A new £37m residential development in Sheffield includes Taconova’s Heat Interface Units (HIUs) designed to deliver sustainable and efficient heating.
Situated on Scotland Street, the Ironworks has been developed by Rise Homes bringing additional rented accommodation to Sheffield.
Building work began in January 2021 on the site of the former Queens Hotel, and in September 2023, Rise Homes and Taconova were joined by the Mayor of Sheffield to open the new 12-storey Ironworks building.
The development encompasses 229 furnished apartments, comprising 144 one-bedroom, 80 two-bedroom, and five two-bedroom duplex units. Each unit connected to the building’s communal biomass boiler-powered heating system.
Water heated by the basement biomass boiler circulates through the building’s risers and into the Heat Interface Unit (HIU) in each of the 229 apartments. The HIUs are designed to deliver consistent heating and domestic hot water provision, maintaining optimal temperature and flow for the residents.
Each flat features a TacoTherm H 3000E Heat Interface Unit. The company behind them says its HIU is an electronically controlled, compact, and connection-ready all-in-one unit that offers indirect heat transfer for heating and domestic hot water.
The 229 HIUs were supplied, installed, and commissioned within a three-month window. Taconova delivered 50 HIUs per week, and the contractor installed them in the utility cupboard of each apartment.
The TacoTherm H 3000E has been designed specifically for multi-storey residential buildings and provides an operating pressure of 6 bar. It has an operating temperature of 90°C and generates hot water temperatures of up to 60°C.
The TacoTherm H 3000E has an overall Volume Weighted Average Return Temperature (VWART) figure of 26.
The HIU has a smart meter which enables remote monitoring and analysis of heat consumption. The meter gathers information from across the network, from the plant room to the HIU. With this data, the system’s efficiency can be tracked, and improvements may be made based on the information. Likewise, if there are any inefficiencies or faults, these can be identified, pinpointed, and rectified.
The Ironworks management chose to also install the suggested smart heating controls and offer the controls to the residents through a smartphone or tablet app. These controls mean heating can be switched on or off remotely, potentially saving energy.
Taconova will continue to monitor and improve the heating system for the lifetime of the scheme. The ongoing monitoring provides complete oversight of the whole system, not just the HIUs. Taconova will also support Ironworks with annual servicing of the HIUs, as part of a service level agreement.
