Commercial Case Studies

Crowne Plaza Hotel – Alice Springs

Over the past few years the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Alice Springs has demonstrated a willingness to save on hotel running costs and at the same time reduce its carbon footprint. As a part of this strategy, Hotel Management engaged the services of The Centre for Appropriate Energy, a private firm that carries out energy audits for Commercial Pool Owners and Government bodies with the aim of reducing energy consumption and costs for the heating of swimming pools. They determined that Solar Heating would help the Hotel with its costs and its carbon footprint.

Wayne Greenhill from Heliocol South Australia, a well respected supplier and installer of Solar Pool Heating, was approached to see what he could do to reduce the Hotel’s swimming pool heating and energy costs.

After several visits and consultations, Wayne suggested utilizing 3 pitched roofs and an adjacent flat roof for the installation of a Heliocol Solar Heating System. Subsequently the pool heating system was installed as 2 separate systems utilising 2 dedicated pumps and solar controllers. This allowed for easier operation and control by the hotel maintenance staff after installation.

During their energy audit, the Crowne Plaza also installed the Southern Hemisphere’s largest roof mounted PV solar electric system, and to further improve sustainability they included into the programme, solar water heating, decommissioning of old steam boilers, replacement of inefficient lights and fittings, greater use of re-cycling, installation of water saving devices and improvements to their air-conditioning.

Crowne Plaza Alice Springs subsequently went on to win a Telstra Business of the Year Award for Innovation. Heliocol congratulates Crowne Plaza Alice Springs and appreciates the opportunity to help them achieve their goal of dramatically reducing their energy requirements.

Blue Mountains Council NSW – Katoomba Community Pool

Heliocol Sydney was contacted by an International Energy Conservation Company in November 2004 to provide them with a heating analysis to present to Blue Mountains City Council. During the initial site inspection with the Council engineers and the facilities manager it was made quite specific that the Council was looking for a Solar pool heating system that would not only perform well in the cooler climate of the Blue mountains but also be robust enough to withstand the local wildlife (Sulpher Crested Cockatoos & Possums).

During the initial site inspection it was determined that the most suitable location for the solar panels was on the basketball stadium roof, which was 83m from the plant room and 11m above the pool level, this was easily overcome with consultation from a hydraulic engineer. The biggest hurdle to overcome was how we were to connect in to the existing concrete lined cast iron pipe. It was decided to replace the old pipe with 316 Stainless Steel.

It was determined from the heating analysis that the installation of the Heliocol system that the gas consumption and carbon emissions would be reduced by over 30%. Blue Mountains council decided that the installation was not only economically viable but also an environmentally responsible option.

The installation was completed in 6 working days with pressure testing and hand over of the system taking place on the 7th day. The system has now been in place for over 5 years and the feed back from the council indicate that the system is operating above expectations. Heliocol has also installed systems on Springwood and Glenbrook pools in the Blue Mountains based on the merits of the Katoomba installation.

Rostrevor College Adelaide SA

Rostrevor College was looking for a new solar heating system for their 625 square metre pool. They had an existing solar heating system that was no longer working. Heliocol South Australia was contacted by the College, following a recommendation by a major pool builder in Adelaide.

Heliocol Sales Representative and Installer, Craig Birchmore, inspected the facility and determined that a replacement solar system was needed, together with replacement of associated plumbing, pump and controller.

After calculation of the pool’s area, volume and required roof area, Craig and Heliocol SA Manager, Wayne Greenhill, submitted a proposal to the College Board. Following a final inspection and further discussions with the College Principal, their proposal was accepted. The job was to be undertaken during the summer break of January 2009. After first removing the old system, the new Heliocol equipment was lifted to the roof of the adjacent sports complex by crane owing to the height of the building.

The Heliocol panels were installed in a series/parallel configuration to achieve optimum water flow. New 80mm class 12 cPVC pipe was run back to the plant room and a new Hurlcon pump was installed, drawing its water from a trio of filtration return lines. A Dontek differential controller, was installed and wired to turn the new solar heating pump off if water flow from the filter pumps is ever interrupted. Results from the new system are very encouraging, with students enjoying a much warmer pool.

Monash University, Melbourne Victoria

The projects and facilities department at Monash University in Clayton, Victoria were directed by management to complete a green energy audit of the university complex and facilities. Among other options, the heating of the two indoor pools at their Doug Ellis swimming centre were identified as a major ongoing running cost and could be substantially reduced by successfully implementing solar heating.

Heliocol Victoria demonstrated how this could be best achieved with performance data such as BTU input and quality certification on the product. After a lengthy inquiry period including product qualification and previous project history, Heliocol Victoria won the tender to complete the project over numerous competitors.

The work commenced in May 2008 with the removal of the existing rubber strip system which had failed to deliver maintenance free operation and performance. 81 HC50’s and 72 HC50’s were independently installed for the two pools and two 1-1/2 HP single phase pumps were fitted to each system. The pumps on each system were controlled automatically with flow switch protection and a gas lockout feature for maximum solar contribution. The project was completed in July 2008 and has been an ongoing success and great referral point.

Salisbury Council Pool, Adelaide, South Australia

Salisbury Council in Adelaide South Australia is an original Federal Government “Solar City”. When the existing old gas boiler used to heat their 50metre pool and their 25meter undercover learner’s pool reached the end of its life, Council decided to investigate the solar option as a means of lowering their costs.

After discussions with Wayne Greenhill, the Heliocol distributor for South Australia and an experienced installer of commercial heating systems, a decision was made to install 2 new gas heaters and a large solar array. This combination of gas and solar would achieve two things for Council

Although the two pools share the same filtration equipment it was decided to install the solar as two separate systems each with its own gas heater. This allows the Pool’s operators to have the two pools at different temperatures.

With insufficient roof space available for the installation of the entire solar equipment, Council agreed to fence off and seal some ground space on the slope behind the filtration equipment building. Wayne and his crew were then able to install sufficient square metres of Heliocol to supply the solar savings for the 50m pool. The separate solar system required for the undercover 25 metre pool was installed on the pool’s own curved fibreglass roof.

To ensure maximum energy savings, the electronic controllers are programmed to turn off the gas heaters whenever the solar systems are running. At last report, Council was enjoying energy savings of over $15,000 per year.