increases as the cables are separated more widely.

The lighting requirements of this maintenance depot of Nottingham Express Transit tramway are met by a range of luminaires from Cooper Lighting & Security

Bringing the benefits of Ex-Or’s Connect system for lighting systems to less sophisticated projects is Connect Ultra-Lite.

Designed for hygiene applications is Armorduct’s stainless-steel range of conduit and fittings.

A host of features offering safety and installation benefits are incorporated in Schneider Electric’s LoadCentre KQII range of distribution boards.

A vast range of pluggable equipment for electrical installations is included in this new catalogue from Wieland.

Probing the benefits of designers and facilities managers co-operating — Geoff Prudence.

Designs for an environment to enable the Mary Rose to be housed in a new museum have be prepared by consulting engineers Gifford.

An analogue control system at Emcor UK has been upgraded to a building-management system using a Priva system.

Intelligent smoke ventilation for the prestigious building that is part of the Royal Albert Dock regeneration programme in London is provided by a system designed and installed by SE Controls.

The testing of the extensive emergency-lighting system in this £4 million sport and recreation centre at Coventry University is carried out automatically by P4’s FasteLink system.

Effective, rapid-response heating for Ryanair’s new hangar at Prestwick Airport is provided by a Nor-Ray-Vac continuous radiant-tube heating system.

Very low noise levels were a key requirement of the ventilation systems for the Wales Millennium Centre — including the 39 air-handling units supplied by Carrier.

Background heating to prevent corrosion of the 3000 t of steel held in this depot is provided by high-level Reznor warm-air heaters.

A range of installation challenges in the Hemel Hempstead showroom of Anthony Betts Motor Group were overcome using Fujitsu VRF equipment.

Even-Heat underfloor heating in an extension providing pre-school facilities in this school at Wallsend combines safety with comfort.

Helping to ensure that punters in betting shops of William Hill in the south east will not be let down by the internal environment is a maintenance contract awarded to EWS.

400 houses in Preston have already been fitted with Remeha combi condensing boilers as part of a renewal programme to upgrade the provision of heating and hot water

The key to controlling the new heating system in this Victorian mansion applied by The Stove Shop without damaging the building and historic decorations was the use of a Honeywell table-top wireless programmer.

Herons Brook, a 650 m2 Georgian-style property in Prestbury, Cheshire, is one of a growing number including underfloor heating and cooling built by Hillcrest Homes.

Following research in the industry, Trane has developed a new range of air-handling units with more features and better build quality.

The CP range of fire-rated bag filters from Jasun Filtration.

Bringing Viessmann design and quality standards to low-budget projects is the Vitoplex 100 PV range of boilers.

Up to 11 ElectroVap MC electrode boiler humidifiers from JS Humidifers can be linked in a master/slave system.

The use of different-size compressors in the outdoor units of LG’s Multi-M multi-split system achieves energy savings of up to 35%

Adaptable air filtration, Jasun Filtration’s Filbox can hold all types of air filters.

New features in heat-pump and cooling-only versions of Daikin’s VRVII range of air-conditioning equipment enhance efficiency and simplify installation.

Effective radiant heating in a suspended ceiling is provided by Solray’s Trident panels.

Preinsulated pipework for air-conditioning and refrigeration systems from Armacell reduce installation costs.