ATAG Heating’s XL range of commercial boilers comprises three models with outputs of 70, 110 and 140 kW. They can be combined in multiples of up to eight units to give a maximum output of 960 kW. The heat exchanger is of 316 stainless steel to help achieve an efficiency of up to 109.3% (EN677), achieved through seamless upward modulation. NOx emissions are below 30 ppm.

St George’s Hospital in Tooting is saving £45 000 a year by upgrading its heating and hot-water systems from calorifiers to plate heat exchangers. Five EasiHeat systems from Spirax now serve the Lanesborough wing of this 1000-bed hospital. Three provide heating and two deliver domestic hot water in a duty/standby arrangement. Heating was previously provided by three shell-and-tube calorifiers and hot water by four more calorifiers. The £45 000 savings are a combination of improved energy efficiency and reduced maintenance.

MHS Boilers has supplied two Ultramax Thision L boilers and a free-standing cascade system with plate heat exchanger to replace aging boilers at Pentland Primary School in Stockton-on-Tees. This large school has over 330 pupils and serves most of the families in the Billingham area.

Potterton Commercial’s Paramount Three wall-hung condensing boiler has a control system for three heating zones and a DHW cylinder to ensure compliance with Part L2 of the Building Regulations. The functionality of the control unit is integrated into the PCB of the boiler so that when installed in cascade as part of a modular heating system, a separate control box is no longer required.

A residential care home in Aberdeenshire is set to halve its heating bills and reduce carbon emissions by 54 t a year by transferring from an oil-fired boiler to biomass heating. Two Windhager BioWin Excel 35 kW wood-pellet boilers have been installed at Praesmohr House in Aboyne and will reduce fuel costs by some £6830 a year.

Just how much boilers have moved on in their efficiency, ability to reduce carbon emissions and save money is assessed by Stuart Turner.

When it comes to replacing a heating system there are a number of factors that must be considered, not least sustainability targets and the energy performance of a building. It may come as no surprise, therefore, that building-services managers are very keen to take advantage of renewable energy and the incentives that they bring — but Robert Lockhart argues the case for traditional heating solutions and the important role that boilers still play in a modern building.

Lack of attention to maintenance will inevitably lead to loss of efficiency and, even, loss of heating. Leigh Bryan discusses how to avoid problems during the heating season with careful planning to ensure an uninterrupted and trouble-free winter period.

Does producing commercial-scale domestic hot water using 48% less energy than current best practice appeal? And we are not talking about solar thermal, which is only 26% less, but a technology that achieves a further 30%. We got the full story from Chris Farrell, independent technology advisor for Remeha Commercial and MD of Zenex Technologies.

The latest range of Economatic steel shell boilers from Stokvis Energy Systems comprises 3-pass reverse-flame boilers for use with gas and oil. They have capacities from 93 to 3488 kW in standard units. The precision-engineered shell design gives a very high thermal efficiency of 91%. The design ensures low emissions of CO and NOx.

Three Hoval 600 kW gas-fired boilers are helping the National Academy for Wales minimise the energy costs and environmental impact of the award-winning Welsh Assembly building — the Senedd. Designed by the Richard Rogers Partnership, the Assembly building at Cardiff Bay includes a debating chamber for 60 members, office and meeting spaces, public spaces, private accommodation and catering.

Replacing poorly performing boilers with high-efficiency condensing boilers is achieving energy savings of up to 35% for healthcare provider Spire Healthcare. The new installation comprises two Imax Xtra boilers from Ideal Commercial, and the energy savings they are achieving means that Spire Hull & East Riding Hospital is already well below its 2015 energy-saving target.

Shorts Environmental offers a one-stop shop for the supply, installation and ongoing maintenance of biomass boilers According to Mark Wilson, regional sales manager with the company, a biomass system is the runaway winner in any contest for lowest running costs. As such, he is convinced that end users, architects and specifiers will be looking beyond initial installation costs to the quite substantial operating gains achieved in lifetime savings — especially with income from the Renewable Heat Incentive.

It is now very common for projects to use more than one heat source for space heating and domestic hot water. Integration and control are therefore fundamental to the system design, says Kevin Stones.

Glow-worm’s Ultracom2 35 Store boiler combines the benefits of a system store and combi boiler in one package and is suitable for new-build properties and retrofit. Hot water can be delivered with a flow rate of 19.7 l/min through a 35 K temperature rise. These boilers have an output of 35 kW and include two storage cylinders within the unit.

As part of a £20 million redevelopment of halls of residence at the University of Glamorgan in Pontypridd, MHS Boilers has supplied 10 Ultramax 65 kW wall-mounted condensing boilers and 10 Xpressflo 300 l condensing hot-water generators. The halls are on the Treforest campus, and the equipment will be installed in five plant rooms to provide heating and hot water for over 450 new en-suite rooms.

Hamworthy Heating is taking its Fleet range of condensing boilers around the country with a roadshow running through to Summer 2011. You can request an invitation to these events, where you will have the opportunity to speak to Hamworthy sales engineers and business-development managers about the Fleet range and the boilers on display.

Replacing an oil-fired heating system with a biomass boiler from Remeha Commercial is the latest initiative in the campaign to reduce the carbon footprint of the Duchy of Cornwall Nursery at Lostwithiel in Cornwall. This 100 kW boiler serves the newly opened visitors’ centre, shop and cafe building and the new greenhouse area.

Ideal Commercial now offers a wall-hung LPG boiler as part of its Evomax range. There are four models with outputs from 30 to 80 kW delivering seasonal efficiencies in accordance with Part L of the Building Regulations and low NOx emissions. They can modulate down to 20% of full output.

Efficient boilers and heating systems are the result of a combination of technologies and controls techniques. Are you familiar with all the features explained by Paul Sands?

With a 10% surplus of oil-seed rape being produced in the UK, Harry Howard discusses the potential for liquid biofuels for boilers — aided by the use of other waste oils.

With fuel prices soaring and the Renewable Heat Incentive about to kick in, there has never been a better time to look at wood as a fuel source. Mark Northcott examines what you should look at when considering a biomass boiler installation.

The theory that will lead to more efficient heating systems served by boilers is often not borne out in practice. Steve Cooper provides food for thought.

MHS Boilers now offers a cascade system for its recently introduced Ultramax Thision L wall-hung boiler. The cascade kit enables a modular system of up to eight boilers to be created and deliver a total output of up to 1140 kW — said to be the most powerful manufacturer-supplied cascade system available in the UK. Three cascade systems are available — wall mounting in line for up to six boilers and freestanding back to back for three to eight boilers.

Potterton Commercial has designed and supplied a Paramount MB package boiler plant for the Heathlands Hotel in Bournemouth. It has 114 bedrooms and is set in its own landscaped gardens in the centre of Bournemouth. It was recently acquired by Britannia Hotels, which noted that the heating system was aged and in a poor state of repair.

Too many building services control systems are not ‘intuitive’ and ask too much of the end user. The commercial heating sector must take on board the lessons learned by the IT industry and deliver easy to operate solutions, says Ron Barker.

Adding solar thermal to existing buildings and boiler systems is an efficient option for property owners who want to reduce carbon emissions and take advantage of the Renewable Heat Incentive says Firat Ucer.

With the Coalition Government set on cutting the UK’s carbon emissions, James Parkinson explains how boiler plant has a key role to play in reducing the carbon footprint of existing building stock cost effectively.

All the space-heating requirements of a new retirement village in Birmingham are provided by five Potterton Eurocondense two boilers, each rated at 250 kW. New Oscott Retirement Village, developed by the ExtraCare Charitable Trust in partnership with Birmingham City Council and other agencies, accomm­odates over 350 residents in 260 apartments with one and two bedrooms.

Glow-worm’s Hybrid domestic heating system is claimed to cut heating bills by up to 30% when replacing an existing standard-efficiency boiler and carbon footprint by up to 40%. Larger savings are possible if the boiler is an old heavyweight model. The Hybrid system combines a boiler and air-to-water heat pump.

With the efficiency of boilers approaching its theoretical maximum, heating engineers will have to focus on a full system approach from now on, says David Pepper.

Remeha has helped Places for People, the UK property-management and development group, reduce its carbon footprint by financing important carbon-reducing projects in the third world. Places for People operates Remeha boilers and contributed over £7000 to the scheme arranged through JP Morgan ClimateCare. The scheme involves offset payments for CO2 emissions to create a near-neutral carbon balance on the installed Remeha boilers.

New replacement boilers could easily be damaged if they are directly interfaced with old heating systems. Peter Gammon takes a look at how to approach such retrofit work.

Skid-mounted prefabricated packaged boiler plant can help make it much easier and quicker to install commercial boilers, as Mark Northcott explains.

Designed for commercial systems, Vaillant’s ecoTEC high-efficiency condensing wall-hung boilers are available with outputs of 44 and 65 kW. Each model has a fully modulating Class 5 low-NOx burner and fan. The 125 mm-diameter flues can run horizontally for 18 m and vertically for 21 m. There is an optional 125 mm stainless-steel facade kit.

Gas-fired boilers and solar -thermal energy work together to meet the heating and hot-water requirements of the recently opened Highland Archive Centre in Inverness. The boilers and solar panels, along with a 300 l stainless-steel water cylinder were all supplied by MHS Boilers for this £10.5 million investment by the Heritage Lottery Fund and The Highland Council.

The Alkon range of aluminium condensing boilers from Clyde Energy Solutions is available as wall-hung and floor-standing models. When operating in condensing mode at 50/30°C, the wall-hung boilers can achieve net efficiencies of up to 107.3% and the floor-standing models 109.1%.

Cast-iron boilers over 30 years’ old at the headquarters of Telford & Wrekin Council in Shropshire have been replaced with high-efficiency gas-fired CP-M180 [180 kW] condensing boilers from Lochinvar. The four boilers were installed in Darby House as part of an overall refurbishment of the premises to provide space heating for 8000 m2 of offices accommodating 400 staff.

Richard Evans explains why waiting for your old boiler system to reach the end of its natural life, is not necessarily the best course of action as it continues to waste energy and money.

Hoval has extended its BioLyt range of wood-pellet biomass boilers with the introduction of a 160 kW version. The range now includes sizes from 50 to 150 kW, offering up to 95% efficiency. Automated controls make them as easy to use as gas or oil boilers.

Vaillant’s extensive range of high-efficiency domestic boilers are all SEDBUK A rated and available in a variety of types to suit all applications.

Modern burners and the technology they employ can play a crucial part in reducing emissions and energy consumption. Mike Baker looks at the latest techniques and products that can make such a big difference in keeping costs and emissions down.

Glow-worm’s Ultracom range of high-efficiency domestic boilers can be concerted to LPG — without the need for a specialist conversion kit. The only tools required are a 2 mm Allen key and an electrician’s screwdriver. Once the boiler has been fully installed, all that is needed to make it ready for LPG is a series of very simple adjustments.

A primary school in Flintshire has halved its annual water-heating costs following the installation of three MHS PB 120 kW boilers supported by an Auron DF direct-flow vacuum-tube solar collector. The installation also includes a Gemini 500 l cylinder. The collectors have been installed on a pitched roof at Sandycroft School in Deeside.

Mark Russell explains how a new scheme to guarantee wood and biomass fuel quality will benefit the whole supply chain — from manufacturer to end user.

Gas-fired condensing boilers and water heaters supplied by Lochinvar for Dragon School, a preparatory school in Oxford, to replace existing equipment will reduce energy consumption and emissions. Two CP-M wall hung boilers and three TurboCharger direct gas-fired water heaters serve a large boarding house, the health centre, main kitchen, dining hall, offices and staff accommodation.

The Stokvis Econoflame range of commercial and industrial gas-fired boilers exceed the requirements of Part L of the Building Regulations. Heat outputs are from 40 kW to 1 MW as atmospheric and pre-mix versions.

Neglecting boilers and controls can quickly lead to systems becoming inefficient and wasting energy. Tony Willis highlights 10 key considerations.

Condensing boilers from Hamworthy Heating are making a valuable contribution to the excellent environment credential’s of the Hive development in northern Manchester. This new hub for creative businesses provides nearly 7500 m2 of cutting-edge office space and workspace. The project has a BREEAM ’Excellent’ rating and a Grade B Energy Performance rating. Its heating requirements are met by three 250 kW Modumax modules installed in vertical format.

Sabien’s M2G boiler load optimiser is to be installed in all suitable buildings in BT’s estate of 7500 buildings, following extensive pilot trials. Jeff Nash, head of sustainable estates with BT, explains, ‘BT has a clear focus to reduce its energy consumption by 80% by 2016 in the UK. To help it achieve this target requires innovative solutions from suppliers to help save energy. Sabien delivered on our expectations and will have a continuing role to play in supporting BT in these plans.’

Mixing conventional and renewable heating technologies can lead to huge carbon savings and a significant boost in energy efficiency, especially in refurbishment projects says Mark Northcott.

Windhager’s BioWIN wood-pellet boiler has been installed in Netherbury Village Hall in Dorset as part of a complete refurbishment and extension of the building. The project was funded by the Community Buildings Programme from the Big Lottery Fund. The 26 kW boiler was installed by Wessex Ecoheat to replace inefficient electric storage heaters.

The gas bill of Carn Brea, the largest community-based leisure centre in Cornwall, has fallen by 30% since the installation of two Hamworthy Dorchester condensing water heaters and a Wessex ModuMax condensing modular boiler. The new plant replaced old and inefficient 2000 kW gas-fired boilers dating back to the 1970s and has also increased reliability and reduced maintenance. The install­ation of the new equipment formed part of a major refurbishment pro­gramme, which was partly funded by Cornwall Council.

Euroheat now offers a range of biomass boilers that can burn logs or pellets and switch between these fuels automatically. The TDA Thermodual range is made by SHT-Austria and available with outputs from 15 to 40 kW. These boilers can be fired with logs or other dry wood manually; when this fuel has been used up, the boiler will automatically switch over to its built-in pellet hopper.

ATAG’s range of energy-efficient, low-emission, condensing boilers include the A Series and Q Series, both of which are SEDBUK A rated. The A series comprises six models with outputs from 4.4 to 31 kW, all of which are solar compatible and SAP Appendix Q listed. Q Series boilers have outputs of up to 60 kW and can be combined in banks using ATAG’s low-profile cascade flue system. The Q Series includes a solar version with a 3-coil integrated solar cylinder.

Fulton has introduced a modulating burner for its steam raising boilers to reduce gas consumption and maintain a more constant steam pressure. Based on the existing on/off burner, the modulating burner uses a burner-management system to operate two modulating actuators; there are no links. One actuator regulates the flow of gas, and the other adjusts air flow to ensure that optimum combustion is maintained across the full firing range.

Keston Boilers has teamed up with the Plumbing Academy in Edenbridge to raise awareness of the need for engineers to have the correct training and qualifications. Keston has supplied and fitted its Airgen air-source heat pump and Q37 and C36 boilers to the academy to demonstrate the benefits such systems can offer when coupled with the correct training. Also on display at the academy is a Solar Duet and a C40 rig with two boilers.

Remeha has given its Quinta Pro range of commercial wall-hung boilers a design facelift and ergonomic redesign. All five boilers in the range are more compact than their predecessors, with dimensions of just 750 mm high, 500 mm wide and 500 mm deep. All boilers modulate, giving outputs of 8 to 30 kW, 8 to 40 kW, 12 to 60 kW 14 to 84 kW and 17 to 107 kW. Higher outputs can be achieved by installing them in modular configurations of up to six boilers.