Solving a ‘ flat-pack ’ problem with out-of-the-box design
Serck Heat Exchange is an international heat transfer solutions provider , with over 100 years ’ experience in industries such as marine , rail , oil and gas , nuclear , petrochemical , and beyond . The company ’ s UK Sales Manager , Steve Wright , shares a case study on the problems faced when heating & cooling batteries need replacing in confined spaces .
All text and images courtesy of Serck
Not all steam heater batteries are in easy-to-reach places , and when they need replacing , it creates a problem for engineers who need to carry out this work . Fortunately , the team at Serck put their heads together to produce an innovative solution .
The challenge The client , a healthcare facility located in a historic building in one of the UK ’ s northern cities , was having trouble with part of their heating system . While the problem wasn ’ t hard to diagnose , implementing the solution would prove to be an interesting design challenge . With service equipment updates and modifications over time , the only remaining access to this battery was through a small hatch , which was then too small to allow a completely new heater to be moved in and installed . Not unlike building a piece of flat-pack furniture in a room , then discovering when it ’ s time to move that it doesn ’ t fit back out again through the door ! This issue comes up often , especially in historic buildings , where modern equipment has been installed gradually over the years in architecturally significant buildings . The equipment needs must be adapted to the site , not the other way around . The old heater could be dismantled and removed but getting a new heater in place without dismantling the rest of the site infrastructure would require some clever design work .
The Serck team would need to create a unit that could be built in parts and assembled in situ to offer the same or better functionality as the previous single-piece unit .
The solution Because this type of unit will always need future servicing , and to facilitate ease of repair , the team also put their heads together to come up with a way to ensure this access challenge won ’ t continue to be a problem in the future . After a site survey , two separate coils were designed , built , and pressure-tested off-site to meet the client ’ s space and operating requirements . These were then moved to the site and brought in one at a time via the access hatch , then installed back into the unit with a galvanized support framework to allow removal of either coil when required .
The results The client ’ s air handling unit functionality has been restored , and they now have the additional benefit of some redundancy built in . Rather than one singular unit in pieces , the team designed a modular system that could function as one unit for the full-service requirements under normal operating conditions . But they also ensured that each unit was connected with its own steam and condense supply , which allows some continuous heat from one coil if the other needs servicing .
About the Company
Serck provides specialist design , manufacture , installation , service , and global export of heat transfer technology across a range of sectors and geographies . Operational capabilities include industrial and marine heat exchangers , climate control and heat recovery products and efficiency coatings , as well as specialist , heavy-duty , high-performance , and heritage automotive radiators .
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