Oxford Road District Heating

Upon designing a route for the link, we had to be mindful of underground electrical cables so not to disturb them, treating all apparatus as live unless certified dead by the asset owner. Additionally, we had to consider the most ideal locations for the joint positions to ensure a successful installation that did not disturb existing services.

We worked with Arup, independent specialist consultants, to develop their design solution, with the final design consisting of a 36m installation of multi-utilities, including the installation of 2x 300mm Series 2 pre-insulated district heating pipe which had 12 ducts to allow for future building connections.

To reduce any further delays on the transport system, we coordinated the installation whilst the roads were closed for the Bus Priority Works, which is a scheme to change the road to prioritise buses, bikes and pedestrians with private vehicles following alternative routes, in an attempt to enhance bus journeys and make it safer for cyclists.

Oxford Road was closed from Brancaster Road to Sidney Street, with Vital designing and managing the marketing and communications surrounding the barriers, with liaison with MMU, Arup, and project management consultants, Faithful and Gould. We designed bespoke signage and ensured it had clear information about pedestrian and vehicle access and diversion routes by communicating closely with local residents, authorities and stakeholders.

Our vCOMS (Vital Controls Optimisation & Management System) system was installed onto the Trend BMS and used to identify opportunities for improvement and, after implementation, to monitor the scheme and ensure optimum performance.

An example of the value vCOMS can bring to a scheme can be seen in one of the opportunities identified.  It was noted that high internal temperatures inside and outside of occupancy were affecting comfort levels and increasing cooling demands in critical labs in the Chemistry, Biology and Sciences buildings.  We introduced a heating economy control to account for internal and external temperatures and adjust the system to maintain a 20°C comfort set point and night setback, which reduced the temperature in the labs outside of occupancy hours.  Despite higher ambient conditions post-delivery, the average space temperatures were reduced by almost 2°C across Chemistry North.   In short, vCOMS identified an opportunity to improve comfort conditions while reducing energy consumption.

Once the energy conservation measures had been identified and installed vCOMS continues to ensure that the main energy consuming plant only operates at the times and temperatures which match the occupancy requirement.  The system can do this by monitoring the performance of the building to ensure it operates within the expected parameters to maintain comfort levels for the building users.  If the system performs outside of the expected parameters, improvements can be identified and implemented, which creates a cycle of continuous improvement.

The outline of the trench was cut with a circular saw, before a mechanical excavator was used to breakaway the tarmac. When within 500mm of existing services, operatives hand dug until they were fully exposed to avoid damage.

Once the trench was excavated, pre-insulated pipework was fitted, with 11° bends pre-fabricated outside of the trench to avoid delays. Electro-welded pipework joints were installed by our in-house team to assure quality.

It was an ambitious programme, with regular communication and engagement between all stakeholders being pivotal to the successful delivery. Working closely with the University was key to accommodate sensitive periods and reduce disruption to the student experience, allowing us to alter our work sequence to accommodate MMU’s requirements, and utilise acoustic shrouds on excavation machinery to minimise disruption.