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The Bollard People, ATG Access announce the imminent launch of a brand new bollard, aimed at the self install and professional access control marketplace this product is set to make waves in the industry.

ATG Access currently has a large share of the global market for rising bollards but has been aware, as the bollard market place matured in Europe that they needed to offer something to the re-seller or installer marketplace. This bollard is it.

This new product will be an off the shelf automatic bollard which allows the installer to utilise his own access control and peripheral accessories.

The reason this will shake up the industry? A bollard designed and manufactured by ATG Access to ISO 9001:2000 with:

• Modular design for serviceability
• Plug and play interface for access control
• Optional Gem GlowTM lighting cap
• High speed service interchange
• Simple installation
• Range of optional accessories
• Safe and reliable light source using Lite SafeTM design.

And all for under £1500 (approx ?1800)* ex works for a bollard only. See the most exciting thing in bollards since the SP1000 stopped a truck, at InterTraffic Amsterdam, Hall 1, stand number 615. Then at IFSEC at the NEC in May.

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Marflow Hydronics has launched the Remote Commissioning concept, an innovative approach designed to simplify the installation and commissioning of fan coil and chilled beam systems. It is able to significantly reduce the cost of installing such systems, while also ensuring they operate at optimum efficiency.

One element of the concept is the use of addressable pressure independent 2-port valves from Belimo, linked to a BMS or local controller. This enables valves to be adjusted remotely from a central PC or other control device without the need for an engineer to enter the ceiling void. Consequently, as well as speeding up commissioning, it also enables quick and easy re-configuration of systems – to accommodate layout changes within the space, for example.

“Most people don’t realise that centralised, remote control, which is widely used in other building services systems, can be applied to chilled and hot water systems,” explained Marflow’s Martin Lowe. “However, the Remote Commissioning approach is about more than new valve technologies. It is designed to give the specifier and installer complete control of the project from start to finish. As such it also incorporates centralised management of valve information and hydronic performance data, advanced pre-fabrication techniques and innovative commissioning processes using Marflow’s single station balancing method.

“At its heart is a recognition that design, installation and commissioning practices in many projects have failed to keep pace with key developments in the industry. These developments include the growth of design and build, skills shortages and the increased use of multi-national labour forces, and the opportunities provided by modern valve technologies.

“As a result, this outdated approach is failing to deliver the best result for the contractor and the end client in many projects,” he continued. “Our approach seeks to rectify the current fragmented approach to system design by creating a single system from one source; a complete process that equals a complete solution,” he added.

The system can be divided into several stages:

Smarter design

Attention to detail from the start of the project and anticipating problems before they occur can optimise the use of site labour, compensate for inherent skills shortages or inexperienced operatives and minimise the risk of installation errors.

Management of information

Many problems arise from poor communications between members of the project team The Marflow system brings all valve information and hydronic performance data into a single, purpose-designed spreadsheet package that is continually updated, with any changes being distributed to all relevant parties.

Innovative installation

Rather than seeing pre-fabrication as simply a way of transferring site work to another location, the Marflow approach takes full advantage of the benefits of pre-fabrication. These include use of innovative valve assemblies, location of all valves for each zone in a single location that also contains information about the system, facilitation of single station balancing (see below), pre-insulation of the manifold box and use of pre-insulated, flexible pipe.

Reducing installation errors

Pre-fabricated assemblies are supplied complete with all components, using labelling and colour coding of connections to ensure correct installation. Full instructions are provided, using diagrams so that language is not an issue.

Single Station Balancing (SSB)

Unlike proportional balancing, which is laborious and time consuming, the SSB method uses a subtraction technique to identify problem valves. This is based on knowing the design flow rates for each individual valve and, therefore, the total flow rate for that fan coil group.

Assuming all the valves are functioning correctly, isolating each valve will have a predictable effect on the total flow rate for the remaining valves. Where an unexpected result is observed it is a simple matter of elimination to quickly identify the valve that causes this, enabling the commissioning engineer to home in on the problem area.

SSB is discussed in more detail in the background notes

Innovative valves and controls

The Remote Commissioning concept takes full advantage of the functionality of Belimo’s pressure independent two port control valve, linked to a BMS fan coil or chilled beam controller, and an actuator that can be set from a remote location to the required position to give design flow rates. This allows only two valve sizes and four valve configurations of flow and return to be used in achieving the design performance.

The BMS controller, housed in its own case, can be wired to the actuator via pluggable leads and sockets within the assembly. A power plug socket is provided for mains power to the controller and to allow switched power to the fan on the fan coil unit. A plugged cable is also provided from the controller to the fan coil unit supplying power and the temperature sensor. The communication cable to the BMS is also a pluggable connection.

In summary, the Marflow system is designed to achieve the following:

• Simplified installation and commissioning by design
• Full exploitation of the benefits offered by the latest valve technologies
• Efficient management and sharing of critical system information
• Regular updating of information to all parties to reflect design changes as the project proceeds
• To enable smaller contractors to realise all of the benefits that are often confined to larger, better-resourced companies through the innovative use of information technology
• Quicker installation with less site-work through advanced pre-fabrication techniques
• Reduced risk of installation errors through innovative colour coding and labelling techniques
• Faster, more accurate commissioning using innovative ‘single station balancing’ methodology
• Use of the latest addressable valve technologies to allow valves to be adjusted from a remote location, without needing to enter the ceiling void.

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Hamilton Litestat?s Digital Mercury lighting control system has been featured in the new premises of Philip Mould Gallery in Dover Street, West London, to provide effective scene setting capabilities that maximise the visual impact of the gallery.

Special wiring accessory plates were also manufactured by Hamiltons for this project using their Henley range in order to provide triple plates combining 13amp sockets with data outlets or 13amp sockets with 5amp lighting circuit outlets. These were finished in a special antique bronze to complement the gallery?s stylish interior and to allow the plates to be recessed, unobtrusively into the stone skirting.

Philip Mould is a world renowned art dealer that regularly appears on the television programme ?Antiques Roadshow?. When he decided to move from his first floor gallery in Dover Street to a 3000 square foot ground floor gallery, on the opposite side of the road, he commissioned Charles Marsden-Smedley, to design his new gallery. This is the third gallery project that Charles has undertaken for this client in 18 years. Specialising in the design of museums, galleries and exhibitions, as well as top-end lighting designs, he has been responsible for many prestigious projects in Windsor Castle, Queen?s Gallery in Buckingham Palace, Tower of London, and the new Central Hall in The National Maritime Museum, to name but a few.

?The brief for this project was to produce a gallery with a twenty year lifespan that not only allowed Philip Mould to conduct his business effectively?, said Charles, ?but at the same time would clearly demonstrate how paintings of any period can look good in a contemporary interior. As the building is located in London?s most important art dealing area, a really impressive frontage was required to draw the eye away from the other galleries in the road.?

To satisfy the client?s brief Charles put together a professional team to prepare a tender for a main contractor. This included M & E consultants, Wilson and Partners with whom Charles had worked on a number of other occasions. It was part of their role to manage M&E services including the air conditioning, fire detection, electrical installation and security system.

Having stripped out the area back to its bare shell, Charles set about sub-dividing the space to create separate rooms with a very contemporary feel which included; a front gallery, side gallery with reception desk, showing room with picture rack areas and pocket doors to create a private meeting area/dining room and a long gallery which is top lit with natural daylight. There are also three top lit offices, a room for Philip Mould, a Central Office, along with a library/office and kitchen and toilet facilities.

All the air-conditioning equipment, fire detection, security and lighting were concealed above newly created suspended ceilings. In the front and side galleries these ceilings stop 1m short of the walls to allow the hanging walls to extend up to the existing slab. This was done for two reasons, firstly it allows for the largest full-length portraits to be hung and also it concealed the picture lighting to avoid any distraction when looking at the paintings.

By using the medium of glass to create one large shop window, Charles was able to make the gallery highly visible from the road. The interior layout, with its clean, contemporary shapes, along with the careful use of lighting, made the gallery come to life, particularly after sunset.

Commenting on the layout Charles said ?It has been designed to maximise views of the paintings, creating the longest possible vistas and good sight lines. At night there is a view from the street right through to a painting on the back wall of the Central Office and another of the two ends of the Long Gallery creating lots of interest and a powerful focal point.?

The intricate layout of the gallery required an effective lighting scheme to create the sense of space and drama that would attract the buyer?s eye and achieve the client?s original vision. To do this, track-mounted spotlights or recessed gimbals by Remote Lighting were used to create the desired picture lighting. The use of a hand-held remote controller allows for the individual luminaires to be focused, dimmed and turned on and off. The advantage of the Remote Lighting fittings is that they allow maximum flexibility for the constantly changing hangs and they avoid the use of step ladders to adjust the lighting each time a picture is changed.

Overall control of the lighting was achieved with Hamilton?s Digital Mercury lighting control system. This system has overall control of the gallery?s ambient lighting and the ability to override the Remote Lighting so that the track spotlights and gimbals could all be dimmed during night hours, or turned off when not required.

For ease of use the system has featured a global control unit at the main entrance to the gallery so that all of the lighting can be raised, lowered, or turned-off by the touch of the appropriate button. Digital Mercury has also included a security mode which is operated on a timer mechanism. This automatically lowers the lighting to a pre-set level, at a set time, and then repeats this process some hours later to further reduce the amount of power usage when the gallery is unoccupied. In the event of a power cut, Digital Mercury has been designed to automatically reset itself, once the power source is reinstated, thus avoiding the loss of the set programmes

In the event of an alarm activating the security system has been linked with Hamilton?s lighting control so that it automatically brings the lighting up to full power to enable the security cameras to track any intruders.

To allow for easy presentations to invited groups, the gallery has incorporated a projector and screen which are concealed within the ceiling void when not in use. These can be lowered and operated by using a remote device. This system has also been interfaced with Digital Mercury so that the lighting can be easily controlled to suit the presenter?s requirements.

This lighting control system features digital technology to mix the various channels of light, in order to create the required scenes and lux levels. By using intelligent dimming, the user is able to alter the stored lighting scenes, using the remote control, thereby making it quicker and cheaper to reconfigure the system. This is a major advantage for the gallery as once the system is installed it doesn?t need a specialist engineer to alter the settings as the gallery staff can reprogram it themselves to suit their own requirements. Once a scene is programmed into the system, Digital Mercury remembers the setting and then recalls it each time the appropriate controller is used. To make Digital Mercury even more user friendly Hamilton Litestat has included inbuilt fade rates to enhance the system?s capabilities.

?Our client is delighted with the overall effect achieved for the gallery?, said Charles. Since it opened at the end of last year it has become the talk of the art-dealing West End. The use of Hamilton?s lighting control system provided a very flexible solution which has played its part in enhancing the visual appeal of the gallery. Its practical design makes it very user-friendly, so that it will be able to keep pace with this client?s constantly changing requirements.?

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Environmental technology manufacturer Mitsubishi Electric has just taken its Green Gateway Initiative to the policy and planning decision makers within central and local government at a special environmental conference.

Sales Director Deane Flint presented the initiative to the Energy & Environment 2008 Conference in Church House Conference Centre in Westminster on the 17th June. The event was chaired by John Vidal, Environment Editor of the Guardian and saw presentations from manufacturers and industry bodies in addition to speeches from both Gregory Baker MP, the Shadow Minister for Climate Change and the Environment and Phil Woolas MP, Minister for the Environment.

“It was interesting being on the podium in front of over 250 delegates from all sections of industry and government,” explained Deane Flint. “I had been asked to give a perspective from the construction industry’s point of view and highlighted not only what can be done on the built and to-be-built environment, but also where government can help more to provide clarity and definition.

“What is encouraging is that there is a level of consensus that we need to start acting together and a lot of interest from industry and policy makers in what is a significant challenge as well as a great opportunity for the construction industry.”

For more details on the Green Gateway Initiative visit call Mitsubishi Electric on 01707 282880 or visit www.greengatewayinitiative.co.uk.

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Precise controllability, more reliability and less energy ? new energy efficient motors in fans deliver direct benefits to the HEVAC industry. Paul Kilburn, Vent-Axia?s Group Sales and Marketing Director explains what this means for ventilation

The Government, in its national quest to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, has sharpened its focus on the energy performance of buildings. In the drive for better air quality, greater energy efficiency and the reduction of carbon emissions, the latest editions of Building Regulations Documents F&L are now beginning to take effect.

Building Regulations F & L have signalled a big shift towards energy efficient buildings and have set the standard for the maximum carbon dioxide emissions for whole buildings. This performance-based approach offers designers the flexibility to choose suitable solutions which allow for adequate means of ventilation for people in the building, and which are energy efficient, cost-effective and practical. However, the revisions to Part L have raised performance standards to a level that has provided a strong incentive to designers to consider low carbon systems, not least the development of the SAP Appendix Q process for ventilation, which affects postively the role of mechanical ventilation with or without heat recovery and with DC motors on Dwelling Emission Rates.

In the context of increasingly demanding environmental legislation and rising awareness of the need to reduce energy consumption, energy efficient motors look set to expand their share of the market for industrial, commercial and residential ventilation.

There are two main types of electric motors: direct current (DC) and alternating current (AC). Compared to AC motors, DC motors are faster, more efficient and offer more accurate speed and position control. Moreover, while AC motors produce an audible 60 Hz ?hum,? DC motors are much quieter. DC motors are also usually smaller than AC motors, providing manufacturers with the opportunity to design applications that are smaller with different styles and looks.

Generally, DC motors draw less current (about two to four times less) and therefore consume less power compared to an AC motor with equal output power. DC motors also work better for situations where speed needs to be controlled as they have a more stable and continuous current. DC motors are finding their way into new products and applications that previously used AC motors exclusively.

Vent-Axia has been instrumental in using LoWatt DC technology leading, the market for several years. Vent-Axia believes in practical action and has been spearheading the campaign to deliver more affordable long life ventilation. Vent-Axia?s residential and commercial product ranges are all available with DC technology, improving performance, reducing running costs, extending fan life whilst ensuring reliability.

However, Vent-Axia is now using a new revolutionary motor, called ?EC? that offer the efficiency and speed control benefits of DC, with built in AC to DC conversion and speed control.

EC motors are a better, more efficient motor at every speed but it doesn’t stop there. Utilising EC motors in fan systems offers many benefits; for example, EC fans can use as little as a third of the energy of industry standard AC fans. EC fans offer easy, quiet and efficient speed control and all the electronics are built into the fan making other components more efficient. The greater reliability and longer life of DC and EC motors has the further advantage of extending the life of insulating materials, lubricants and bearings, thereby cutting the cost and inconvenience of return service visits.

EC fans save energy and increase the longevity of the products, whilst reducing lifetime costs, thereby adding value. They significantly lower noise and generate less heat than conventional AC and DC motors. The EC motor?s compact design makes it easy to install in any position, which opens up this motor to a wide range of possible applications.

As technologies become more advanced and cost-effective, we should expect to see more innovative low energy fan systems introduced to the market featuring different designs as well as improved performance. Across Europe, energy efficient fan systems could save almost 200 billion KWh a year of electricity.

And with indoor environmental control accounting for almost half our national energy consumption, it?s clear that the HEVAC industries can make a significant contribution to achieving national targets for reduced carbon emissions with LoWatt DC and EC technology*.

Simply using fans with high efficiency could save industries in Europe as much as 2.6 billion Euros a year in energy costs. By optimising the motor, impeller and the fan housing, 60% less energy is needed than with comparable AC motors.

Thinking outside the box is somewhat of a Vent-Axia forte and Low Watt energy efficient DC and EC fans are an example of the mindset that has created a range of solutions to meet the changing requirements of the industry. Vent-Axia is constantly pushing the HEVAC boundaries of conventional thinking. Vent-Axia?s innovative new on-demand ventilation system, Sentinel utilises the latest EC motor technology to respond to the exact ventilation requirements of a room at any one time, thus drawing a low specific fan power, designed to meet modern building management control requirements. In addition, our range of Heat Recovery and Central Mechanical Extract products share the same benefits.

This technology is also infinitely speed controllable and offers increased energy savings across the complete speed control range when compared to conventional inverter drive solutions. The result from the Sentinel is a higher efficiency, reduction in noise, greater accurate controllability, better speed control drawing less power and as a result giving a better overall system performance.

With the new regulations now taking effect, choosing a LoWatt DC or EC fan that adheres to these requirements can be difficult and sometimes confusing. Taking this into account, Vent-Axia has developed its on-line fan selection programme, which can aid this difficult process. The on-line fan selection allows designers and specifiers to choose the right fan for the right application. To take advantage of Vent-Axia?s on-line fan selection process or for information on Vent-Axia?s range of energy efficient solutions visit www.vent-axia.com

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Creating the right balance between energy efficient ventilation systems and a healthy working environment- Paul Kilburn, Vent-Axia?s Group Sales and Marketing Director discusses:

Commercial Air Management, whether it is heating, cooling or ventilation, is about providing a comfortable healthy working environment for all. Decent indoor air quality is crucial to the successful performance of any building.

An effective ventilation system is seen as a key factor in reducing the oppressive atmosphere created by hot, stuffy working conditions. The introduction of fresh air and the subsequent removal of airborne contaminants greatly contribute towards a more productive workforce and are an essential part of providing a comfortable working environment.

In many commercial buildings, particularly older ones, ventilation is achieved either by the occupants opening windows or from natural air infiltration percolating through gaps in the building fabric. This can result in excessive ventilation rates that increase energy consumption and cause discomfort to occupants due to cold draughts. Too much ventilation is wasteful of energy, but too little ventilation is detrimental to the health and well being of both the occupants as well as to the building fabric.

Clearly, in an energy-efficient building, keeping ventilation and leakage to a minimum level required is desirable. The way to achieve adequate ventilation with minimal waste of heat is to implement a well thought-out ventilation strategy that provides a proper balance between energy efficiency and indoor air quality. To implement such a strategy it is important for designers to take into consideration the technological advances that have been made in ventilation and to utilise such systems to help them achieve a workable balance.

The fundamentally new approach to the Building Regulations is necessitating designers to learn how to meet whole-building carbon targets (Part L2A) ? supported by the freely available SBEM (Simplified Building Energy Model) and the various commercial software packages to calculate the energy used by a building.

Heat recovery ventilation is designed for recovering heat that would otherwise be lost using normal extract ventilation. HRV products can be either single room units or wholebuilding systems.

Stale air is extracted from the room or the whole building; while at the same time air from outside is brought into the room/buildings offering a balanced intake/extract system. The two air paths flow through a heat exchanger where a significant amount of heat from the extracted air is transferred to the incoming air and delivered back into the room or buildings.

With many commercial properties being built today, the principle is to ?build tight ? ventilate right?, minimising uncontrolled air leakage through the building envelope and providing an adequate ventilation rate via a controlled system. Reducing air leakage is essential with new build properties being tightly built, optimising ventilation and heat recovery are the key to providing a comfortable environment.

Whilst the emphasis is on providing filtered, fresher air and the displacement/extraction of stale air and allergens to keep employees healthy, there is also a clear focus on energy saving too. In the quest for energy savings consistent with proper air quality and with the ability to recover as much as 95% of heat from a ventilated room, heat recovery systems provide a real means of achieving both the air flow requirements for human comfort in Part F and the energy efficiency requirements of Part L with full controllability.

Heat recovery provides a great basis to start to build an air management strategy and designers have to employ the latest advances in technology to meet the Building Regulations. There are a number of specifically designed products that assist designers to meet and exceed these requirements.

Advances in ventilation technology include key factors as balancing carbon dioxide levels in a school classroom, providing adequate ventilation of toilet and shower blocks, cooling of offices in summer, efficiently heating meeting rooms in winter and the management of emissions from specialist areas such as laboratories, fire exits and industrial kitchens.

Air handling units provide designers with the option to control indoor air quality by room, by floor or for the entire building, whether in an office, classroom, factory, hospital or leisure centre. Air handling units are a common way of creating a good working environment and Vent-Axia?s new modular Viking FP and XP Air Handling range is specifically designed for commercial applications and provide a selection of cooling, heating, filtration, heat recovery and humidifier modules, allowing building designers increased flexibility in specifying solutions to meet their design and ventilation needs while balancing the requirements of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive and Building Regulations Parts F and L.

Advances in technology have helped property managers analyse buildings` energy consumption and develop strategies to manage energy more efficiently resulting in lower total operating costs.

Another example of this is Vent-Axia?s Sentinel demand ventilation system, which helps to protect the environment with energy efficient on-demand ventilation for commercial buildings in line with new legislation. This system utilises the latest control and EC/DC motor technology to respond to the exact ventilation requirements of a room at any one time – supplying or extracting when and to the level required, therefore using only the energy that is necessary. This innovative method overcomes many of the issues encountered with a traditional fixed volume ventilation system that is either on or off irrespective of the number of people in the room, thus risking over ventilation of the room and wasting valuable money and energy.

Triggered by people entering/leaving a room or by the atmospheric conditions in the area, automatic sensors and controllers manage the Sentinel according to maximum demand requirements of the building zone. The system then controls airflow and pressure to maintain the indoor air quality within preset limits, including balancing carbon dioxide levels, temperature, humidity and air quality itself. The Sentinel system is the ideal solution for designers; its innovative technology not only saves energy but the system creates and maintains a healthy working environment.

Significant advances have been made by Vent-Axia in the use of LoWatt DC motor and heat recovery technology, which according to their usage can save as much as half of the electrical power consumption. The Sentinel uses the latest EC/DC motor technology, drawing a low specific fan power, designed to meet modern building management control requirements. By controlling the atmospheric levels in the room, carbon dioxide levels can be kept within the prescribed limits, required by Building Bulletin 101 ? a must for school classrooms and learning environments.

Today’s health and environmentally aware design philosophies, it is critical to the success of a commercial building to provide indoor air quality suitable for a productive working environment whilst using the minimum amount of energy possible, in line with the requirements of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, Part L and indeed Part F of the Building Regulations.

New regulations and legislation are challenging Property Managers to bring their buildings up to the required standard that are now being demanded, however, by considering such technological advances and using systems that already exceed these new rules, building engineers can provide healthy environments which use the minimum amount of energy.

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Combined Heat and Power (CHP) is high efficiency technology strongly backed by the UK Government, which has set a target of 10,000 MW of installed CHP capacity by 2010.

Figures show that every 1 MW of CHP operating in the UK helps to reduce carbon emissions by between 600 and 800 tonnes per year. This saves over 4 million tonnes of carbon annually, representing one of the largest single carbon reduction measures in the Government’s Climate Change Programme.

Mitsubishi Electric has produced an industry guide discussing the developing technologies which make this process a viable alternative for the future. CHP is a very energy efficient way to produce power and heat, which can use either fossil fuels or renewable sources. These systems can convert up to 90% of the energy in the fuel into electrical power and heat.

“CHP has the potential to make a major contribution to the UK’s carbon emission reduction campaign. It is the simultaneous production of usable heat and electricity in a single process. The heat generated from the production of electricity can be delivered in a number of ways, including warm water, or through steam,” said Commercial Director Donald Daw.

“Combined heat and power is not a new idea, having been in use for well over 50 years. There are however, a number of recent technologies that are developing to help produce simultaneous heat and electricity.”

New developing technologies include using biomass or fuel cells as an alternative to fossil fuels. Generally, the capital costs for CHP will be higher than for conventional plant, but it does offer long-term savings.

Systems can be run on fossil fuels such as gas or diesel, but they can also be converted to use renewable energy sources such as biogas from waste. Technologies currently in most widespread use are steam turbines, gas turbines and diesel-driven turbines.

In its simplest form, a CHP system employs a gas turbine, an engine or a steam turbine to drive an alternator and the resulting electricity can be used either wholly or partially on-site. The heat produced during power generation is recovered, usually in a heat recovery boiler and can be used to raise steam for a number of industrial processes, to provide hot water for space heating, or for cooling where appropriate equipment has been installed.

“As with all equipment, maintenance of CHP systems is very important as it will help ensure efficient operation and reduce down-time. Specialist knowledge is required and often the suppliers of CHP will also contract to carry out regular maintenance, on the basis of contracted performance levels,” said Mr Daw.

In order for CHP to be viable, it must be used in domestic and commercial buildings which are energy efficient, and which utilise other energy efficient technologies such as heat pump boilers to provide top-up heat during times of peak demand.

Mitsubishi Electric’s educational CPD accredited industry guides aim to assist employees and customers on how to successfully work together to increase their knowledge of the latest technology, legislation and markets – how to find environmentally sustainable solutions. Download a free copy of this and other industry information guides from www.mitsubishielectric.co.uk/aircon under the Tools & Resources section, or contact Mitsubishi Electric on 01707 282880.

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Mapei have recently launched MapeGrip Plus, a new ceramic tile and mosaic adhesive for walls and the latest product to continue the success of their ready-mixed paste adhesive range.

Fully water-resistant and brilliant white, MapeGrip Plus is ideal for both domestic and commercial bathrooms, kitchens and showers.

With D2T classification in compliance with European Standards EN 12004, MapeGrip Plus is non-slip with high initial grab and high bond strength.

MapeGrip Plus can be used to bond ceramic tiles and mosaics onto plaster, plasterboard, plywood, paint, sand;cement render, tilebacker boards and existing tile finishes.

Current products in the Mapei paste adhesive range include MapeStik Ready Mixed Adhesive, MapeGrip D1 High Grab Showerproof Adhesive, MapeGrip D2 Fully Water-resistant Adhesive and Utlramastic III Super White Wall & Floor Adhesive.

MapeGrip Plus is available in 15kg buckets.

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Eaton MEM panelboards and distribution boards were specified for the electrical refurbishment programme in one of the best-known buildings in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. The programme included replacing more than 30 MEM fused combination switch (FCS) units, installed more than 30 years ago and still working well, by two of the company?s latest MCCB panelboards.

York House Twickenham is a Grade II listed building that houses the Municipal Offices for the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. The elegant building, dating back to the 17th Century, houses the Mayor?s Parlour, the Council Room, two public halls and committee rooms. Meanwhile the Civic Centre next door, opened in 1990, houses most of the Council Staff.

The programme to upgrade the electrical distribution system in York House involved replacing more than 30 FCS units in the main switchroom and a similar number of distribution boards around the building. These have been replaced by modern MCCB panelboards and MCB distribution boards respectively. At the same time old paper-insulated lead-sheathed sub-mains cables, that had been part of the original 1920s electrical installation, were replaced by modern cables.

The existing fused combination switches were all MEM units, installed in the early 1970s. They have been replaced by two of the latest Eaton MEM panelboards and Series G moulded-case circuit-breakers. MCCBs require little or no maintenance, trip safely to protect a circuit and can be reset safely and easily by staff with limited electrical expertise, explains Paul Cook, Facilities Manager for the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. The panelboards are designed around the Series G MCCBs. The panelboards and devices are independently certified by KEMA to the international switchgear standard IEC60947-2.

The main panelboard is an 18-way unit with a 250A MCCB incomer. Most of the outgoing circuits have 63A three-phase MCCBs but there is also a 160A MCCB supplying a new kitchen area and a 200A device feeding the existing switchgear. There is 25-30% spare capacity.

The second panelboard is a smaller, six-way, essential services panel feeding computers, emergency lighting, the Council Chamber and one of the large public halls. These can be fed by a newly-refurbished 80kVA diesel generator to ensure that important Council meetings can proceed in the event of a sustained power failure.

New Memshield 2 distribution boards have been used throughout. These are mainly 12-way Type B (three-phase) units and replace two or three old single-phase MCB distribution boards in each location. Single-phase distribution had tended to result in unbalanced loading across the phases says Paul Cook. While the use of MCBs for final circuit protection was forward-thinking in the 1970s, the old distribution boards did not have a main switch for isolation whereas the new Memshield 2 boards all have incoming isolators.

RCBO (combined MCB and residual current) protection is provided on each outgoing power circuit, not only for personal safety but also to reduce the fire risk in the Grade II listed building. 30mA devices are used where personal protection against electric shock is paramount and 100mA devices where fire is the principal risk.

The Grade II listing meant that work had to be carried out with a minimum of structural change. Existing ducts and cable routes had to be utilised wherever possible. This called for weekend working to allow power to be switched off while old cables were withdrawn and new cables drawn in.

A third panelboard has been installed in the neighbouring Civic Centre where the requirements of modern computer installations have outstripped the original electrical provision, necessitated reinforcement of the electricity supply. The EDF substation has been upgraded from 500kVA to 1MVA and the communications centre has an 80kVA UPS system and a new 250kVA emergency generator.

The electrical upgrade for York House and the Civic Centre has been designed and managed by its own Facilities Manager, Paul Cook, and the installation work has been carried out by EDF Contracting.

?If the new Eaton MEM equipment serves as well as the old MEM switchgear, that has been in use for more than 30 years, we will be more than happy? says Paul Cook. He chose Eaton MEM panelboards and distribution boards because they are solid and reliable and offer the range of features which were needed. They are also designed with the needs of the installer in mind.

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