West Somerset Community College reduces environmental impact with Danfoss Heat Pumps

(24/03/2009)

The Skills and Enterprise Centre at The West Somerset Community College will provide young people in the area with the opportunity to gain high quality vocational training in a wide variety of industries such as building, carpentry, motor vehicle maintenance, hair and beauty, child care and hospitality. The new Centre is reaping the rewards of renewable energy from heat pumps, supplied and installed by Danfoss Heat Pumps.

The College was able to take advantage of funding through the Low Carbon Buildings Programme (LCBP), for which Danfoss Heat Pumps is an approved supplier to British Gas. Funding was also secured through the Learning and Skills Council and the European Regional Development Fund.

Heat pumps from Danfoss UK were specified by Somerset County Council for the Skills and Enterprise Centre, which is situated at the centre of The West Somerset Community College. Installing the heat pumps is part of a £5.4m investment and will provide a renewable source of heating and hot water for the state-of-the-art building.

Danfoss Heat Pumps supplied three 16kW ground source heat pumps with geothermal boreholes which ran underneath land owned by the college. The company worked closely with main contractor ISG Pearce to ensure a smooth running and successful operation.

Somerset County Council also specified photovoltaic solar tiles for the roof of the workshop building to help generate renewable electricity to power the heat pump, which can help achieve carbon neutrality for a building. High quality insulation was also installed to enhance thermal performance and improve energy efficiency.

Barbara O’Keefe, Business Manager at The West Somerset Community College, comments: “We are committed to reducing our environmental impact by utilising renewable energy technologies where possible, and have previously installed ground source heat pumps in other buildings. As a result, we were very keen to introduce renewable energy as the main heating source for this building in order to create a building that was highly energy efficient. We are delighted with the result - the centre is well heated and comfortable for the students and teachers to work in.”

Fitting the heat pumps was part of creating a self-sufficient building capable of providing its own energy from underneath the ground. This has created an excellent example for students and a comfortable environment to work in, with heat supplied in some areas via underfloor heating.

Sally Moore, Director of Danfoss Heat Pumps, explains: “Heat pumps are four times as efficient as a conventional gas boiler – so the College should expect that their running costs will be drastically reduced. Many organisations view heat pumps as investing in the future of their buildings, giving them a low maintenance, sustainable supply of heating that improves their energy rating and is therefore much lower cost to run!”

Although the initial cost of a heat pump is higher than for conventional heating, there is help available for public sector and charitable organisations, such as the Low Carbon Buildings Programme (LCPB) phase 2. The centre took the route of applying for a grant under this scheme and received up to 50 per cent towards the total installation costs.

Danfoss Heat Pumps has extensive experience in the design, supply and installation of heat pump systems for schools, community buildings, developers, local authorities, housing associations and self builders.

Related categories:  Environmental technologies for offices and commercial   Ground and air source heating   Solar power and photovoltaics