Buderus upgrades MW Kellogg heating system and reduces gas consumption

(24/05/2010)

Following on from Carbon Trust Survey at M W Kellogg Ltd (MWKL) Greenford, a complete review of the Building Energy Management System (BEMS), which included the heating and lighting requirements, was carried out at its 9 storey, 178,500 square feet HQ and worldwide operations centre in Greenford, Middlesex to look at reducing the sites carbon footprint.

Now, over 18 months on from the initial assessment and following project work carried out to install high efficiency light fittings and the latest Buderus condensing boiler technology and controls, MWKL has been awarded the Carbon Trust Standard and during January 2010 reported healthy savings of around 35% on its operational fuel costs in direct comparison to January 2009.

Building Officer for MWKL, Les Hill, explains: “When we first calculated the carbon footprint of Kellogg Tower in Greenford, there was no question that upgrading our heating system was going to be one of the most important improvements we could make to reduce CO2 emissions from the site and make significant cost savings on gas and electricity operational costs.

“Working closely with Buderus, we chose to replace our inefficient old boilers with a highly efficient 1.9MW system comprising of three Buderus SB 615 640kW stainless steel condensing models together with EMS controls. Since then I have been monitoring monthly energy usage and fuel costs closely enough to see a really positive impact in a short space of time.

“According to our statistics, within 4 months of installation we have already experienced a reduced gas consumption of over 584,000kWh and calculated an estimated saving of 108 tonnes of CO2. Comparison of fuel usage figures for 2008 against 2009 show savings of 43% for the month of October, 46% for November and 26% for December. Whilst the December figure may initially look less impressive than the previous two months, temperatures were much colder during this month in 2009 compared to the previous year, making the 26% saving an extremely good result. As a result, with a similar weather and gas usage profile to 2009 we are expecting the system hardware CAPEX return on investment to be within 19 months, which is seriously good news!”

With proven figures like these available from MWKL, Buderus Commercial Technical Manager, Andrew Wooding, is eager to spread the word about the reality of cost and CO2 savings to be had by other businesses as the result of correct boiler and system controls specification. Having worked closely with Les and his team throughout the entire installation project, he explains how such savings have been achieved in line with the client’s requirements: Andrew said:

“When first contacted by MW Kellogg, as well as being asked to look at a boiler changeover plan we were also invited to review the company’s overall gas consumption figures, which were proving disproportionately high to the kW load levels required to heat the building. From the initial site survey we carried out it was soon clear there were a number of technical problems with the existing heating system that we needed to address.

“Firstly, because of its hydraulic layout, we found that the building’s heating system was not working efficiently. The primary circuit pumps had also been so over specified that the low-loss header water movement had physically separated the rear cast-iron boiler sections. The net result of this was that the existing boilers were having to be rebuilt at least once every 12 months; all this at significant capital cost to MWKL.

“From that survey, we looked at a number of options and arrived at the logical specification of high quality stainless steel SB615 boilers together with ultra-low NOx auto-modulating gas burners. The simple reason for this was the combination of these two elements, installed with Buderus EcoBus energy management system controls, together with the BMS system, would considerably reduce not only MWKL’s annual fuel operation costs but specifically their CO2 and NOx pollution levels too.

“As a result, we specified three Buderus SB615 640kW stainless steel condensing boilers together with Wieshaupt auto-modulating ultra-low NOx burners. The original primary system pumps were removed and a new back-end primary hydraulic circuit implemented. Another key part of the design specification was to ensure that the boilers, burners and BMS system worked together in the most technically efficient way.

“The overall effect of all these improvements was to over-deliver the proven reduction in fuel and CO2 levels the building is now experiencing. MWKL are in the process of installing sub meters on gas and electrical supplies so that usage and energy costs can be accurately measured and calculated. For any business or organisation serious about reducing fuel costs and improving efficiency, this is the ideal way to take control of running costs.

“With the heating system upgrade already paying dividends, MWKL has also applied the Enhanced Capital Allowance (ECA) scheme to the project. This enables any business investing in energy saving equipment to write off the 100% whole cost of their investment against their taxable profits. This easy mechanism frees-up considerable cash-flow for any business, of any size.

“The simple message here is that more UK businesses should be taking maximum advantage of the ECA scheme. With effective Buderus planning, UK companies have readily available ways to reduce major fuel costs, reduce their pollution levels, and free-up working capital. MW Kellogg has shown considerable commercial initiative with their approach, achieving the rewards for their efforts.”

Going forward, The Carbon Trust Standard requires MWKL to continue to reduce its carbon footprint year on year, which means a continued commitment to reducing its impact on the environment and recertification every two years.

Les Hill concludes: “Since taking real action against climate change in the form of the recent boiler replacement, BEMS review and lighting project to install high efficiency light fittings with Light Level (LUX) and Passive Infra Red Detector (PIR) sensors in certain areas of the building, we have successfully reduced our carbon footprint by 4.8% relative to turnover.

“We are proud to have taken action ourselves to reduce the carbon emissions we are directly responsible for rather than just off-setting our emissions in other ways and we look forward to making further improvements in line with the Carbon Trust Standard going forward.”

Related categories:  Boilers - Combination and condensing   Commercial and offices applications   Energy Conservation