Picture by Shaun Fellows / Shine Pix Ltd
In the latest of our spotlight series in partnership with The Heat Pump Association, Michelle Eastty from the elemental team speaks to Mark Wilkins, Technologies & Training Director at Vaillant Group UK about low carbon heating solutions, with a focus on heat pump technology.
When did Vaillant become of a member of the Heat Pump Association (HPA) and what does being a member of the HPA involved? E.g. benefits, recent highlights, campaigns etc.
Vaillant became a member of the HPA in 2019, just before the pandemic kicked in. We attended a number of face-to-face meetings, and it was a busy time, as heat pumps were really ramping up in the government’s mind and gaining more public attention.
The HPA is a collective of like-minded organisations – and together we are stronger and get greater industry representation. This means that we can influence government and relevant stakeholders in a way that benefits the industry. Singularly any manufacturer would struggle to achieve this. We value the exchange with like-minded individuals within the HPA, not just with other manufacturers, but also with ancillary equipment and system accessory manufacturers involved in the association.
There have been important things happening like enhancing training for heat pump installers, which the HPA has been instrumental in developing and delivering.
How has Vaillant helped to raise awareness of the benefits of heat pumps through being a member of the HPA?
As I mentioned, strength comes in numbers, helping the association to be a collective voice for the industry. Because we offer the full portfolio of boilers and heat pumps, we provide a balanced view. That has helped with the credibility for the HPA, as we have representation from some very well established, cross sector players who believe in the technology well enough to come together.
We also sponsored Heat Pump Month in June 2021, a campaign backed by the HPA and other industry groups, and heat pump manufacturers. This pushed heat pumps to the fore through a series of events helping to raise awareness across a wide and varied spectrum of stakeholders including policy makers, installers and social housing providers.
Elemental’s partnership with the Heat Pump Association, provides a series of informative content pieces, including this blog, on the latest developments in low carbon heating. What do you see as the key benefits of this partnership/sharing advice?
This is a good opportunity for best practice sharing and helps to secure a sustainable supply chain. It allows us to work towards achieving the 2028 targets of 600,000 heat pumps, and the incumbent challenges that come with this. We all have a responsibility in the heating industry to help meet the targets set by government, collectively, we have a stronger chance of achieving these targets.
What are the benefits of heat pump technology?
Net zero targets have been set by government, by 2050 in England and Wales, and by 2045 in Scotland. To achieve this, we have to decarbonise pretty much everything in the home and transport as well. Heat pumps have a massive role to play in decarbonising heat in the built environment.
They are a zero-emission technology at point of use, and because they run from electricity, that’s a progressively decarbonising energy source in its own right. Over recent years we’ve seen growth of wind, and photovoltaic (PV) technologies, and more tidal power, which are clean sources of electricity. The carbon content of electricity has reduced, to the point where it’s almost, if not already at, parity with gas. Ultimately, heat pumps will start to progressively replace the incumbent gas boiler.
Heat pumps are a very efficient type of technology. We talk in terms of COPs or co-efficient of performance, and, roughly, you can get three times the amount of energy out that you pay to put in. So, for every one kilowatt of electrical energy you put in, you will get 3-4 kilowatts of heat energy out of the unit, making it very efficient.
However, electricity is currently 3-4 times more expensive than gas, so it’s crucial that the industry make heat pumps as efficient as possible. If you’re above 3-4 COP, not only are you getting technology that’s low carbon, but you’re also getting technology that’s got parity in cost with gas.
They are very widely used in many European and Scandinavian countries, so it’s not a new technology and is proven, and not subject to challenges that new innovations face. Most of the components within a heat pump are widely used in allied industries such as refrigeration and air conditioning. There are large scales of these components that are already being produced and used.
What is the ongoing energy crisis and the steep rises in energy likely to do to this market?
Any technology that uses energy efficiently is going to be better for the homeowner. At the moment, gas and electricity prices, in this country are quite tightly linked because we still use a lot of gas to produce electricity, so as gas prices go up, electricity prices go up as well. That is slowly changing over time, and we are becoming more reliant on electricity from clean sources, but there is still this price differential.
For the time being, until the government addresses the environmental levies that are placed on electricity, with lower energy levies on gas, then electricity carries disproportionately a higher amount of taxation. Government set out plans to address this in the recent Heat and Buildings Strategy, with one option being to switch levies from electricity to gas.
This is a sensitive area, as even small changes can put thousands, if not millions of people into fuel poverty, which is not something any government would want to do or that the industry wants to have to work with. Ultimately, the more efficient a technology is, the better it is long-term for your running costs and to alleviate the pain we will all feel from the rise in energy prices.
What heat pump technology innovations does Vaillant offer? For example, Vaillant’s new heat pump, aroTHERM plus, uses state-of-the-art heating technology. Can you tell me more about this and how it’s changing the industry?
We offer a full portfolio of heat pumps with our first heat pump being introduced over fifteen years ago. We’ve been setting standards in the heating market for over 140 years, including our extensive boiler expertise.
aroTHERM plus is our newest heat pump, which we see as a game changer for the heat pump world. It uses a natural refrigerant (R290)– and the refrigerant is at the heart of what a heat pump is, moving the energy from one source to another. Using a natural refrigerant provides several benefits. Firstly, environmentally it’s very good, with a low global warming potential of just 3 – this is the damage that something can be done to the environment over a period of time.
Because of the refrigerant properties it can allow you to run the heat pump at higher temperatures for a short period of time. This means that you can get hot water from your tap, at a usable temperature of 55-65 °C, without the need for an electrical immersion heater.
You can connect the heat pump to a cylinder, and it becomes a lot closer to the performance of a traditional boiler, but with all the benefits of heat pump technology because it’s more efficient.
The heat pump also operates ultra-quietly which is very useful for people living in built up areas, such as terrace houses. With the intelligent management of sound power in the system, we minimise noise levels.
There are a range of intelligent controls for the equipment, all designed to work together and via an app. The aroTHERM plus range holds the Quiet Mark accreditation on several models.
The development of hybrid systems which combine renewable energies with heating appliances to create highly efficient and intelligent systems, is also a key focus area. A heat pump can run, for example, 80 per cent of the heating of your property and on really, really cold days you can run gas. This gives you the best of both worlds.
Vaillant recently announced it’s extending its UK manufacturing facility and will begin manufacturing heat pumps alongside its range of high efficiency boilers from 2022. What were the key drivers for this?
We have invested several million pounds on a new heat pump production line at our Derbyshire factory that will run alongside the boiler production lines . In the short-term it will create seventy new jobs and more after that. We have a strategy to bring manufacturing close to the point of use, as quickly as this is viable. We’ve always planned to produce heat pumps and any other technology in the UK once we reach that critical point. With the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, the Renewable Heat Incentive, the Heat and Buildings Strategy and the commitment to over 600,000 heat pumps by 2028, now is a good time to invest more in this to ramp up production in the UK, especially with the increase in consumer awareness to support this.
How does Vaillant support installers in the industry to expand their skills to accommodate heat pumps?
We have seven training facilities across the UK for installers. Training is provided for existing heat pump installers looking to hone skills, or those coming across from the gas sector. We provide courses about our own products and controls, and we run a number of industry courses, for example about decarbonisation and the role a heat pump would play.
We also have vocational short courses certified by Awarding Organisations like Cert-ain or LCL Awards and developed in conjunction with the Heat Pump Association. On the specifier side, we provide a series of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) modules covering low carbon technologies, including heat pumps.
On that note, Vaillant is a regular exhibitor at InstallerSHOW, which in 2022 will be co-located with our debut elemental expo. What are the primary reasons/benefits of being involved?
The 2022 show allows us to interact with a wider range of target audiences from installers to specifiers. I attended the 2021 show and also took part in some interesting panel debates on the future of the industry. So I’ll be interested in its development as it moves to the NEC this year, where it will be on a larger scale and co-located with the elemental expo.
What are some of the other challenges that need to be overcome on the road to decarbonisation and net zero?
We’ve produced a White Paper, ‘Decarbonising Home Heating in the UK’ which covers the range of technology available and outlining four underlying themes for further focus:
1) Improving the fabric of the building, which will save energy and costs
2) Upgrading of systems – some systems will need upgrading, such as pipework, and radiators. Heat pump installations will take longer, so proactive planning will be needed.
3) Labour shortage – we need more installers to become registered if we are to achieve government targets. This is a good opportunity to join a skilled trade.
4) Educate the homeowner and policymakers – a lot of people know about heat pumps but may not know what’s involved.
What’s been the impact for Vaillant since the government’s Heat and Buildings Strategy?
There’s been massive interest in heat pumps and low carbon technologies, and we’ve had increased calls and website hits and an uptake in the heat pump training we offer. 2021 was our biggest year to date for heat pump sales which shows there is a growing appetite for low carbon technology across the UK.
Do you think we are on course to meet the government’s heat pump targets of 600,000 a year by 2028?
We have a mature technology, and we’ve got relatively clear policy direction and targets on this. The pandemic is a challenge alongside the labour shortages, which I mentioned earlier. We need more trained people. In order to decarbonise heating, upskilling existing engineers in the industry is fundamental and the government really needs to focus on this.
A lot of the people we work with are family businesses and there’s a good opportunity for the next generation to get on board with this technology. This is a sector that is very important to the economy and the climate. So there are great opportunities for people to have well-paid, highly skilled jobs as installers.
What do you want to see from the government to hit these goals?
Typically, the installer is a small business from a sole trader to just 2-3 staff. If they spend a day training, they lose a day’s business. There needs to be some funding to off-set this cost and incentivise the installer to train and reduce the financial burden when they do this.
Are there any more government reports or updates that you are aware are planned for next year that the industry needs to look at?
There are a number of consultations taking place and feedback from those being reviewed, including further development from the Heat and Buildings Strategy. This includes a recent consultation on the market-based mechanisms to support the development of heat pumps in the UK.
There’s also lots happening on the hydrogen side, which will have an impact on heating systems. The direction is becoming clearer, but we need clarity on how we are going to get there. We know that heat pumps will play an important role in that process and, in the coming year or so, we’re going to find out a lot more about how we’re going to get there.
For further information about Vaillant visit www.vaillant.co.uk and for the Heat Pump Association visit www.heatpumps.org.uk/
