MAT selects Baxi prefabricated heating solution to meet tight school heating refurbishment timescale  

Ahead of the winter months, Highlees Primary School in Peterborough has successfully improved the reliability and efficiency of its heating system with the installation of three Remeha by Baxi Gas 120 Ace using Baxi’s prefabricated cascade arrangement.

Highlees Primary School is part of The Elliot Foundation Academies Trust (TEFAT), a successful, charitable multi-academy trust specialising in primary academies. The 36 schools are located across the UK in East Anglia, London and the West Midlands.

When the time came to replace the existing boilers providing space heating at the school, high reliability and system efficiency together with the need to complete the project within the summer shutdown period were the major concerns. TEFAT was also keen to explore use of renewable technologies, specifically heat pumps. However, following a feasibility assessment by M&E Consultants Rider Levett Bucknall (RLB), this approach was not deemed viable due to the associated capital and operating costs.

Andrew Hanson, Senior M&E Consultant at RLB, invited Baxi to accompany him on a site survey at Highlees Primary School to understand the actionable solutions within the project parameters. Andrew said:

“We’ve worked with Baxi a lot over the years and value their support in providing advice and technical information quickly and efficiently. On this particular project, tight project schedules were in place, so we were keen to understand the options that would minimise installation time to meet the requirements of TEFAT.”

Baxi proposed installing three Remeha by Baxi Gas 120 Ace boilers using a bespoke off-site fabricated cascade system complete with insulated pipework set and pumps and a specially sized Plate Heat Exchanger (PHE). Replacing old cast-iron boilers with energy-efficient condensing boilers, around 20% more efficient than the existing units, would not only improve system reliability but deliver huge efficiency gains for the School.

Working with RLB, the Baxi team prepared CAD and 3D drawings of the boiler cascade arrangement bespoke to the design parameters and integrated specially sized pump sets and a plate heat exchanger (PHE) into the design. The PHE was recommended to separate the new boilers from the existing heating system and protect them from any debris, corrosion or poor water quality. A pressurisation unit, a dosing pot and an expansion vessel where also included within the design. Once the design was agreed, production took place in a factory environment, with comprehensive end-of-line testing.

The rig was installed by Ignis Group.

Terry O’Neill, Director at Ignis Group said:

“Our engineers are very familiar with the Baxi boilers, and having the prefabricated cascade arrangement made them particularly straightforward to install.

“As there was no need to size all the individual components and no onsite welding required, on site time and labour was reduced significantly on this project,” he added. “We estimate it saved us around two to three days which, given the tight schedule, was extremely helpful in keeping the project on track. Commissioning was carried out by Baxi’s commissioning engineers who safety tested the installation.” 

Andrew said:

“This was an excellent solution to meet the project requirements and binding constraints at the School.

“We had great support from across the entire project team – the quality and attention to detail from Ignis Group, who truly went above and beyond, was superb! Thanks also to Baxi’s technical sales and design teams as well as their commissioning engineers for all the support. The School and TEFAT are extremely pleased with the successful outcome which will deliver improved comfort at the School while minimising energy consumption associated with heating.”

The fully modulating Gas 120 Ace series is a premium floor-standing, high-efficiency boiler with an innovative, lightweight aluminium monobloc design for flexible space-saving configurations. Available in 60, 90 and 115 kW outputs with prefabricated cascade arrangements available for greater design flexibility, the Gas 220 Ace is easy to install in space-saving configurations. It is supplied with onboard time and temperature controls, with direct connection to a Building Management System provided as standard to maximise heating efficiency. Its quiet operation, high efficiencies and low Class 6 NOx levels make the Gas 120 Ace particularly suitable for use in schools.