The UK’s first test standard for Heat Interface Units (HIUs), which is managed by the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA), has been revised and updated in response to growing demand from the district heating industry. Two UK-based test houses have now been approved to carry out testing to the standard
Make no mistake, climbing can be dangerous and, according to the Health and Safety Executive, falling from height remains one of the leading causes of work-related injuries and death. That’s why meeting the latest standards that ensure the safety of workers at height is so important. As one of the
The UK’s first test standard for Heat Interface Units (HIUs), which is managed by the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA), has been revised and updated in response to growing demand from the district heating industry. Two UK-based test houses have now been approved to carry out testing to the standard – BSRIA and Enertek International – in addition to the Research Institutes of Sweden (RISE), which was previously the only organisation able to test to the new UK standard. HIUs extract heat from district heating networks to feed individual buildings and dwellings. How they perform is central to the overall efficiency of a district scheme. The Standard was developed, therefore, to help developers of UK heat networks procure HIUs based on comparative performance data. The availability of a UK standard has prompted considerable response from manufacturers with a significant number of HIUs already tested at RISE with several more already going through the process at BSRIA and Enertek. Testing to the standard is a two-stage process: The HIU has to achieve a UKAS or equivalent national accreditation through one of the three test houses and this result must then be verified by the Standard’s Steering Group before being published on the BESA website. Comprehensive The BESA Standard originally emerged from a heat network efficiency research project supported by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. Testing to the Standard is helping to create a comprehensive product database and improve performance of UK heat networks. It is modelled on a well-established Swedish methodology, which was adapted to suit typical UK operating conditions, and makes it possible to compare products and equipment types so that network designers can evaluate the performance of individual HIUs against their design parameters. The test calculates the annual volume weighted return temperature (VWART) from the HIU and provides evidence of compliance with other performance and reliability metrics, such as domestic hot water response time. As part of the revision process, the steering group overseeing the Standard has been expanded and a technical sub-committee – comprising industry experts and the three test houses – has been set up. It will make recommendations to the steering group on developing the standard, including a planned expansion of the regime. An HIU Manufacturers’ forum has already had its first meeting at BESA’s headquarters in London and provided valuable feedback to the steering group. “One of the Standard’s great strengths is that it has been developed by users, for users,” said UK HIU Steering Group chair, Gareth Jones. “It provides users with a clear basis on which to evaluate HIU performance and is rapidly becoming the default point of reference for those making procurement decisions within the industry. “As a result, HIU manufacturers must now ensure that their HIUs perform well and we are seeing a significant increase in R&D. Ultimately this raising of standards will help improve the health of the heat network industry as a whole.” More information is available here.
Make no mistake, climbing can be dangerous and, according to the Health and Safety Executive, falling from height remains one of the leading causes of work-related injuries and death. That’s why meeting the latest standards that ensure the safety of workers at height is so important. As one of the industry’s best-practice leaders, MSA Safety, not only meet these latest standards, but also helped shaped them. The initial version of the updated standards relating to the test of vertical fall arrest systems (EN 353-1:2014) was released in October of 2014 and incorporated many amendments for guided type fall arresters when compared to EN 353-1:2002. MSA continually invests in testing its products and, when carrying out cold conditioning tests on its LadderLatch and TowerLatch systems, noticed an issue with the 2014 version of the standard. Tim Bissett, Technical Manager at MSA Latchways, explains: “When testing our LadderLatch, and TowerLatch systems before introducing them to market, we noticed a slight mistake in the 2014 version of the standard. “The test required the guided type fall arrester to be immersed in water and then subjected to a temperature of -30°C. Unfortunately, this didn’t represent real-life working conditions, so a request for a correction was made with the Standards Authority.” The outcome of this correction is the publication of EN 353-1:2018. It’s perhaps testament to MSA’s own diligent testing regime and decades of experience that it was able to assist in this issue. EN 353-1:2018 has now gone live. The new Personal Protective Equipment Regulations 2016/425 came into force on 21 April 2018, and combined with testing to EN 353-1:2018, MSA is delighted to announce its guided type fall arresters have successfully achieved EU type approval under the PPE Regulations. Of course, there can be no compromise when setting the standard for the safety of workers at height and the EU type-examination process for EN 353-1:2018 was suitably rigorous. It incorporated a number of dynamic tests that covered all eventualities and put all elements of working at height equipment through its paces. These included: Dynamic performance test – testing to check the maximum arrest force Cold condition testing – checking locking function in cold conditions Minimum distance test – testing to replicate the user falling close to the anchor line Fall back test – which replicates the user falling back and down Guide bracket test – testing the strength of the bracket and anchor line and the locking function of fall arrester in the event of a fall Sideways fall test – testing to replicate the user falling in a sideways direction Leaning angle test – testing the locking function of the fall arrester with the anchor line leaning forward and sideways Static strength requirements – testing to check the overall strength of the system Tim Bissett finished by saying: “As best-practice leaders for working at height equipment, we’re of course happy that we’ve helped put a robust compliance process in place. We’re confident that once again we’re exceeding standards that ensure the safety of everyone using our equipment for working at height.”
