Graylingwell Park

Client: Graylingwell LLP
Location: Graylingwell Park, Near Chichester, West Sussex

Galliford Try was awarded an ESCo (Energy Service Company) contract to operate, manage and maintain the community heating scheme at the first major net zero carbon housing development in the UK. The ESCo is for a 25 year term.

Galliford Try was also awarded a contract to design and build the energy centre and community heating scheme. Work includes the design, mechanical and electrical fit-out of the centre, installation of a community heating main and the billing platform.

The community heating scheme is for a mixed use development of residential dwellings and associated social, leisure and commercial buildings.

The energy centre and community heating main will contain:

• Four boilers, 1.1 megawatts each.
• Two combined heat and power engines with a capacity of 500 kilowatts each.
• Two 48,000-litre thermal stores.
• Approximately 8km heating main pipe work.
• Associated water treatment and distribution infrastructure.

The fuel source is converted in the energy centre into heat and electricity. Heat from the plant will be supplied to the 750 homes on the site via a site-wide community heating main while electricity will be sold to an external user. The design is flexible so that the centre can be upscaled when more buildings are linked to the network.

Generating both electricity and heat from the same fuel source results in efficiencies and the biggest single onsite contributor to Graylingwell’s unique net zero carbon status. Some of the other key green features supporting the net zero carbon status include energy efficient building design, and photovoltaic roof panels.

In order to meet the requirements of Level 6 of the Code for Sustainable Homes, Galliford Try has considered energy aspects as an integral and fundamental part of Graylingwell right from the inception stage rather than as a feature that follows on from the design of the buildings.