Andrews Water Heaters has supplied two gas-fired condensing water heaters to provide energy efficient domestic water heating in the award-winning Leigh Technology Academy at Dartford in Kent. Designed for the Department for Schools Children and Families by BDP, the building delivers impressive environmental benefits, showing savings of 65% of the carbon emissions compared to the DfSCF benchmark and a reduction of 30% against Part L of the Building Regulations. Completed in 2008 at a cost of £28 million, this highly innovative building accommodates four individual colleges linked by an internal street with a triple height winter garden which accomplishes the design brief, combining technology and nature in a single environment.

In order to achieve maximum energy efficiency in the provision of domestic hot water to washrooms, showers, kitchens and teaching areas, the project’s engineers, designers and architects, BDP specified two Supa-Flo R307 gas-fired ‘constant flow’ water heaters, largest in the R300 range, together with two 450 litre buffer vessels.

Selected for their high specification, small footprint, performance and modulating capability, these low noise units have an extremely low emission of NOx, CO and CO2, satisfying the most stringent environmental criteria. They are used in an unvented system with an open flue and installation in the custom built plantroom was simplified due to their compact, lightweight design, allowing structural cost savings to be made in the earlier stages of design which helped with the overall financial viability of the project. Each R307 modulating gas fired water heater has variable outputs from 20% to 100% of maximum capacity with a nominal output of 274kW and a recovery rate of 4,697 litres/hour through a temperature rise of 50oC.

Andrews Supa-Flo Water Heaters are a range of gas-fired high efficiency water heaters capable of supplying large volumes of hot water for a variety of commercial and industrial applications. The Supa-Flo water heater has a low water content unit with highly responsive stainless steel finned tube heat exchanger and stainless steel headers and manifold. The unit can operate instantaneously’ providing hot water on demand or with a buffer storage vessel and is suitable for either vented or unvented systems.

Designed to educate 1500 pupils, the Leigh Technology Academy in Dartford was voted the most innovative large project by the judges at the 2008 Building Awards ceremony.

It was designed to meet the aspirations of the Head Master and teaching staff who made a significant contribution to the eventual outcome, delivering a low energy sustainable building which matches the school’s teaching strategy. Innovative teaching styles, such as 60 pupil classrooms, applied throughout for independent colleges, led to the school being awarded the TES Outstanding New School Award.

Andrews Water Heaters is part of the Baxi Group and the Supa-Flo R307 models were installed by McMillians & Galliford Try.

Email: rebecca.johnson@baxigroup.com