Schools, colleges and other educational establishments in the UK
spend more than £400 million a year just on heating. It’s a costly yet
essential outgoing, but that doesn’t mean that cost savings can’t be
made and even the most complex of heating needs can be met
without breaking the budget according to Nick Winton of AmbiRad.
It’s the sports hall which usually offers the
greatest heating challenge. Increasingly multipurpose,
with many sports, examinations,
drama and more taking place inside, comfort
and concentration and balancing the needs of
both stationary and active users, can be a
major problem.
Traditional sports hall design presents
particular challenges when it comes to
maintaining a comfortable atmosphere. In one
vast, open space, the comfort requirements of
all users, from athletes to spectators, must
also be fully satisfied.
Conventional boiler and distributed radiator
systems frequently fail to provide the
flexibility or speed of response needed in
today’s multi-use halls. It is here where the
most efficient, economical heating is
required. However, this doesn’t mean a
reduction in comfort levels. The task is to find
a balance between cutting costs and
providing the perfect conditions for every
circumstance.
Achieving universal comfort and low energy
consumption demands a heating system that:
• Has rapid response to changed conditions
• Has frugal energy consumption
• Can be ‘zoned’ to heat only those areas in use
• Operates at low noise levels
• Will not compromise the fabric of the
building
EU and UK legislation must have a say too.
Becoming ever stringent, it requires modern
heating systems to optimise fuel efficiency and
produce lower greenhouse gas emissions.
Highly economical radiant tube heating is
one effective answer for sport halls. No
other heating system currently used in
sports halls can match its energy efficiency.
This system works like the sun, emitting
infrared rays that warm only people and
objects in their path. No energy is wasted
heating the volume of air in the building –
which in a hall is vast – yet occupants
(whether active or sedentary) feel
comfortably warm.
Radiant tube heaters burn fuel at the point of use,
eliminating heat distribution losses or the need for
a separate plant area. Their warmth can be felt
within just a few minutes of switch-on, even on
very cold days. Mounted at high level, the heaters
are well out of the way of sports equipment and
can be covered with safety grilles to protect them
from high flying balls, for example. A switch to
energy efficient space heating systems like this can
reduce fuel consumption without affecting
comfort levels, producing long-term and
sustainable fuel cost savings.
Flagship sports hall
Potential stars of the Olympics, together with
university students and local school children,
are taking advantage of the flagship £7m
indoor sports facility at Brunel University,
equipped with Nor-Ray-Vac continuous
radiant tube heating.
Nor-Ray-Vac heaters positioned approximately
6m above floor level warm the 3,168m2 athletics
hall. Controlled centrally from the University’s
building management system, they maintain a
constant temperature of around 14-16 degrees.
PAUL GIBBINS, ARCHITECT AT SPORT
ENGLAND, DESIGNERS OF THE
OPTIMUM SPORTS HALL, COMMENTS:
“Radiant heating is economical to install and
effective
in its distribution of heat. It is an
effective generator
of heat – both economical
and aesthetic. It provides
quick warm up and
easy control in different
circumstances – for
example, active sports or spectating.”
