Community sports centre installs specialist renewable heating technology
A community sports centre in Stockport is believed to be among the first in the country to install specialist renewable heating technology in its club house, after it was awarded £70,000 in grants.
Burnage Rugby Football Club, in Heaton Mersey, will have heated changing rooms for the first time after installing an Ecodan® PUHZ 14kW air to water monobloc heat pump, and the hot water for showers is now provided by an Ecodan CAHV 43kW air to water monobloc heat pump. Both air source heat pumps will be partly powered by photovoltaic cells from the Low Carbon Energy Company, which have been fitted to the roof.
As well as an increase in comfort inside the clubhouse in the last six weeks, the club is already reporting a dramatic drop in fuel bills.
Club member Stuart Hogg explained: “We had an electric hot air system before and it wasn’t very effective. Our bills had reached £15,000 a year, and they were only going in one direction.
"We looked at the options and although they did require some capital investment, we knew they would prove their worth in the long-term so we applied for grants.
“We were looking for a solution that reduced our carbon footprint, but our primary objective was to reduce our bills because we want to make our club as affordable as possible to the 10,000 people who come through the doors each year.”
The Ecodan CAHV system, which has been approved by the Microgeneration Certification Scheme, uses advanced air source heat pump technology to provide a building’s heating and hot water. As the Ecodan is a factory-sealed unit, installation is straightforward without the need for any refrigeration work on site. Built-in weather compensation enables better control and increases the efficiency to deliver year-round high performance.
Funding for the project comprised £50,000 from the government’s Community Sustainable Energy Programme and £20,000 from the Veolia Environment Trust. The club has also borrowed £20,000 from the Triodos bank, an organisation which lends money to projects which offer positive social, environmental and cultural change.
Specialist installers from Temperature Control Limited spent six weeks at the site, fitting work in around the club’s busy fixture list. Now the venue, which celebrates its 75th anniversary this year, has indoor facilities to match the rest of its 25-acre site which includes the north west’s only all-weather rugby pitch, two grass rugby pitches and a nine hole golf course.
Steve Grundy, Deputy Managing Director of Temperature Control Limited, said: “We offered the Ecodan units as they are ideally suited to large scale heating applications such as this, and relatively easy to retrofit.
“We gained the client’s confidence in our design and technical abilities and also provided accurate running costs and payback calculations.
“We also ensured that the system we fitted works for the current set-up and if the club extends its facilities in the future.”
He added: “The high levels of efficiency Mitsubishi Electric technology provides will help Burnage Rugby Football Club achieve its objectives of lowering fuel bills and reducing its carbon footprint.”
Ends
Note to editor:
Founded in 1921, Mitsubishi Electric is a global, market leading, environmental technologies manufacturer, producing an advanced range of heating, air conditioning and ventilation equipment. The company realises that ensuring the right solutions are selected for each individual building, requires collaboration by all involved. Mitsubishi Electric has therefore changed the way it does business to ensure engagement with all involved in delivering sustainable buildings so that together, we can make a world of difference.
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