Air conditioning being solely for cooling is a common misconception, as virtually all of today's air conditioning systems feature heat pumps which can heat as well as cool to provide total year round comfort.
This heating facility is not achieved through the use of conventional, power hungry electric heating elements, but instead through the use of highly energy efficient reverse cycle (heat pump) technology. In simple terms Heat Pumps provide effective and controllable heating, whilst consuming up to 80% less power than any other form of electrical heating.
Most of our commercial air conditioning and domestic air conditioning systems have the option of heat pump technology. All systems that include heat pumps can both heat and cool which results in less initial investment and greater simplicity for operation and maintenance. Unlike fossil fuel based systems, heat pumps extract available heat from the outside air resulting in Heat pumps offering efficiency gains of 3:1 and higher, compared to electrical heating.
Showing posts with label Heat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Heat. Show all posts
Wednesday, 4 May 2011
Friday, 8 April 2011
Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI)
Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI)
Introduction of RHI
The introduction of the RHI will be phased, the first Phase
providing long-term tariff support for renewable heat technologies
in the non-domestic sector and not, as we had expected, for the
domestic sector. Air source heat pumps will not be eligible at
the start of the RHI, but are expected to be included in Phase
2, commencing from October 2012.
Why are air source heat pumps not eligible? (Phase 1)
DECC* claim more cost/benefit analysis is required, but we believe
they were:
- Influenced by the results of the recent, flawed EST trials
- Attempting to determine the actual ‘renewable heat’ element vs.
the proportion of electrical or fossil fuel input
- Misunderstanding information provided by industry.
Whilst the first Phase will only benefit the non-domestic sector. The
Government is introducing Renewable Heat Premium Payments
for the domestic sector.
A fund of approximately £15 million has been allocated to enable
payments to be made to households that install renewable heating
systems. These payments will include air source heat pumps.
The proposed premium payment for ASHPs is £850.
Eligibility
MCS certification (which is known to be one of the main criteria for
small/medium sized plants up to and including 45kW).
Further criteria will be announced in May 2011, two months ahead
of the anticipated parliamentary approval for the scheme.
Objectives of the Premium Payments Scheme: .
1.) To start July 2011
2.) To support up to 25,000 Renewable Heat installations in the
domestic sector
3.) To provide a fair spread of technologies across all regions of
Great Britain
4.) To develop a monitoring process to allow stakeholders to
understand and get the most out of renewable incentives
5.) Key focus on off-gas grid properties
6.) Provide clear eligibility criteria, including well-insulated homes
based on EPC**.
Under the RHI, it is intended that non-domestic installations that
meet eligibility criteria and were installed and commissioned on or
after 15th July 2009, will be able to claim RHI tariffs.
Important dates:
March 2011: RHI discussions began
May 2011: Renewable Heat Premium Payments criteria
announced
July 2011: Premium Payment Scheme starts (non-domestic
installations commissioned on or after 15th July 2009 to qualify).
October 2012: RHI Phase 2 starts.
Introduction of RHI
The introduction of the RHI will be phased, the first Phase
providing long-term tariff support for renewable heat technologies
in the non-domestic sector and not, as we had expected, for the
domestic sector. Air source heat pumps will not be eligible at
the start of the RHI, but are expected to be included in Phase
2, commencing from October 2012.
Why are air source heat pumps not eligible? (Phase 1)
DECC* claim more cost/benefit analysis is required, but we believe
they were:
- Influenced by the results of the recent, flawed EST trials
- Attempting to determine the actual ‘renewable heat’ element vs.
the proportion of electrical or fossil fuel input
- Misunderstanding information provided by industry.
Whilst the first Phase will only benefit the non-domestic sector. The
Government is introducing Renewable Heat Premium Payments
for the domestic sector.
A fund of approximately £15 million has been allocated to enable
payments to be made to households that install renewable heating
systems. These payments will include air source heat pumps.
The proposed premium payment for ASHPs is £850.
Eligibility
MCS certification (which is known to be one of the main criteria for
small/medium sized plants up to and including 45kW).
Further criteria will be announced in May 2011, two months ahead
of the anticipated parliamentary approval for the scheme.
Objectives of the Premium Payments Scheme: .
1.) To start July 2011
2.) To support up to 25,000 Renewable Heat installations in the
domestic sector
3.) To provide a fair spread of technologies across all regions of
Great Britain
4.) To develop a monitoring process to allow stakeholders to
understand and get the most out of renewable incentives
5.) Key focus on off-gas grid properties
6.) Provide clear eligibility criteria, including well-insulated homes
based on EPC**.
Under the RHI, it is intended that non-domestic installations that
meet eligibility criteria and were installed and commissioned on or
after 15th July 2009, will be able to claim RHI tariffs.
Important dates:
March 2011: RHI discussions began
May 2011: Renewable Heat Premium Payments criteria
announced
July 2011: Premium Payment Scheme starts (non-domestic
installations commissioned on or after 15th July 2009 to qualify).
October 2012: RHI Phase 2 starts.
Wednesday, 30 March 2011
Reliable air conditioning is the key the to loyal end users
According to Tony Nielsen Product & Marketing Manager at FG Eurofred, it doesn't matter how efficient an air conditioning system is, "if it isn't reliable, all other considerations go out of the window".
"An end user or installer will have many criteria on the agenda when choosing an air con system which will certainly include capital cost; efficiency; aesthetic design; noise levels; physical size, etc. But, if we get right back to basics, the two most important aspects for customer satisfaction are reliability and service," says Nielsen, who argues that these two aspects are the cornerstones on which great supplier/customer relationships are built.
"Reliability is one of the most important selection criteria for specifiers and installers. The last thing they want is to be forever revisiting a job to put right inadequacies in the equipment. They want to be able to install the equipment, commission it - and move on to the next job. They want to fit and forget.
"End-users will have made significant investment in the whole installation and they want to be assured that their new air con system is going to be trouble free for many years to come because it is engineered to be reliable.
"Nowadays the end user is far more knowledgeable and, thanks to the internet, is doing a lot more research before committing to buying anything and that includes heating and ventilation products.
"Installers judge on problems. Just imagine you have a car that keeps breaking down. When you come to replace it you are not going to go with that make again. You will shop around, listen to owners with good experiences of other brands and try something else. It is exactly the same with air conditioning so it is of the utmost importance that as manufacturers we supply products and systems which are 100 per cent reliable and fit for purpose," says Nielsen.
Manufacturers now have to offer more choice than ever before to satisfy consumers' demands: as a result of this trend end users can now choose between floor standing, wall, ceiling or window mounted, ceiling cassette or discreet ducted air conditioning systems as opposed to the old days (not so long ago) when they just took what they were given. Nowadays, engineering is at its highest level of reliability with on-board computer technology enhancing performance output.
"Air conditioning is not a luxury in business these days, it has become a necessity: a unit breaking down can have a catastrophic effect on a business or organisation. More and more offices are suffering from high heat loads generated by IT and telecommunications equipment. Reliable air conditioners can improve working conditions by providing a flow of cool air throughout the space improving working conditions of the staff and safeguarding valuable equipment from overheating. It is yet another example of where reliability is absolutely essential," adds Nielsen.
Specifiers and buyers will be looking for environmentally friendly refrigerant and state-of- the-art inverter technology for superb energy efficient performance. Manufacturers are being kept on their toes, with constant research & development programmes to devise ways to manufacture smaller, quieter, more powerful units with inherent reliability.
"These are very tough trading times for everybody. At the end of the day, the last thing anyone needs is unreliable product: it has to returns very good value for money and be extremely reliable," says Nielsen.
"Reliability goes hand in hand with after-sales support and service. It is important that any national service department is comprised of engineers with in depth experience and extensive knowledge of their product," says Nielsen. "They are there to provide support to installer partners with either advice over the phone or hands-on assistance. The combination of product knowledge and expertise means whatever the circumstances, it will be a fast fix.
"Only by listening and responding to customers' wishes and providing that vital component - reliability - can a manufacturer succeed in the present climate and beyond," says Nielsen.
"An end user or installer will have many criteria on the agenda when choosing an air con system which will certainly include capital cost; efficiency; aesthetic design; noise levels; physical size, etc. But, if we get right back to basics, the two most important aspects for customer satisfaction are reliability and service," says Nielsen, who argues that these two aspects are the cornerstones on which great supplier/customer relationships are built.
"Reliability is one of the most important selection criteria for specifiers and installers. The last thing they want is to be forever revisiting a job to put right inadequacies in the equipment. They want to be able to install the equipment, commission it - and move on to the next job. They want to fit and forget.
"End-users will have made significant investment in the whole installation and they want to be assured that their new air con system is going to be trouble free for many years to come because it is engineered to be reliable.
"Nowadays the end user is far more knowledgeable and, thanks to the internet, is doing a lot more research before committing to buying anything and that includes heating and ventilation products.
"Installers judge on problems. Just imagine you have a car that keeps breaking down. When you come to replace it you are not going to go with that make again. You will shop around, listen to owners with good experiences of other brands and try something else. It is exactly the same with air conditioning so it is of the utmost importance that as manufacturers we supply products and systems which are 100 per cent reliable and fit for purpose," says Nielsen.
Manufacturers now have to offer more choice than ever before to satisfy consumers' demands: as a result of this trend end users can now choose between floor standing, wall, ceiling or window mounted, ceiling cassette or discreet ducted air conditioning systems as opposed to the old days (not so long ago) when they just took what they were given. Nowadays, engineering is at its highest level of reliability with on-board computer technology enhancing performance output.
"Air conditioning is not a luxury in business these days, it has become a necessity: a unit breaking down can have a catastrophic effect on a business or organisation. More and more offices are suffering from high heat loads generated by IT and telecommunications equipment. Reliable air conditioners can improve working conditions by providing a flow of cool air throughout the space improving working conditions of the staff and safeguarding valuable equipment from overheating. It is yet another example of where reliability is absolutely essential," adds Nielsen.
Specifiers and buyers will be looking for environmentally friendly refrigerant and state-of- the-art inverter technology for superb energy efficient performance. Manufacturers are being kept on their toes, with constant research & development programmes to devise ways to manufacture smaller, quieter, more powerful units with inherent reliability.
"These are very tough trading times for everybody. At the end of the day, the last thing anyone needs is unreliable product: it has to returns very good value for money and be extremely reliable," says Nielsen.
"Reliability goes hand in hand with after-sales support and service. It is important that any national service department is comprised of engineers with in depth experience and extensive knowledge of their product," says Nielsen. "They are there to provide support to installer partners with either advice over the phone or hands-on assistance. The combination of product knowledge and expertise means whatever the circumstances, it will be a fast fix.
"Only by listening and responding to customers' wishes and providing that vital component - reliability - can a manufacturer succeed in the present climate and beyond," says Nielsen.
Friday, 18 March 2011
Heat pumps are bringing benefits to our Commercial buildings
With the excitement being created by rapidly growing application of heat pumps in the residential sector to replace conventional central heating boilers, it is often mistakenly thought that this is a recent innovation, this is not the case; heat pumps have been with us for over 50 years, indeed they are a dominant feature in the commercial buildings sector.
What we are seeing in the residential sector is the emergence of air or ground source-to-water heat pumps, which can satisfy space heating and domestic hot water requirements utilising conventional heat emitters - radiators, fan coil units or underfloor heating and hot water storage cylinders. Heat Pumps being part renewable, part electric technology, achieve far greater operating efficiencies than all electric or fossil fuel (gas or oil), combustion based boilers. Heat pumps have been recognised as being capable of helping us reach our carbon emission reduction targets not to mention greatly reducing our household heating bills.
In the commercial sector the pre-eminent heat pump is the air source air-to-air type, which can satisfy the space heating and cooling requirements, however, the sanitary hot water services are still mainly provided by secondary systems such as all electric or gas/oil fired boilers.
Pre 1990's most commercial buildings were cooled by air or water-cooled chillers circulating chilled water to wall mounted or ducted fan coil units and heated by conventional 'wet' central heating systems, either utilising the same fan coil units or radiators. In the mid 1980's, Daikin Industries developed an ingenious new heat pump technology called Variable Refrigerant Volume or VRV. This revolutionised the commercial air conditioning market because, for the first time there was a single system that could efficiently cool and heat commercial buildings, reducing dependence on energy guzzling boilers, which would now only be needed, in smaller capacities, for providing hot water.
What's more, VRV could offer simultaneous cooling and heating from the same system by re-distributing waste or rejected heat that would otherwise discharged to atmosphere! VRV offered many other benefits apart from superior energy efficiency, it was a modular concept so proved much more flexible in terms of the space it occupied and in programming the installation works.
Daikin Air Heat Pumps
Electrical loads were reduced and the speed with which VRV was able to respond to demand was far quicker than any chilled water/secondary heating system.
No surprise then that modular VRV (and later derivatives known as VRF) overtook central chiller systems in terms of popularity in the commercial sector.
However, certain commercial applications remain better suited to chiller systems, for example in large areas with a single temperature set-point or where response times are less critical, spaces with larger cooling loads or very high ceilings.
So has chiller development learned any lessons from the success of VRV? - Heat pump chillers have also been available for some years but at a premium that hindered their success. Such chillers could only operate in cooling or heating. In heating mode, there were limitations and in certain conditions a secondary heating source would still be required to satisfy the heating demand. This has been largely resolved with the more recent introduction of inverter technology (which VRV/VRF had adopted years earlier). Inverter technology enables the heat pump chiller's compressor/s to be boosted, in more extreme conditions, with a frequency increase that exactly follows the required thermal load, resulting in a wider operating range and reducing or eliminating the need for secondary heating.
Heat recovery, heat pump chillers manage to get a little closer to VRV/VRF capabilities because, the chillers offer cooling and heating as before - but - in cooling mode, heat absorbed from the conditioned space and from the compressors, instead of being rejected to atmosphere, is recovered and directed to a second heat exchanger. The recovered heat energy can then be used in areas calling for heating or passed to a thermal storage facility for hot water. In this way chillers can offer simultaneous heating and cooling, a common requirement in commercial buildings, at remarkably high efficiencies.
To manage the heating and cooling requirements of our commercial buildings it's not so much a question of why install heat pumps rather than other technology? More the fact that no other systems offer anything like equivalent energy efficiency and cost effectiveness. A fact that we in the industry trust will be acknowledged in the government's soon to be announced Renewable Heat Incentive.
What we are seeing in the residential sector is the emergence of air or ground source-to-water heat pumps, which can satisfy space heating and domestic hot water requirements utilising conventional heat emitters - radiators, fan coil units or underfloor heating and hot water storage cylinders. Heat Pumps being part renewable, part electric technology, achieve far greater operating efficiencies than all electric or fossil fuel (gas or oil), combustion based boilers. Heat pumps have been recognised as being capable of helping us reach our carbon emission reduction targets not to mention greatly reducing our household heating bills.
In the commercial sector the pre-eminent heat pump is the air source air-to-air type, which can satisfy the space heating and cooling requirements, however, the sanitary hot water services are still mainly provided by secondary systems such as all electric or gas/oil fired boilers.
Pre 1990's most commercial buildings were cooled by air or water-cooled chillers circulating chilled water to wall mounted or ducted fan coil units and heated by conventional 'wet' central heating systems, either utilising the same fan coil units or radiators. In the mid 1980's, Daikin Industries developed an ingenious new heat pump technology called Variable Refrigerant Volume or VRV. This revolutionised the commercial air conditioning market because, for the first time there was a single system that could efficiently cool and heat commercial buildings, reducing dependence on energy guzzling boilers, which would now only be needed, in smaller capacities, for providing hot water.
What's more, VRV could offer simultaneous cooling and heating from the same system by re-distributing waste or rejected heat that would otherwise discharged to atmosphere! VRV offered many other benefits apart from superior energy efficiency, it was a modular concept so proved much more flexible in terms of the space it occupied and in programming the installation works.
Daikin Air Heat Pumps
Electrical loads were reduced and the speed with which VRV was able to respond to demand was far quicker than any chilled water/secondary heating system.
No surprise then that modular VRV (and later derivatives known as VRF) overtook central chiller systems in terms of popularity in the commercial sector.
However, certain commercial applications remain better suited to chiller systems, for example in large areas with a single temperature set-point or where response times are less critical, spaces with larger cooling loads or very high ceilings.
So has chiller development learned any lessons from the success of VRV? - Heat pump chillers have also been available for some years but at a premium that hindered their success. Such chillers could only operate in cooling or heating. In heating mode, there were limitations and in certain conditions a secondary heating source would still be required to satisfy the heating demand. This has been largely resolved with the more recent introduction of inverter technology (which VRV/VRF had adopted years earlier). Inverter technology enables the heat pump chiller's compressor/s to be boosted, in more extreme conditions, with a frequency increase that exactly follows the required thermal load, resulting in a wider operating range and reducing or eliminating the need for secondary heating.
Heat recovery, heat pump chillers manage to get a little closer to VRV/VRF capabilities because, the chillers offer cooling and heating as before - but - in cooling mode, heat absorbed from the conditioned space and from the compressors, instead of being rejected to atmosphere, is recovered and directed to a second heat exchanger. The recovered heat energy can then be used in areas calling for heating or passed to a thermal storage facility for hot water. In this way chillers can offer simultaneous heating and cooling, a common requirement in commercial buildings, at remarkably high efficiencies.
To manage the heating and cooling requirements of our commercial buildings it's not so much a question of why install heat pumps rather than other technology? More the fact that no other systems offer anything like equivalent energy efficiency and cost effectiveness. A fact that we in the industry trust will be acknowledged in the government's soon to be announced Renewable Heat Incentive.
Tuesday, 22 February 2011
Heat Screen Air Curtain RM125-15-D/Y-A (9kw/30000Btu) 1500mm
The Heat Screen air curtain is easy to install, only requires a single phase power supply and has an integral control system. This makes it ideally suited to small shop entrances, cafés, restaurants, hotels or other public entrances where an overdoor heater is not sufficient but a three-phase air curtain is too expensive.
Key Product Features:
High performance
Economic to run
Three lengths in the range
Single phase power 240V
Remote control operation (see picture)
Fast acting heating elements
Safety overheat protection
3 minute run-on to remove residual heat
One year warranty
Product Technical Data:
Dimensions: L1500mm x H221mm x D183mm
Weight: 22.9kg
Fan power: 300W
Heating power: 9kW
Current: 41A (fused isolator)
Voltage: 230V / 50Hz
Air velocity: 6-7m³/h
Air flow: 1,670m³/h
Noise: 65dB
Product code: RM125-15-D/Y-A
Key Product Features:
High performance
Economic to run
Three lengths in the range
Single phase power 240V
Remote control operation (see picture)
Fast acting heating elements
Safety overheat protection
3 minute run-on to remove residual heat
One year warranty
Product Technical Data:
Dimensions: L1500mm x H221mm x D183mm
Weight: 22.9kg
Fan power: 300W
Heating power: 9kW
Current: 41A (fused isolator)
Voltage: 230V / 50Hz
Air velocity: 6-7m³/h
Air flow: 1,670m³/h
Noise: 65dB
Product code: RM125-15-D/Y-A
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