Alternative Heat and Power Technologies

Redevelopment of the site and the construction of two substantial new buildings have provided the ideal opportunity to choose a Low or Zero Carbon energy solution for the entire site; including the office building which will be retained and leased as high quality office accommodation. Clearly all possible measures for reducing fabric heat and ventilation losses should be incorporated first since the buildings are likely to be in-situ for many years and potentially decades. The potential for improving the levels of energy efficiency therefore in the future, certainly in terms of the building fabric is likely to be limited.

The best solution is one that will give the best balance of energy, fuel cost and carbon footprint savings.

The strategy is to:

1. Ensure we minimise our reliance on the grid and imported fuels by reducing our overall energy use and intensity.
2. Make good use of natural energy sources (natural daylight and ventilation)
3. Ensure sophisticated control of the energy that is required (e.g. building energy management system, motion sensor lighting, temperature controls etc)
4. Produce clean green energy on site to lower our environmental impact and carbon footprint.

Several measures have been considered and modelled to assess their respective energy benefits relative to the base case. For the purposes of this study, the base case is assumed to be new high efficiency gas boilers with a seasonal efficiency of 91%. It is assumed that this would be the minimum level of efficiency achieved with the heating system if low and zero carbon alternatives were ignored.

• Solar Thermal to meet a proportion of the overall hot water demand
• Solar Photovoltaics to meet a proportion of the electricity load
• Air Source Heat Pumps to provide hot water and space heating
• Ground Source Heat Pumps to provide hot water and space heating
• Communal Biomass Boiler to provide hot water and space heating
• Small scale Wind Power meet a proportion of the electricity load
• Communal Combined Heat and Power to provide hot water and space heating

These options have been evaluated in terms of the predicted:

• Installation costs
• Annual servicing and operating costs
• Benefits to tenants in terms of thermal comfort and fuel bills
• Carbon dioxide savings
• General feasibility

Sustain Ltd were commissioned to carry out an Options Appraisal with the aim of determining the optimum solution for providing heat and power. This study has been part-funded by a Project Development grant from the Community Sustainable Energy Programme (CSEP) on behalf of the Big Lottery.

The recommendations contained in the report are proposals and will be further evaluated to confirm the cost benefit analysis to ensure we comply with the necessary regulations as well working within the tight constraints of the project budget.

Max Fordham Consulting Engineers are an integral part of the Project Delivery Team, they are award-winning designers of energy-efficient systems for building services and the wider environment.  Their many awards include the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in Sustainable Development.  They have over forty years of experience and are working closely with LTS (Architects), Sustain Ltd and the community to ensure the complex delivers the right energy saving solution which we can all be proud off.

In addition to the review performed by Sustain Ltd, a small team from the community has been researching the economic viability of alternative energy sources and suitability based on complexity and usage.  The team will be engaged throughout the design and construction phases and will be responsible for managing the site energy usage once the complex is up and running. The team consists of the following members; Dinesh Bhudia, Praful Patel, Jaz Rabadia, Sameer Savani, and Pankaj Vekaria.

How can you help?

Implementing energy saving alternatives is only one stage of the process. We need to ensure that we continously monitor and manage our energy usage where approriate and bring in efficiencies. Our energy usage can be further improved as well as help the environment with your help;

• Walk to temple
• Use a bicycle
• Share a car
• Switch off equipment when not in use
• Switch off lights when not in use