NuTech Renewables, by way of its two principal professional engineers Bill Quigley and Mark Forkin, have a wide range of experience in the following areas:

 

  They have designed and built numerous low energy houses over the past 25 years. They have been involved in not just the design of the fabric but also in the design of the heating systems and their controls. The overall result have been packages which have been noted as the most energy efficient systems commercially available for Low Energy / Low CO₂ housing. They have developed, installed, monitored and demonstrated the benefits of low energy systems, including solar energy based technologies, heat pump technologies and other alternative heating systems and strategies.

  

They have provided independent assessments of building systems and their energy performance. These assessments have been in relation to both traditional concrete block houses and modern timber frame buildings. Apart from the European Commission and Irish Government agencies, confidential reports have been carried out for many companies, the following being a sample:

   

 

• The Electricity Supply Board (The Irish Electric Utility company)
• CRH, COFORD (the Irish Forestry Service),  
•     Century Homes Ltd
•    NuAire Group
•  CRH plc
•   Hytherm Ltd
• Aerobord Ltd
• ITFMA (the Irish Timber Frame Manufacturers Association
• Manor Park Homebuilders Ltd
• Wicklow County Council
• Housing Associations
• Initiatives Architects (UK)

 

They have designed and manufactured a high technology solar assisted heat pump system utilising novel concepts they developed. The concepts were widely publicised throughout Europe and beyond. Bill Quigley was invited by the European Commission's Energy Directorate to present technical papers on this and related technologies in France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Denmark, UK, Brazil and Japan.

 

They have been involved in a number of projects that have attracted support from Sustainable Energy Ireland's House of Tomorrow Programme. One of these, which was completed in 2003, was a 26-house scheme in Virginia Co Cavan. Ryan O'Brien Handy were the architects and NuTech carried out all of the thermodynamic calculations and reports to SEI and designed and installed the 4-collector Sunwarm systems with Heat Recovery Ventilation in the houses. 

  

They were also involved in the Century Homes Formula 1 House project, which has also received SEI House of Tomorrow Programme support.

 

 

 

 

Technologies and equipment tried and tested:

 

   Insulation systems:

•    PU/PIR laminates
•   SafeWarm block (integrally insulated block)
•    Timber Frame (high performance systems)
•  Cavity wall (full and partially filled systems)

 

Controlled Ventilation Systems: 

• Ventilation Strategies (positive input and HRV systems)
•  Air Tightness (Best practice details in timber frame & concrete block constructions)
•   Blower Door Testing

  Testing Heat Loss Characteristics of Houses

 

• Monitoring temperatures, energy use, etc
• Calculation and reporting of heat losses
• Use of Infra Red Thermography 

       Solar Panels designed and tested.

 

•  Air based, selectively coated with twin skinned polycarbonate glazing.
•  Air based, matrix absorber with glass, single glazing
•  Air based, matrix absorber with glass and teflon glazing
•  Evacuated Tube collectors

       Thermal Stores:

 

•  Rock bed store.
•  Phase Change Material (PCM) store.
• Glycol stores.

 

     Electric Thermal Stores:

• Off peak electric water store in conjunction with solar assisted heat pump.

 

   Heat Pumps:

•   Air to water, feeding radiators.
•   Air to air, solar assisted.
•   Air to air, solar assisted plus PCM store.
•   Air to air, solar assisted plus conventional boiler.

 

         Other Solar systems:

• Air based Solar panel plus Heat Recovery Ventilation and conventional oil / gas boiler.
•  Air based Solar panel plus Positive Input Ventilation.

   

Technologies currently being worked on:

 

•  Air Solar Heating with integrated Heat Recovery Ventilation and hot water in conjunction with a wood pellet boiler. The Air Solar system when linked to the wood pellet boiler is the house heating system (the Formula 1 House system)
•  Air based Solar Heater assisting under floor heating and ventilation in conjunction with oil / gas boiler.
•  Air based Solar Heater assisting under floor heating and ventilation in conjunction with heat pump for heating or cooling.
• Evaporative Cooling systems in conjunction with air based heating and ventilation systems.
• Integrated air solar and PV collectors for buildings. 

  

Related expertise:

 

•   Development of energy related software projects such as U-Value calculators and systems to aid Condensation Risk Analysis.
• Development of 'smart' control systems for maintaining optimum temperatures in houses in winter and summer.
• Developed energy model for housing using Test Reference weather data and calibrated against major European models (ESP, etc).
•   Expert in energy rating and environmental impact of heating systems.
•   Sitting on advisory committees.

 

Further Information

 

  For futher information, please contact NuTech Renewables Ltd today