Controls
Smart choices H
igh running costs and energy efficiency targets are two factors increasingly turning commercial building owners away from
traditional heating systems and more towards underfloor heating and intelligent heating products. Not only is this method of heating often more aesthetically suitable than installing traditional warm air systems with large boilers, it can be more effective too. The design of underfloor heating makes it a cost-effective solution for retrofit and refurbishment projects, while the energy efficiency benefits it can deliver are welcomed by most com- mercial building owners and facilities managers. One of the reasons underfloor heating is only just beginning to gather momentum in the commercial building market is largely due to habit. Many commercial buildings still install large warm air systems in the ceiling using lit gas pipes, whilst supermarkets often opt for large boilers and pipework systems to cover the entire store area. Whilst these have long been the favoured method of heating for commercial buildings, owners and facilities managers are constantly striving for a more efficient system. The fundamental difference with systems of this kind is the time taken to heat up the entire building when compared with underfloor heating. With traditional heating systems, the heat is emitted from the top of the room downwards, and then has to circulate around the room in order to warm up. The heat profile of underfloor heating on the other hand, allows radiant heat to rise from the floor without the convection current created by traditional radiators. This means heat is concentrated in the lower part of the space rather than circulating around the top, an ideal situation for large open commercial areas such as warehouses, and large office blocks. Whilst the actual task of installing underfloor heating in a commercial space as opposed to a domestic space is not too dissimilar, there are only a few factors to consider when choosing and installing underfloor heating in a commercial environment.
March 2017 The age of the building
It is not uncommon in the UK to have commercial buildings which have listed status, or which are more than 20 years old. This is particularly common for small independent retail stores and refurbished office blocks. It is also often the case for institutional buildings such as museums. These buildings will likely have some sort of ageing heating system already installed and maintaining these can be ex- pensive. Furthermore, uninstalling an entire heating system in favour of a new one can be prohibitively expensive, making the retrofit advantages of underfloor heating popular. However, floor construction in older buildings is different to the typical construction used for new build projects, and this can impact underfloor heating installation. Older buildings will most likely feature a joist
made from solid timber, requiring the use of spreader plates which, at 1mm thickness, lie under the finished floor, be it floorboards or an alternative. In a retrofit scenario, an installer would lift the existing finished floor exposing the joist below, before installing the spreader plates on top of the joists. The floor would then be laid back on top. For new build commercial installations, an overfit
system can be used instead, with a pre-grooved insulation board of 25mm in thickness. This is designed to be installed on top of a finished floor. However, this is only possible if the design of the room can accommodate a small addition to the floor height. Assuming the additional floor height is not a problem, it eliminates the need for installers to carry out additional work on the existing floor, consider- ably shortening the overall installation time.
The occupancy of the buildings
Another factor turning commercial building owners towards underfloor heating solutions is the ambition to derive greater transparency around energy
Toby Howard-Willis of JG Speedfit explores some of the key factors installers need to consider when imple- menting smart heating controls in commercial buildings, as well as exploring why underfloor heating is be- coming such a popular option for the commercial market
consumption and energy efficiency; two topics which continue to fuel demand for smart controls, such as JG Aura, where individual room control is key. Large commercial office blocks are a prime example of building owners and facilities managers seeking greater transparency over energy usage. The traditional method for heating a commercial office block is through a central heating system, with multiple radiators and thermostats installed throughout the building. What typically happens is that occupants within the building will be segmented into different zones. Occupants will adjust the heat in their zone at various times of the day, with little knowledge of how the wider system works. This triggers a peak and trough scenario when it comes to energy consumption. It also means that occupants could unexpectedly be heating up vacant rooms within their zone, in an attempt to heat an individual area of the building, thus wasting energy and money. JG Aura, a wireless heating control system from John Guest, instead provides more flexible and efficient remote regulation of underfloor heating systems. It controls the heat at individual room level remotely, essentially implementing a heating energy management system which controls each room in a building, putting the responsibility for energy efficiency in the hands of a facilities or maintenance manager, via a smartphone app, rather than each occupant in the building. This means that in a commercial office block
scenario, the maintenance manager has direct access to the heating system and can view at any time, which rooms have activated the heating and which rooms haven’t. In addition to exercising greater control over energy usage and reducing energy waste, it also means that somebody who understands the underfloor heating system is the only person accessing it. This is beneficial in the event that an occupant finds a room too warm, which may be because the thermostat has been turned up too high, or has a fault, rather than because the underfloor heating system has been turned too high.
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