Salix Finance - Experts & Thought Leaders

All Saints Church of England Academy in Denstone, United Kingdom (UK) has taken a big step towards becoming carbon neutral, following the decommissioning of its oil-fired boiler and the installation of a new air source heat pump in autumn 2021. Its oil-fired boiler system has been in place for more than two decades, since the building was commissioned in 1999, and was reaching its end of life, with adverse environmental and budgetary impacts. New system ensures the building is energy efficient Its building energy management system and heating control valves will be also be upgraded The new system ensures the building is warm and energy efficient, thereby providing an environment that supports quality teaching and learning. Its building energy management system and heating control valves will be also be upgraded, in a move which will see the trust significantly improve its energy efficiency and reduce its annual carbon footprint, by more than 21 tons. Funds for heat decarbonization projects The school was awarded £ 96,880 through Staffordshire University Academies Trust, which received the money through the Public Sector Decarbonization Scheme (PSDS), which supports heat decarbonization projects within the public sector. The scheme is funded by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and delivered by Salix Finance, which improves energy efficiency in the public sector. Jo Goodwin, the Office Manager at All Saints Church of England Academy, described how proud the academy is in becoming one of the first schools in the trust, to lead the way in reducing its carbon footprint. Reducing the school's carbon footprint The All Saints Church of England Academy has actively involved its pupils in environmental issues. As part of the school’s curriculum, the children have been learning about climate change and last year, in order to mark COP26, the students learned about the positive changes that they could make, in order to support a healthier planet. Key stage 2 children made a pledge of the changes they are committed to, with examples including walking more, switching lights and electrical items off, planting and growing more. They also wrote letters to Greg Hands, the UK Minister of State for Business, Energy and Clean Growth, about their pledges, the new boiler and heating program, and the school’s anticipated improved energy rating. School’s staff encouraged to be more sustainable The All Saints Church of England Academy runs an eco-club, where pupils look after the pond, observe wildlife The All Saints Church of England Academy runs an eco-club, where pupils look after the pond, observe wildlife and learn how to grow and cook their own vegetables. The school’s staff is also encouraged to be more sustainable. Charles Pegg, the Program Manager at Salix Finance, said “It’s been a pleasure working with All Saints Academy. Not only has the staff been heavily invested in the carbon savings of the project, but the pupils have been too – in their learning, in their pledges and in their actions.” The trust consists of 20 academies, including 19 primary schools and one secondary school, serving more than 4,000 pupils. Energy sustainable heating system Hope Kirkham, the Operations Manager at Staffordshire University Academies Trust, said “We are incredibly pleased with the successful application to the decarbonization scheme. The grant has enabled us to upgrade All Saints heating system to an energy sustainable solution. Hope Kirkham adds, “The new system has enhanced the teaching and learning environment in school, and is much more in-keeping with the Academy’s sustainability initiatives.”

In April 2017, Stoke-on-Trent City Council formed a strategic collaboration with Siemens to develop a series of energy-saving projects, as part of the council’s plans to dramatically decrease carbon emissions, increase the use of renewable energy and reduce costs. As the lead technical partner, boosted by several local partnerships, Siemens entered discussions to investigate ways of improving the energy performance of the local authority’s buildings over a five-year period. Decarbonization drive As part of its decarbonization drive, the Stoke-on-Trent City Council secured £4.34 million funding from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) under the Public Sector Decarbonization Scheme, delivered by Salix Finance. The scheme aims to put the public sector at the forefront of decarbonizing buildings in the United Kingdom. The first phase of the program involved a wide-scale LED lighting upgrade The first phase of the program involved a wide-scale LED lighting upgrade. A total of 5,440 energy-efficient LEDs were installed in many well-known locations in the city, over nine months. These included the Civic Centre and Town Hall, in Stoke; Swann House administrative center; John Street Multi-Storey Car Park, in Hanley; Gladstone Pottery Museum, in Longton; Hanley Market and in three sports and leisure facilities – Fenton Manor Sports Complex, Dimensions Leisure Centre and New Horizons Sport and Leisure Centre. The system reduced lighting loads by 76 per cent, which saved the council £205,663 annually and lowered carbon emissions by 437 tons each year. Combined Heat and Power (CHP) installations Three new Combined Heat and Power (CHP) installations have also been deployed at the Civic Centre, Dimensions Leisure Centre and at Fenton Manor Sports Complex. All the CHP systems will be operational by 2025, to generate electricity and steam for power and heat on-site, thereby saving the council £250,000 per year. In addition, solar PV installations supply power to Dimensions Leisure Centre and Fenton Manor Sports Complex, adding further to onsite power generation. Air Source Heat Pumps Air Source Heat Pumps at Fenton Manor Sports Complex and New Horizons Leisure Centre also provide a lower-carbon way of heating the swimming pools and contribute further to decarbonization. New pool pumps, filtration and control systems were added. Heat pumps and air handling units have also replaced panel heating at Steel House, an operational council-run building. Siemens Desigo CC system Siemens Desigo CC was deployed as an upgrade to the existing building management system To help manage the new technologies, Siemens Desigo CC was deployed as an upgrade to the existing building management system, which has improved the optimization and efficient use of building services across the sites. The Desigo CC system is used to monitor, control and visualize all the operational and energy assets, such as Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC), lighting and security systems inside buildings across numerous sites to optimize the comfort levels, safety and energy efficiency. Dashboard flags the status and health of connected devices A dashboard flags the status, health and maintenance requirements of connected devices, while trend-monitoring and utility metering is reported by the system. The rich feature set gives support engineers the freedom to monitor and maintain buildings remotely, thereby saving valuable time in traveling between sites to attend fault incidents. The installation at Fenton Manor Sports Complex, in particular, has made the facility one of the best examples of a retrofitted local authority-run leisure center in the country. LED lighting across the Fenton Manor Sports Complex The LED lighting across the site, including sensor operated lighting in sports halls, which can be dimmed and have reduced glare, mean the facilities are suitable for international sports competitions. Meanwhile, the CHP systems have replaced 1970s industrial gas boilers, significantly reducing carbon emissions. Councilor Carl Edwards, Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s Cabinet Member for Housing and the Environment, said “We’re serious about reducing our carbon footprint, building the use of sustainable energy into the fabric of our city’s infrastructure, reducing energy costs to help to keep the cost of delivering public services low for residents, visitors and service users, and setting an example of what can be achieved for the rest of the city.” The decarbonization program has used the engineering and technological expertise of Siemens" He adds, “The decarbonization program has used the engineering and technological expertise of Siemens and is radically transforming energy uses in our public buildings. Fenton Manor Sports Complex is an exemplar of this work. A wide range of works means the building, which is approaching 50 years old, is not only fit for the future, but has boosted facilities to the extent that sports halls are competition-ready for national and international events.” District Heat Network Councilor Carl Edwards continus, “The decarbonization works sit alongside innovative programs, such as the District Heat Network, where more than four kilometers of piping is already installed under roads in Stoke town with the aim of connecting properties up to more sustainable energy supplies.” Ian Rodger, the Director of Programs at Salix Finance, said “We are delighted to be working with the City of Stoke-on-Trent on this ambitious scheme. Our team has worked very closely with the council on these projects and we have been very impressed by the commitment to reduce the carbon footprint.” Combining multiple energy assets Rob Sinclair, the Account Manager at Siemens, said “Combining multiple energy assets that are synchronized to work together, while significantly reducing carbon emissions across numerous public buildings, requires a high-degree of technical competence.” He adds, “This project has laid the foundations for Stoke-on-Trent City Council to consider where it goes next on its decarbonization journey and where best to funnel investments that will benefit its stakeholders and the local community, to deliver a more sustainable and greener future.” Siemens supports multiple decarbonization projects As well as its work with the Stoke-on-Trent City Council, Siemens has also supported other decarbonization projects across Staffordshire. Its work with Keele University and its SEND project created Europe’s largest test bed for the research and development of renewable and smart energy technologies. Through SEND, energy generation, distribution, storage, forecasting and energy balancing implementations are being learned in a ‘living laboratory’ to help achieve cost and carbon savings for the university. Rob Sinclair concludes, “All this work is only just the beginning and a testament to what close and good collaboration can achieve. Delivering both financial and environmental savings, it is a major step towards creating an exciting carbon-neutral future for Stoke-on-Trent, and Staffordshire.”