Residents living on a conservation area in the West Midlands are set to enjoy savings of more than 50% on their annual fuel bills thanks to a forward-thinking renewable heating system in a shipping container.

Bromford Housing got help from Vaillant to replace the old storage heaters in 24 flats in New Road, Solihull with energy efficient technology.

New Road is situated in a conservation area where there are strict rules on how the exterior of the properties must look, ruling out the use of gas boilers because of the visible flues.

Ground source heat pumps were chosen as they are discreet, and all pipework is underground with indoor units for the heat pumps themselves. The risers could also be disguised with special cladding in keeping with the building’s aesthetic.

Vaillant advised that three 38kW geoTHERM heat pumps would meet the residents’ requirements for heating and hot water.

In conjunction with its installation partner, J Tomlinson Ltd, Vaillant constructed an energy centre inside an insulated shipping container containing three 38kW geoTHERM ground source heat pumps.

Also provided were two 1,000 litre buffer cylinders, a twin headed brine pump and custom, weather compensated controls with integrated heat generator meters for individualised tenant billing.

The energy centre was assembled off-site and delivered by a specialist haulage company.

Nigel Gosling, senior contracts manager at Bromford Living, said: “This ingenious solution enabled a complicated, high technology system to be installed quickly and efficiently. The energy centre cannot be seen by the residents or the surrounding community and yet will have such a profound impact on their lives, reducing their fuel bills by an average of £706 per annum and giving them more control over their heating. It also means that we will benefit from Non-Domestic Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) for the next 20 years.”