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Wilo UK has launched the incredible new Wilo-Stratos PICO high efficiency small circulator pump into the UK marketplace. The latest in the family of high efficiency ‘A’ rated small circulators, the PICO is right at the top of the class when it comes to energy efficiency savings with an average annual electricity consumption of just 46.5 kWh for a typical home. According to standard Europump Commitment measuring procedures, when it comes to electricity consumption, PICO is more efficient than any other A class pump you can buy.

A large percentage of the initial cost of the pump will be paid off in the first year of operation and by the end of the second year, it will have paid for itself and be giving back savings for the rest of its working life. There’s not many items in a home you can say that about!

As you would expect from a Wilo product it offers all the other benefits that you would want from a high efficiency small circulator, including reliable starting and maximum convenience due to its high starting torque and its in-built de-blocking software. It’s remarkably simple to set up and quick to install and features a display with a consumption reading along with a thermal insulation shell as standard

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Installing a pump has never been so easy as with the PICO. Its compact design allows this little high efficiency pump to fit into any set up you care to choose. And on top of that there’s its clever power connection mechanism. Until now you’ve had to connect the ends of the power cables to the terminal box but with the Wilo Connector that comes with the Wilo-Stratos PICO, you simply connect the cable to the patented plug connection, plug this into the corresponding connection on the pump and you’re done! In the blink of an eye!

Then what? Well it runs by itself. Just one press of a button sees the PICO activate its automatic bleeding device giving maximum performance and minimum noise. The most important thing is that the setting is correct and this is simple because this small pump has the same large display you have on the big brother – the Wilo-Stratos. This means the pump can be operated and read with ease from the front and all the setting parameters can be seen at a glance. The big display is also a big advantage for the homeowner as it allows them to read the current power consumption and total electricity consumption at any time. In effect this is like having your own electricity meter, so you can keep a wary eye on just how energy efficient the PICO is!

Dave Spragg is Wilo’s UK Domestic Product Manager: “Obviously I’ve seen this coming for several months and couldn’t wait for it to arrive here in the UK! We showed it for the first time at Installer Live 2009 a few weeks ago and it got an incredibly warm reception there. It’s great to have a pump that is ahead of all the competition in energy savings terms and it’s excellent to have a family of high efficiency ‘A’ rated pumps that we can offer to our customers. This is a little beauty and installers will love it – not just because its so energy efficient but because it makes their lives so much easier! It’s been designed to be the best of the ‘A’ rated pumps available but it’s also been designed for ease of installation and in such a way as you can prove its operating as it should do. It’s an installers dream and we have high hopes for PICO here in the UK.”

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Four new consumer units from Eaton are designed to help specifiers and installers meet the requirements of the 17th Edition of the Wiring Regulations for increased RCD protection. They are the first offerings in a package to extend the Memera 2000 AD range of consumer units. They offer a dual-RCD, variable split-load configuration, providing residual current protection of all outgoing circuits, and a generous number of outgoing ways to meet modern installation needs.

The new Wiring Regulations (BS 7671), published on January 1 and coming into force at the end of June, call for much more extensive provision of residual current protection in domestic and non-domestic premises. The practicalities of meeting the requirements for protection of cables buried in the plaster surface of walls or enclosed within partition walls, will mean that most circuits will require 30mA RCD protection. It is also a requirement that all 13A and other socket-outlets up to 20A, for use by “ordinary persons”, should normally be protected by a 30mA RCD. In bathrooms for example, RCD protection is also required on all circuits, including lighting.

Whilst compliance with the new Regulations can be achieved with conventional isolator- controlled single or split-load consumer units in combination with individual circuit RCBO’s, a more cost effective solution may be found with a dual-RCD consumer unit.

The latest Memera 2000 AD consumer units include 8-way, 12-way and 15-way dual-RCD split-load units controlled by a 100A isolator feeding two separate variable split busbar sections each protected by a 30mA RCD. The fourth new unit is a 12-way dual-RCD variant which provides an additional, third, 3-way busbar section fed directly from the main isolator. The three unprotected ways can be used to supply non group RCD protected circuits and can be equipped with individual circuit MCB’s or, more likely, RCBO’s.

All four new consumer units use miniature circuit-breakers (MCBs) for final sub-circuit protection and feature Eaton’s variable split-load design, which allows on-site selection of the number of ways allocated to each main section. The new dual-RCD isolator-controlled units offer high-sensitivity protection of all circuits

Splitting the load over 2 or more sections of the consumer unit will reduce the instances of unwanted tripping and take account of other risks and inconvenience associated with such events. It would be prudent to separate the power circuits and lighting circuits in an area such as a bathroom in order to avoid danger to users in the event of an earth fault on a shower circuit also taking the bathroom lighting off at the same time.

Other consumer units are available which provide 100mA time-delayed RCD protection on the incoming device, which can be effectively co-ordinated with downstream RCD’s or RCBO’s.

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Shackerley (Holdings) Group Limited is seeking to inspire and inform architects with its new Sureclad brochure which features an impressive ‘Gallery’ of the company’s ceramic granite ventilated facade projects across the UK and Eire. The 64-page brochure clearly demonstrates the enormous scope for ceramic granite as a facade material and reveals how Sureclad facades have been used to stunning effect to create landmark buildings in the education, healthcare, retail, residential, general commercial and hotel sectors.

The ‘Gallery’ includes some of the UK’s largest and most demanding ceramic granite ventilated cladding projects such as the Paragon in Brentford, the Sage HQ in Newcastle upon Tyne and the high profile Media City development in Salford, still under construction. Of interest to many specifiers will be the testimonials provided by leading architects who are specifying Sureclad ceramic granite as a contemporary and totally natural and logical alternative to hewn stone in its original quarried state.

The new brochure also reveals a number of new additions to the Sureclad range. The very latest ceramic granite facade options include innovative ‘metallic’ finishes which shimmer in the sunlight, ‘travertine’ panels with a naturalistic texture and appearance, and new highly polished black panels in a 1m2 format. Whilst most of the new brochure is dedicated to ceramic granite, Shackerley has recently extended its range of Sureclad facade materials and these new options are also featured. New large format engineered stone panels measuring up to 3060x1230mm and in 20, 30 and 40mm thicknesses are now offered in a wide range of styles, alongside a collection of large format single skin terracotta panels.

Like Shackerley’s ceramic granite, all the engineered stone and terracotta panels are prefabricated in Lancashire at Shackerley’s ISO9001 quality certified production facility and are then installed in conjunction with a Sureclad facade support system. A patented undercut anchor process is employed to enable the panels to be fixed mechanically (to comply with BS 5385 Part 2) in an invisible, safe and stress free manner.

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Air conditioning provided by ‘commission-less’ Matrix 2 underfloor 4 pipe fan coil units, manufactured by Ability Projects Ltd, is an important component of the building services for the new Cabot House, Bristol HQ of the Environment Agency. Already ‘flagged up’ as the greenest complex of its type in the UK, the building has received the highest ever design and procurement stage BREEAM rating of 85.06% and relocating to energy efficient Cabot House should save the Agency £180,000 per year in operating and energy costs.

A total of 124 Matrix 2 underfloor fan coil units, fed with chilled water from a ground source heat pump (boosted by a chiller) and gas fired boilers, receive tempered fresh air at 100C and provide 200kW of free cooling. All fan coil units provide top access, have self balancing EC/DC motors, are pre fitted with BACNET controls and self balancing PICC valves and meet NR35 requirements environment at 30 Pascals resistance. Nominal unit cooling and heating capacities are just under 4.5kW. All units are also delivered to site with water flow rates, air volume and MAC addresses down loaded into their terminal controller strategy during manufacture – facilities that are unique to Matrix 2 models.

When installed, Matrix 2 units sense their surroundings and adjust automatically to provide and maintain the factory preset air volume and water flow design values. Furthermore, after a fit out, any value within the control strategy can be altered and transmitted to either a single fan coil, a group of fan coils, or the entire building system can be re-set in seconds through the software alone.

Once installed, each fan coil establishes the correct air volume as a total and along each individual duct, irrespective of the external static pressure of the ductwork system. Subtle variations between ductwork runs do not matter because the fans self compensate.

When installed, the fan coil control valve modulates between 0% (closed) and 100%, enabling the water flow rate to be adjusted through the software or the BMS, without the need for access to the fan coil itself. Flow rates are set with an accuracy of +/-2% on the maximum flow rate, and often even closer. The commissioning process therefore, becomes one of mere ‘checking’ rather than ‘setting’.

As well as banishing volume control dampers, Matrix 2 also removes the need for flow regulating devices, double regulating valves or similar, in the hydraulic system. It also helps limit energy consumption, enabling air volumes to be gradually reduced or increased in parallel with thermal load and reacts to an ‘unoccupied/occupied room’ situation by relaxing cooling and heating set points.

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Crittall windows are literally hitting the heights in downtown New York where products from the company’s range of steel windows have been specified for one of the city’s latest ‘hip’ hotels.

The eleven storey high Crosby Street Hotel feature’s 86 luxury bedrooms and suites and is owned by the Firmdale Group, the company responsible for the build of the prestigious London Soho Hotel where Crittall Corporate W20 and Corporate 2000 profiles were used throughout. It was the success of this project in 2004 that led Firmdale to instruct the US architects, Stonehill & Taylor to again specify the range for this latest venture.

Crittall windows matched the requirements on two main counts – the aesthetic value of the extremely narrow sightlines, which enable large amounts of glazing to be used and the thermal performance.

Firmdale wanted the New York surroundings to be reflected in the design of the new hotel . The final design incorporates a dramatic rectilinear facade of brick framing 54 large New York loft style floor to ceiling height steel windows, which allow the maximum amount of natural daylight to flood the rooms.

The dark green coloured Crittall profiles use an unusual 24 pane configuration with a central pivotal four pane opening light, double glazed and infilled with special gas. This configuration helps to create an extremely low U value and effect excellent energy efficiency, belying the size of the windows.

Using the Crittall profiles was the only way to fulfil the client’s requirements for a visually striking structure which makes maximum use of glazing as a design medium without detracting from the stone architecture.

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Weatherite Building Services undertook a comprehensive assessment of the heating/cooling systems at the VT Flagship facility in Faslane, Argyll, Scotland, aimed at helping the site improve energy efficiency and reduce costs.

VT Flagship has a partnering agreement with the Royal Navy that enables it to market the Royal Navy’s training capabilities to military and maritime customers and to industry as a whole. The group also supports the Royal Navy with training, technology, training support, facilities management and construction services

VT Flagship awarded Weatherite a contact to assess and report on its heating/cooling and controls equipment at its Faslane site with a view to repairing and rebalancing and improving its energy efficiency. Weatherite’s expertise and proven track record in this area gave the client confidence and the company was also able to offer a very competitive price.

Martin Burnett who runs the Weatherite Building Services Scotland Office commented: “As the facility is a secure site, we had to operate under restricted security access. The client is very pleased with the results of our assessment and we hope to work with VT Flagship in the near future to implement some of our recommendations.“

WBS has over 37 years experience in all aspects of building service including heating, ventilation, air conditioning, commercial kitchen ventilation/extraction, data centre/IT cooling, boiler house refurbishment/replacement and all aspects of M & E services. WBS offers its customers a complete building services solution-from one single source including total project management and full design, installation and commissioning activities.

WBS is part of the £40m Weatherite Group, one of the UK’s leading HVAC and Building Services organisations.

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IT network solutions specialist KMH Group needed a supply partner with the power to perform when it was called upon to streamline the re-charging of staff communication handsets in Marks and Spencer stores throughout the UK.

KMH is working with the major retailer on upgrading networks at a number of its stores and, as part of this work, identified the need to improve facilities for staff to charge their in-store wireless handsets, used for internal communication and stock control.

By collaborating with cable management specialist Marshall-Tufflex’s Specials Department, KMH solved the dilemma, coming up with Universal Charging Racks – a wall-mounted system that delivers power to a large number of chargers. The customised system not only allows M&S staff to quickly and easily locate handsets in the charging rack, it also eradicates unsightly and potentially hazardous wires and leads.

The racks are constructed from Marshall-Tufflex’s impact resistant PVC-U Maxi-Trunking system. They are built in multiples of ten docking units to cater for the varying number of handsets in different stores. For example, a 100 handset unit has recently been installed in Marks and Spencer’s flagship store at Marble Arch, London.

Peter Hiscox, Director, KMH Group said: “Our policy is to work with UK manufacturers we can trust to do a quality job. We wanted a company we could work closely with from the concept stage so that modifications could be made as required. Marshall-Tufflex has performed well and we have had no issues with delivery or timescales, even though timing is critical as installation rolls out on a store by store basis.

“The partnership is working well, which is why Marshall Tufflex is now supplying us with bespoke ceiling application data outlet boxes for Marks and Spencer’s wireless network system. Two thousand units have already been produced and roll-out is on-going.”

KMH Group is only one of three IT designers for Marks and Spencer, and the only one handling IT security systems. The company ensures its position at the forefront of network development by specialising in bespoke solutions and maintaining quality across its products and services.

Marshall Tufflex’s Specials Department is a one-stop shop for all cable management solutions. The experienced team offers the required level of service from concept designs to the building of pre-wired customised solutions.

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Brac Roofing’s three party deal with Solar Cube Ltd and IPS (UK) Ltd will enable it to provide unique, supply and installation solutions using 'Rubberfuse' TPO single ply membrane with integrated, energy producing photovoltaic panels.

Managing Director Adam Clark said “Commercial buildings have enormous potential value in terms of their ability to contribute towards environmental sustainability. Until now large expanses of roofs are rarely exploited as sites for Solar energy generation, but interest is rapidly gaining momentum. The Brac, Solar Cube and IPS package offers specifiers a turnkey solution to roofing and renewable energy requirements through a single supplier who handles supply, install and commissioning”.

Whether a new or replacement membrane is required, a Rubberfuse solution can be installed which incorporates photovoltaic panels from day one or at a later date. Once installed, systems are fully supported by insurance backed warranty.

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A new initiative to help commercial property owners ensure their buildings comply with the phase out of R22 and HCFC as part of the Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) Directive has been launched by Weatherite Building Services Limited.

Whilst the ODS Directive, which aims to completely eliminate harmful CFC’s, came into force nearly ten years ago, it reaches a crucially important milestone at the end of 2009, when virgin R22 refrigerant will cease to become available.

Traditionally, R22 has been one of the UK’s most popular refrigerants for air conditioning systems and chillers but from January 2010, only recycled or reclaimed material (which will inevitably be more expensive) will be available. It is widely believed that although the implications of the directive have been known for many years, UK industry has so far taken little action, with an estimated figure of over 50% of all cooling installations still dependent on HCFC’s such as R22, to enable them to continue operating.

Mike Turton, Sales Director of Weatherite Building Services commented, “There seems to have been a lot of talk in the industry about the withdrawal of HCFC’s, but not a lot of action from end users, and that is the reason we’ve decided to actively promote our range of services. Where we differ from other companies is in our ability to objectively view the whole system and provide clients with a report that outlines the most cost effective way to ensure compliance”.

Weatherite offers property owners, Commercial Building Managers and end users an initial site assessment and a report completely free of charge. The assessment is carried out by experienced engineers and the results of the system analysis will be supported by Weatherite's recommendations for the most economical solution to ensure compliance for each client.

Mike Turton added, “For many customers, the age and condition of their existing equipment makes the replacement of R22 with non-ozone depleting alternatives a viable proposition. However, we are finding that some equipment is not economical for simple refrigerant replacement and in situations such as this we are able to propose direct replacement equipment or systems that will be significantly more efficient to operate, reducing client’s energy costs substantially. And in many government grants and tax allowances are also available to partially fund new equipment purchased.”

Whilst virgin R22 will cease to be available from January 2010, recycled product may be used until 31/12/2014. However, early signs of demand outstripping supply has seen prices for virgin R22 increase by around 40% during 2008, with further increases anticipated throughout 2009 for the remaining available stocks.

“In the not too distant future, everyone is going to have to replace HCFC’s in their system,” said Mike Turton,” at Weatherite, we believe that if clients are pro-active now, we can provide them with the optimum cooling solution that will save them money both now and for many years to come.”

WBS has over 37 years experience in all aspects of building service including heating, ventilation, air conditioning, commercial kitchen ventilation/extraction, data centre/IT cooling, boiler house refurbishment/replacement and all aspects of M & E services. WBS offers its customers a complete building services solution-from one single source including total project management and full design, installation and commissioning activities.

WBS is part of the £40m Weatherite Group, one of the UK’s leading HVAC and Building Services organisations.

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Hep2O® the premier flexible push-fit plumbing system from Wavin has introduced a new Radiator Outlet Cover, designed to help with the problem of inward and outward air leakage behind radiators.

The innovative Hep2O® HX113 Radiator Outlet Cover is designed to fit securely around a 10mm pipe and is easily installed behind the radiator to cover the area where pipes enter the wall – a place commonly associated with heat loss.

When the pipes are installed into the wall, it is often extremely difficult to seal the gaps left around the pipes post installation. This allows heat to escape and air ingress into the walls results in greater energy consumption, higher fuel bills and unnecessary damage to the environment. The HX113 Radiator Outlet Cover is the perfect solution, stopping leakages by ensuring that the vulnerable area is sealed effectively.

Not only does the Hep2O® Radiator Outlet Cover contribute significantly to achieving a successful air tightness test as required by the April 2006 revision of the Part L Building Regulation, but the new range also ensures the home is heated in an energy efficient and cost effective way.

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