Client: Ealing Council
Contractor: EarthEnergy
Type of works: supply of Dimplex ground source heat pumps.

Ealing council has been so impressed with Dimplex ground source heat pumps at one new school that it has installed them at two further schools and is planning to have them at a fourth. And the installation of heat pumps means the building projects easily met the local authority’s 10% renewable energy Merton Rule. Grange Primary School in Ealing is a larger than average primary school taking 510 pupils aged 4-11. It has recently undergone a £7 million rebuild programme and Dimplex heat pumps now provide 40kW of energy efficient, low carbon heat for the new school which is close to South Ealing underground station.

Kwasi Ofori-Amoako, Ealing Council’s Capital Programme Manager, school services, says: “We looked at various options to achieve the 10% renewable energy requirements including solar and biomass but the Dimplex ground source heat pumps were the easiest and most cost effective way for us to meet the Merton Rule specification. “Grange Primary was the first school we used ground source heat pumps in and it’s quickly become apparent that this is the cheapest and easiest way of achieving renewable energy requirements.”

EarthEnergy, the Dimplex heat pump installer partner recently named Dimplex Installer of the Year, carried out the work which included the drilling of 15 boreholes in a restricted area which is now part of the playground.

A Dimplex SI 40 TEH high temperature ground source heat pump was installed which provides variable water flow temperatures up to 70°C, ideal for buildings and schools with radiator systems or where high temperature hot water storage is required. Willmott Dixon, Ealing construction framework partners, was appointed as the main contractor for the job. Willmott Dixon is currently the BCSE’s Best National School Contractor and is one the UK’s most prolific providers of education facilities.

Following the success at Grange Primary, EarthEnergy was awarded contracts to install Dimplex heat pumps for Ellen Wilkinson School for Girls in Acton and Mandeville School in Northolt. Mandeville School is a co-educational day school for pupils aged 2-12 years, who have severe learning difficulties.

A Dimplex SI 37 TE ground source heat pump was installed at the school and required EarthEnergy to drill six boreholes, again in a restricted, now landscaped, area. All models in the SI TE range use the WPM2007 heat pump manager allowing independent control over multiple heating circuits at differing flow temperatures and can be used with under floor heating or radiator systems. At Ellen Wilkinson School for Girls, Ealing’s only all-girl comprehensive school with 1400 students aged 11-18 years, a Dimplex SI 24 TE was used. Like the other units specified for Ealing Council schools it incorporates twin compressors to allow the system to flexibly and efficiently adapt to fluctuating heat demand by automatically switching between single and dual compressor modes depending on the outside temperature and heat demand of the building.

A fourth Ealing school is at the planning stage for redevelopment and will also include Dimplex ground source heat pumps.

Ealing has also been chosen as one of 23 pathfinder authorities for the Primary Capital Programme 2008-9 and will lead the way in raising standards through creating outstanding purpose-built, eco-friendly classrooms and facilities.

The Merton Rule requires the use of renewable energy to reduce annual carbon dioxide CO₂ emissions in the built environment.
It usually means that non-residential properties must have at least 10% of energy needs met by renewable energy such as solar panel, wind turbines or heat pumps.