BSEE-OCT21-PG05 News.qxp_Layout 1 20/09/2021 12:00 Page 5


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public-private partnership between UK manufacturer Baxi-BDR Thermea and the Advanced Services Group (ASG) at Aston University, could signal an innovative way for the UK to meet its decarbonisation


challenges.


The project aims to explore the viability of Baxi offering a new heat-as-a-service model to customers through servitization. This a heat plan that bundles a new heating system, servicing, maintenance, and energy for a fixed monthly price. Baxi’s “fit and forget” solution changes the focus from selling energy in kilowatt-hours to selling warmth and the outcome-based offer helps the manufacturer drive the adoption of low carbon technologies. This servitized approach to delivering energy could make the UK Government’s proposals to ban gas boilers in favour of heat pumps, more affordable and viable for homeowners, since it would remove the cost of ownership of expensive heat pumps. Instead, residents could have the heat pump installed free of charge and instead lease the energy they use.


The UK Government recently revealed it is considering pushing back the gas boiler ban deadline by five years, due to backlash over the soaring cost of Net Zero on households, ahead of the COP climate conference in November. A typical heat pump can set homeowners back up to £14,000, with ministers warning that such measures could cost households £400 billion. Heating homes accounts for 14% of total UK emissions and it is hoped the ban will help guarantee a more sustainable future. The Advanced Services Group believes that Heating-as-a- Service (HaaS) could offer the opportunity to overhaul the UK’s energy system and break the link between levels of fuel consumption and profitability.


Iain McKechnie, director of strategic programmes, Advanced Services Group, commented: “For consumers, fuel is a means to an end, and it is attractive for Baxi-BDR Thermea to sell warmth rather than energy. Investment in digitisation and disruptive business models opens the door to selling heat as a service, offering consumers a full-service solution. They pay for hours of warmth whilst the provider takes responsibility for owning, fuelling and maintaining the system that delivers it.”


The UK already attempted something similar with its Budget Warmth initiative in the 1980s; a HaaS tariff offered commercially. The plan saw the provision of agreed room temperatures at certain times for a fixed fee, instead of charging for energy use on a per-unit basis. This arrangement enabled building operators to remotely manage heating systems and use electricity when it was cheaper, thereby maximising profits, and exploiting opportunities for greater heating flexibility. A servitized business model for HaaS takes this a step further and utilises widespread environmental concerns to change consumer attitudes towards energy consumption, enabling homeowners to pay only for the energy they need, thereby saving costs and reducing energy waste.


BSEE Partnership reveals new heat­as­a­service model


Supported by a £1.7m of Innovate UK funding, Baxi is working with Aston Business School’s Advanced Services Group to develop a Digital Servitization Demonstrator. Designed to drive adoption of advanced services, the demonstrator will combine advanced services and digital servitization technologies to create a digital model of Baxi's manufacturing and service business.


Mr McKechnie commented: “By moving from selling a boiler to providing heating as a service, it suddenly becomes possible to marry energy efficiency with sustainable business models. Manufacturers are incentivised to save energy and are enabled to pilot and exploit low- carbon technologies without requiring the consumer to pay up front. This way, providing more heat by consuming less energy becomes the name of the game and it is service levels and ecosystem efficiencies that determine profit margins.”


Green heat network fund key to low­carbon district heating


he latest round of financing from the UK Government’s Green Heat Network Fund (GHNF) will be key to ensuring low-carbon district heating schemes are delivered from 2022, according to polymer pipework specialist REHAU.


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The GHNF is the latest funding scheme launched by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy building upon 2018’s Heat Networks Investment Project (HNIP). As part of this latest funding tranche, the GHNF has pledged an additional £270 million investment in low- carbon technology, on top of the £165 million already provided by the HNIP.


Steve Richmond, head of marketing and technical at REHAU Building Solutions, said: “It is no secret that COVID-19 has impacted the decarbonisation of the UK heating sector. The pandemic has left budgets strained for many, so investing in a new heating system simply hasn’t been a priority.”


“For this reason, schemes such as the Green Heat Network Fund will be key to putting low- carbon progress back on track post-pandemic. The heating sector currently accounts for as much as 21% of the nation’s emissions total, so increasing uptake of heat pumps and district heating networks will be key to achieving Net Zero by 2050.”


This development coincides with the launch of the CP1 Heat Networks Code of Practice by the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers and Association for Decentralised Energy. The publication advocates a maximum flow temperature of 70°C for district heating networks, making them better suited to fourth generation heating schemes. Polymer district heating networks, using low-carbon technology such as heat pumps and waste heat recovery systems, are one of the most effective ways to reduce reliance on traditional gas boilers. Low-carbon networks are the only form of network supported by the GHNF, so it is important contractors and consultants consider the recommendations in the CP1 guidance to deliver suitable installations.


Mr Richmond concluded: “The launch of schemes such as the Green Heat Network Fund and regulations such as CP1 will be critical to driving the uptake of low-carbon technology in England and Wales. Coupled with comprehensive training from specialists such as REHAU, this demand will be a major factor in ensuring heat network installations are suitable for end users in a low-carbon future.”


Steve Richmond, head of marketing and technical at REHAU Building Solutions Read the latest at: www.bsee.co.uk BUILDING SERVICES & ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER OCTOBER 2021 5 LEAK DETECTION SYSTEMS


“DON’T LET A LEAK BECOME A FLOOD”


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