Northamptonshire County Council

Sustainable Energy

28 Mar

*Oakley Vale Primary School Biomass Boiler Event*

Case Study

ZECOS Project: Wattcraft has been working for Northamptonshire County Council (NCC) on the European funded ZECOS project.

The full project title is “Development and Introduction of the Communal Zero CO2e Emission Certification System as a Tool for Sustainable Communities and Regions”. The main aims of the project are:

To develop a community-focused zero carbon certification scheme for use across Europe
To develop sustainable energy masterplans for local communities
To develop business models for delivery of the masterplans.
To implement energy efficiency and renewable energy projects, which can inform the development of a practical certification scheme

*Charles Jackson and Co Ltd. miscanthus boiler*

The project consortium comprises 11 partners in 4 countries: Germany, Belgium, Ireland and the UK. With the variation in local circumstances and community focus, there is opportunity for cross-fertilisation of ideas and the development of a flexible approach that can be applied by communities across Europe. The focus of NCC’s contribution to the project is on schools in Northamptonshire and the key areas of activity are:

Implementation of biomass boiler systems at schools
Establishment of a biomass supply chain.
Resource efficiency for schools, including energy, waste and water

*Renewable Energy Workshop, IfaS, Neübrucke, Germany*

Wattcraft has provided project coordination services and technical services including:

Development of multi-fuel biomass boiler concept and specification

Development of approach towards establishing renewable energy potential across Northamptonshire
Active participation in workshops with the other European partners to consolidate a common approach towards establishing renewable energy potential
Identification of requirements for setting up a biomass supply chain
Project management across work packages
Running biomass boiler information events for schools
Developing an approach towards implementation of funded biomass boiler projects in schools
Helping specify staff requirements for project delivery and support during the recruitment process.

For more information on ZECOS see: www.zecos.eu

*Yelvertoft Primary School biomass boiler installation*

Biomass Boiler – Yelvertoft School

Wattcraft acted as Project Engineer for Northamptonshire County Council in the installation of a 60kW biomass boiler for Yelvertoft School in Northamptonshire.

This was one of the schools project funded by the European Union through the ZECOS project.

Prior to the installation of the biomass boiler Yelvertoft School was being heated by oil, with consequent high energy bills. The biomass boiler has now been installed and is operational. The project delivered to programme, was within budget and was well received by the school. The specialist biomass contractor was Ashwell and the civils contractor was Miluto.

Wattcraft provided the following services:
Review of boiler size – analysis of boiler size required to supply school space heating load
Layout – positioning of plant room to minimise disruption to school functions and facilities
Transport assessment – analysis of impact of wood pellet delivery on school car parking and pedestrian safety
Noise – assessment of noise of biomass boiler plant and pellet delivery on nearby residential property
Air quality – liaison between Council environmental health officers and biomass boiler contractor on air quality requirements
Site liaison and coordination – role of Owner’s Engineer in ensuring that biomass boiler installation was in accordance with the specification and addressing contract variations on behalf of the Council.