Polypipe Terrain products selected for Europe’s largest domestic heating project

Polypipe Terrain, the UK’s leading plastic piping systems manufacturer, has seen its Polypress composite pipe system widely specified as part of a large scale project to provide low cost, energy efficient heating to the residents of the Wyndford Estate in Glasgow.

Working closely with sustainable energy specialist Vital Energi and contractors McGill Mechanical and City Building, Polypipe supplied more than 120,000 metres of its Polypress composite pipe system for use in the project. The pipes form part of an innovative Combined Heat & Power fed heating system designed to reduce fuel poverty for the estate’s 1,860 residents.

The Wyndford scheme houses a newly built Energy Centre on the edge of the estate, which comprises a 1200 kWe CHP engine and a thermal store with a capacity of 120,000 litres. Three 4500kW gas boilers provide back-up and peak load heat requirements, with the electricity generated by the CHP engine exported to the local grid.

Polypress was specified to deliver hot water to the estate’s properties via a connection from the district heating mains. Heat is transferred from the incoming district heating pipework via Polypress piping and into the property’s internal heating system via a heat exchanger contained in a Vital Energi Hydraulic Interface Unit (HIU). The unit provides heat and hot water on demand, allowing the householder to have full control over their heating without the need to have a boiler of their own.

Approved for hot and cold water supply and applications by the Water Regulations Advisory Scheme (WRAS), Polypress composite pipe system was specifically developed for potable water, hot and cold plumbing and heating systems in large scale residential applications. It combines the advantages of metal and plastic. The system integrates multi-layer composite pipe with robust press fittings in a single system.

Offering a secure, simple jointing method through a mechanical press technique, the joint integrity offered by Polypress is achieved through mechanically pressing without the need for solvents, solder or naked flames – providing a wide variety of cost savings by reducing the need for welders to be present throughout the system’s construction.