Benson Signs - Fired Up for Winter

Low Carbon heating systems at leading sign manufacturer.
Following on from the success of our first 190kW biomass heating system, an additional 60kW system has been installed to provide heat to our paint shop and annexed unit at Upper William Street.
In early 2013, with the help of Tomkinson Heating of Macclesfield, Cheshire, we took the plunge into the world of biomass heating with the installation of a 190kW Strebel Taurus biomass boiler, to replace three gas boilers and a 200kW warm air blower. Such has been the success of this system that we quickly decided we would replace a second, gas fired system in our paint shop. As 2014 progressed however, we decided to open up our adjacent unit and use this as an additional 5000sq ft of production space, which obviously required heating as well.
This required a re-think of the design of the system, and it was decided to make use of two 25kW warm air blowers with integral heat exchange units, that will blow warm air throughout the unit. As the system was to replace the existing gas combi-boiler, that provided hot water to the paint shop cleaning area, Tomkinsons also installed a plate heat exchange unit to provide instant hot water at the sink.
Biomass systems are able to run on a wide range of fuels, and in line with our existing system we utilise solid wood pellets certified to the ENplus Standard, manufactured sustainably from UK grown wood fibre, and purchased through trusted local supplier, Billington BioEnergy. Biomass is classed as a renewable energy, as CO2 emissions generated during combustion are as a result of carbon absorbed during forest growth, and is re-absorbed through sustainable management of the woodland. Purchasing from Billingtons gives us the additional benefits of using a known local supplier, and UK grown material, which further increases its credentials.
As a renewable source of energy, Biomass also entitles us to claim payments from the Government under the Renewable Heat Incentive. With the fuel costing approximately the same as our gas supplies, quarterly payments received under the RHI scheme contribute to reducing the running costs of the system, improving our bottom-line and making us more competitive, as well as dramatically increasing our environmental credentials and maintenance of ISO14001.
Health, Safety, Environment & Quality Coordinator, Graham Barker says; “Having realised the benefit of biomass from our first system, it was easy to commit to the second, and while considerably smaller, represents greater confidence in biomass as a technology. With our first installation we fully retained our gas fired system as a back-up in case of emergency. This system fully replaced our gas boiler, so we have no back-up. We have also calculated that this new system will reduce our carbon footprint by a further three tonnes.”