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Following on from the launch of our successful Net Zero Apprenticeship Programme in 2021, we are delighted to welcome our second intake of apprentices to the Vital Energi family.

This year we were joined by another 12 apprentices who are based throughout the UK, meaning that apprentices now make up 6% of Vital Energi’s workforce.

The impending price increases for energy are set to have a profound effect on the UK public. With many families already in fuel poverty, and facing further increases, it is a difficult time for many, and we have a commitment to giving them accurate information in an easy to understand format.

The heat network sector will be hit hard as there is no price cap in the commercial gas market. It is therefore essential that we help our customers understand how their bills are likely to be affected and the reasons for these increases.

To support our customers and clients we have developed templates to communicate these changes and explain why there will be price rises.

This will have a direct impact on the customers of communal heating and heat network schemes; therefore, we are proactively communicating with our customers, where we are the ESCo, in order to help them understand why their bills are increasing.

We’re also working with partners and industry groups to influence government to try to help develop support for customers of heat networks.

If you’d like to keep your customers informed, we will happily share our resident communication tool kit with you. If you are interested, please email [email protected].

Work on our £25m project with Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust is taking shape as we work towards completion at Nottingham City Hospital by the end of the year.

Nottingham City Hospital was the last coal-run hospital site in the UK, so we’ve installed energy-efficient and environmentally friendly technologies to replace the aged gas and coal fired boilers, and have replaced the old laundry building with a brand-new energy centre. When demolishing the laundry building, we had to ensure the underground plantroom, service ducts and live services running under the demolition area were not affected.

The 287kW solar PV arrays on the roof spaces are installed, commissioned, and now supply electricity to the hospital, and the 350kW air source heat pumps are in situ and ready to be commissioned. We’ve upgraded 6,626 lights across the hospital to LED fittings, which not only reduces energy consumption, but enhances the patient experience in both the wards and common areas too.

We’ve also installed 1.1km of new pipework in the underground service ducts which supply steam, condensate, and low temperature hot water pipework to 36 plantrooms. During the installation, we ensured service of supply was not interrupted and that there was a seamless changeover.

Once complete, this project will reduce the Trust’s carbon footprint by 14,000 tonnes a year, and guarantee energy savings of at least £1.3m a year for the Nottingham City Hospital.

Read more about the project here.

Vital Energi have secured a £25m contract with Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust to reduce the Trust’s carbon footprint by 14,000 tonnes a year, and guarantee energy savings of at least £1.3m a year for the Nottingham City Hospital.

The project received grant funding from the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS), which is administered by Salix on behalf of the Government’s Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).

The City Hospital currently relies on aged gas and coal fired boilers for heating and hot water, which Vital Energi will be replacing with more energy-efficient and environmentally friendly technologies, resulting in a reduction of 14,000 tonnes of carbon per year.

The old laundry building will be demolished so Vital can construct a new energy centre at the heart of the site, which will be equipped with combined heat and power units to provide heating and electricity throughout the hospital using new and improved energy infrastructure.

Vital Energi will also be installing renewable generation and energy conservation measures such as LED lighting, 300 kWe solar PV panels, and 342 kW air source heat pumps around the hospital, which will deliver energy and carbon reductions.

These solutions will have a significant impact on the overall energy performance and carbon emissions of the hospital, and the lighting upgrades will enhance the patient experience in both the wards and common areas.

Andrew Chatten, Director of Estates and Facilities at the Trust, said:

“We are committed to doing everything possible to reduce our carbon footprint, and to upgrade our ageing hospital estate, which costs a lot to maintain and makes it much harder for us to deliver the outstanding patient care to which we aspire. Having secured grant funding as part of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, we are now looking forward to working with Vital Energi to make City Hospital much more energy efficient.”

Sameen Khan, NHS Programme Manager for Salix Finance, added:

“We are pleased we can support Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust and be a partner in their landmark project. Their commitment to improving their patient care, facilities, reducing their carbon footprint and considering the impact they were having on the environment, has been emphasised from the onset of their funding application and relationship with Salix. We are proud to be a part of their journey towards a low-carbon future.”

With vast experience of working in acute hospital environments throughout the UK, and through excellent communication, working alongside hospital staff, Vital Energi will ensure minimal disruption and continuity of service.

Vital Energi are delivering the project through the Carbon and Energy Fund Framework, which has been specifically created to fund complex energy infrastructure upgrades for public sector organisations.

We are making key progress with our project at Telford Homes’ Nine Elms Parkside, a 14–acre development between Battersea and Vauxhall situated on the former Royal Mail Centre. We are delivering a £17m contract to deliver the primary energy infrastructure package for plots B and D including heating, cooling and boosted water supply to 894 apartments.

Plot D is made up of 3 blocks comprising a total of 459 apartments. So far, we have completed all Heat Interface Unit (HIU) and Cooling Interface Unit (CIU) installations to each of the 459 apartments and provided the water treatment operations to the low temperature hot water and chilled water-cooling systems. The gas systems are operational, and the car park extract systems are commissioned, and within the plant room, the boilers, the first chiller, pressurisation units, pumps, degassers, and boosted cold water systems are all installed and commissioned. Ventilation is provided with Air Handling Units (AHU) which supply and extract air to the gym.

Plot B is made up of 3 blocks comprising 435 apartments. We have installed all the HIUs within the apartments and have installed 200 CIU units so far. Almost all the gas pipework systems are in place, along with the distribution and lateral pipework to apartments, low temperature hot water, chilled water, and the boosted cold-water systems are also near completion.

With work progressing on both plots B and D, our next milestones are the commissioning on plot D’s remaining chillers, Automatic Opening Vent (AOV) systems, rainwater harvesting systems, air conditioning systems and the final insulation and trace heating. Within plot B, we are looking ahead to final completion of the gas system, Air Handling Unit (AHU) ductwork, car park extract systems, AOV systems and Building Management Systems (BMS) wiring.

We’ll be handing block 1 of plot D over to the client in December.

Work is progressing at Berkeley’s impressive Oval Village development in South London where we were awarded the design and build contract for Block A, the first of seven blocks.

Block A is made up of 5 cores, and we have been working on cores 3 and 4 on the mechanical and electrical scope, which have been handed back to the client, ready for occupancy before the end of the year.

The heating, and chilled and boosted cold water systems are now live on all the first-floor distribution which feeds cores 3, 4 and 5. All sprinkler pipework feeding both cores 3 and 4 are operational. We have all the electrical work live and tested in cores 3, 4 and the temporary concierge, which includes fire alarms, smoke extract, (Life safety systems) external lighting, telecoms, and door entry.

A major highlight for our team at Oval was getting all the mechanical aspects of the project over the line which included the installation of the temporary Energy Centre, which comprises of boilers, plate heat exchangers and ancillaries feeding into two blocks. On the roof of Block A we have installed two chillers, a boosted cold water system, smoke extract, fire alarm, door entry and level 1 and ground floor sprinkler systems, main LV switch panels, feeding all distribution panels in the cores, main electrical risers and DB boards feeding the floors.

We’ve taken some pictures of the chillers that sit on Block A roof, inside of the chillers and the mechanical pipework that runs above the different levels of cores 3 and 4. Oval Village overlooks into the iconic Oval international cricket ground and boasts spectacular views of well-known London landmarks, which you can see on the pictures too.

Our next milestone will be the handing over of Cores 5 by the end of February next year.

Mohammad Basid, one of our Building Services Engineering apprentices based in London has been with Vital for over a year. He tells us about his journey so far; what he has learnt, what he gets upto in his current department, and his goals and aspirations for the future.

Currently based at our Energetik Heat Network project in Enfield, Mohammad started his apprentice journey in September 2021 and has gained a wealth of knowledge working across our business units.

“It’s been a great experience so far,” said Mohammad. “I have been with different departments and learned more about what Vital do as a business. I started with metering and billing for the first three and half months, where I learnt about the V-Pro system we use, and how the engineers install meters in people’s houses which taught me a range of things from simple electric works to interacting professionally with customers”.

Mohammad recently visited our Blackburn office, where he learnt how to build our vTherm°e HIUs.

“I learnt so much more about HIUs and how to fix common issues as well as how to conduct major works in plant rooms, such as changing valves and bellows. I gained a lot of knowledge as I was always working with an experienced engineer!”

“I’m currently learning about project management on the Energetik project based in Enfield from Senior Project Manager, Philip Kyriacou, and Project Manager, Colin Miller. I assist them with authorising permits, daily diary arrangements, filling in daily labour sheets and assisting sub-contractors when they need help. So far, it has been a great experience learning about management and the different roles and responsibilities that come with it, as well as providing solutions to keep up with what is required of a main contractor.”

Mohammad assisted with a site visit too, where investors, employees from Energetik, and councillors from Enfield Council were able to learn about and see the project progress.

“I had the opportunity, alongside Philip and Colin, to show them around the site, explain what is happening and talk about the progress of the project. It was a great experience because it was good to hear their perspective on the project, especially the people who are going to be using the building when finished.”

“What I really like about my apprenticeship is that I am learning a broad range of skills which will widen my career opportunities. On top of that, we have a fantastic college in Liverpool, with amazing facilities and teachers, where we get to stay for a week roughly every 5 weeks. I really love that aspect because we get to experience a different city and it is a nice break from working in London. Adding to that, I am a massive Liverpool fan, so it is a bonus for me as I get to go to some games at Anfield when I am there!”

“My goal is to complete this apprenticeship and achieve the best grade possible. In the future, working my way to management is an aspiration of mine, even though it will come with challenges, it will be very rewarding. I am thankful for having great role models such as Philip and Colin to learn from!”

If you know anyone who would be interested in joining Vital’s net zero apprenticeship programme, click here and keep an eye out for applications opening later this month.

We understand that housing providers are facing unprecedented pressure to balance customer care, decarbonisation and energy costs and Unlock Net Zero Event will be the perfect opportunity to discuss how Vital Energi can help you meet your energy goals.

Join us on stand U110 where we will be showcasing our range of digital technologies which we developed to enhance the heat network customer experience whilst helping your decarbonisation strategy to become a reality.

Learn more about:

• vTherm˚e Heating Interface Unit The space saving vTherm°e Heat Interface Unit (HIU) is amongst the most efficient models in the market and has one of the lowest VWARTs of all BESA tested HIU’s.

• vTherm˚c Cooling Interface Unit Launched in 2022, the vTherm˚c Cooling Interface Unit range is available in three different capacities and is designed to enhance energy efficiency whilst cooling your space.

• Glass App & Portal, the smart metering and billing platform Glass is the smart metering and billing platform which offers greater transparency, visibility and control over energy usage.

• vPro2, In Home Display Intuitive, feature rich in-home display designed to help prepayment end users make informed decisions.

On Tuesday 23^rd November at 13:30, Katy Lister, Vital Energi’s Client Relationship Director, will be hosting a question and answer session on the UNLOCK NET ZERO SOLUTIONS stage where you will have the opportunity put your questions to a panel of guests from the housing and energy sectors, as they discuss their priorities and the available tools to tackling the current energy market challenges.

We look forward to welcoming you to Unlock Net Zero Live at Excel London between 23^rd & 24^th November 2022, and hopefully, helping you on your decarbonisation journey.

To book your free ticket by clicking here

To arrange to meet the Vital Energi team at Unlock Net Zero Live, please email:

Katy Lister (Client Relationship Director) [email protected]

Glenn Harrison (Business Development) [email protected]

Lance Colwyn (vTherm Business Manager) [email protected]

We are delighted that one of the first students to enrol on our Net Zero Apprenticeships programme has won the Technical Apprentice of the Year (Level 3-4) award at CIBSE’s Young Engineer Awards 2022.

Harvey is a 2^nd year Technical Apprentice with Vital Energi and studies at The City of Liverpool College. As part of his apprenticeship, he has been working in various departments ranging from work winning through to commercial and design and he is now moving onto the site-based part of his experience.

We’re delighted to announce that the Tower of Light has won the High Standard of Design Award at the Structural Steel Design Awards 2022.

In their 54^th year, the Structural Steel Design Awards celebrate the excellence of steel construction in the UK, particularly demonstrating its potential in terms of efficiency, cost effectiveness, aesthetics, sustainability, and innovation.

Owned by Manchester City Council and built by Vital Energi alongside Shawton Engineering, the focal point of the Civic Quarter Heat Network, which provides low-carbon heat and power to some of Manchester city centre’s most iconic buildings, is the 40m Tower of Light.

The sculptural landmark, which supports and encloses five flues, was designed by architects Tonkin Liu, and developed in collaboration with structural engineers at Arup.

The unique shell lace tower is built from 6 and 8mm thick flat steel sheets, which were tailored, laser-cut, then welded together to create a curved stiff strong surface. During the day, polished steel reflectors move in a wave-like motion in the wind to reflect sunlight into the tower’s chambers, and during the night, LED lights directed at the polished reflectors create moving light.

Vital Energi’s Ashley Malin, Managing Director (Solutions), said:

“The Tower of Light is a striking landmark in the city centre and the most visible manifestation of the Civic Quarter Heat Network, which is reducing carbon emissions and supporting the Manchester’s transition to zero carbon by 2038. We’re really pleased that intricately designed tower has been recognised by the judges and awarded the High Standard of Design Award.”

Read more about the project here.