Whether you are installing a heat network into a new build development, optimising an existing heat network or certifying the quality of your heat network, FairHeat has the experience, knowledge and solutions to help you.
Standard Specification
FairHeat offer a series of Standard Specification documents that aim to guide design, provide compliance to industry standards, define performance and de-risk the delivery of heat network schemes. These documents cover three distinct areas of a heat network’s lifecycle: Energy Strategy, Design and Delivery.
All of the Supplements are based on client specific decisions regarding the technology, resident experience and performance requirements, the impacts of which are discussed during a series of technical workshops allowing informed and aligned decisions.
Decisions made at Energy Strategy stage have a significant influence on the risk profile of the development over its lifetime. These decisions should be Developer led and scheme specific, with risk assessments used to make informed choices. An Energy Strategy’s primary aim is to demonstrate compliance with the relevant regulations and policies (regional and local) concerning sustainability and environmental impacts. Low temperature heat networks represent a proven, cost effective and future-proofed infrastructure on which to build a heat decarbonisation strategy at both a site and regional level. The FairHeat Energy Strategy Supplement provides a framework for undertaking Energy Strategies utilising Low Temperature Heat Networks that standardises the dwelling and building elements of the design. It then sets out a clear, risk-based decision process on how to design the central generation plant to deliver compliance whilst de-risking its technical complexity and lifecycle costs.
Heat networks in the UK have been subject to issues such as over sizing, poor control, high heat losses, overheating and poor resident experiences. These issues result in both excessive CAPEX and OPEX for the heat network asset.
In contrast to this, high performance heat networks are achievable, sustainable, and proven to work. To do this requires an appropriate design that has its foundations based on a set of defined and measurable performance targets, which is the primary aim of FairHeat’s industry leading Heat Networks Design Supplement.
FairHeat’s Design Supplement is used by over 20 housing developers and influences the design and specification of over 20,000 homes on heat networks every year. It works alongside, rather than supersede or replace, the ADE CIBSE Heat Networks Code of Practice, CP1 (2020). Implementation of the document has demonstrated a proven track record of resulting in improved resident outcomes and network performance.
Whilst the Energy Strategy & Design Supplements are focussed on design and specification, FairHeat have also developed a significant number of processes, tools and specifications covering the construction, commissioning and testing of heat networks. The Contractor Supplement encapsulates this work and allows clients to make these requirements a contractual obligation.
Delivering heat networks is a complicated process involving multiple stakeholders. The aim of the Contractor Supplement is to support these stakeholders throughout the design, construction, commissioning and handover phases. The aim is also to ensure that the specification is met, performance outcomes are achieved, and both the capital and lifetime operating costs of heat networks are minimised. Additionally, the Contractor Supplement provides a framework for demonstrating compliance with the Installation, Commissioning and Testing aspects of CP1 (2020).
The document is built around the following Key Principles:
- Provide transparency of process to drive trust
- Ensure continuity of performance specification between handovers
- Identify and mitigate risks throughout build, not at adoption
- Use independent testing to verify performance
- Ensure minimum evidence always provided
- Upskill industry supply chain
When a housing association purchases a portion of properties on a larger development as part of a package deal or as a Section 106 agreement, it can be challenging to influence design to meet the housing association Employer Requirements as in many cases the design has already been carried out.
There can still be significant design risk in adopting these, with these risks manifesting in potential cost of heat increases, increased operational costs for the housing association, potential heat delivery risks, or increased risk to resident comfort.
The S106 Supplement will act as an Employer Requirements document for the housing association, highlighting fundamental design and specification approaches that should be addressed by the main developer and their design consultant, with a prioritisation system in place based on potential risk to key areas.
Not every Heat Network is the same, and the nuances of each need to be considered. It is vital that when specifying requirements for the Heat Network, not all of the CP12020 requirements will be applicable.
We will work together with you to discuss and discover what requirements are needed and why, and where possible which requirements are not applicable through a Statement of Applicability. This will be particularly relevant at the early stage feasibility studies.
Within the complexity of Heat Networks, the Statement of Applicability enables all parties to agree the correct parameters from the outset of a project. This level of transparency really helps to reduce ambiguities across all stages of a “new build” Heat Network. More specifically, across the Feasibility, Design, Installation/Construction, Commissioning stages. This helps to set a clear pathway forward for the project involving multiple parties and supply chains.
Setting the requirements for each stage helps to provide clarity, structure and organisation to the project with multiple parties needing a clear understanding of all matters before continuing to the next stage. Without a focused brief, it is unlikely that the feasibility stage will provide the optimal heat network and low-carbon technology solutions that are necessary to underpin the remainder of the development process.
We are passionate about performance, and the work that’s done in the early part of the project will help to set a firm pathway ahead.
Key performance targets across CP12020 will cover:
- Economic viability
- Energy Centre Efficiency
- Network Heat Losses
- Environmental performance
- Customer experience
Our engineering team have the breadth and depth of experience to establish the right performance metrics upfront, saving time, resources and ultimately creates an optimal experience for end users.
