Tag Archives: HVAC

News

Grayson eyes £25m electric vehicle opportunity with roll out of new Vehicle Thermal Management System

A Vehicle Thermal Management System (VTMS) that saves weight and optimises driving range for electric buses, commercial vehicles and off highway applications is marking its first year in production in style.

Grayson Thermal Systems’ revolutionary VTMS combines battery thermal management and heat pump and air conditioning technology into one single system that helps the end-user save costs and space.

The technology, which also incorporate waste heat recycling and electric motor cooling to deliver the complete solution, is expected to tap into the demand for cleaner transport and bosses believe sales for electric double-deck buses could generate £15m of sales by the end of 2023 and more than £25m by 2025.

In order to take advantage of commercial volumes also starting to grow from 2024 onwards, Grayson is investing heavily in its UK manufacturing and build capability, and this will lead to the creation of tens of jobs locally.

“The beauty of our VTMS is that it brings all of our proven battery thermal management and heat pump technology for zero emission vehicles together in one neatly packaged system,” explained Matthew Hateley, European Sales Manager at Grayson Thermal Systems.

“Our unique software platform and clever control logic allows component sharing for different uses meaning a smaller and lighter solution, whilst our technical team have also come up with a unique way to recycle waste energy back into the system – helping the battery conserve power whilst, at the same time, delivering optimum heating and air conditioning performance.”

He went on to add: “The commercial vehicle platform has been designed in a modular way so that the OEM can build-in the technical features they want based on system performance requirements, cost and weight targets.”

Wrightbus, a world-leader in hydrogen and electric technology for the transport sector, became the first company to integrate the Grayson Vehicle Thermal Management System into parts of its fleet last year, a decision that has helped the StreetDeck Electroliner to officially become the most efficient double-deck battery-electric bus in the world.

Official assessments undertaken at UTAC – using the ZEMO-accredited Ultra Low Emission Bus (ULEB) test – showed that the bus achieved a result of 0.68 kWh/km.

This is around half the energy consumed by its closest BEV double-deck UK rival and a major contributing factor to this impressive result was the low energy consumption of the Grayson VTMS to achieve the HVAC requirements and maintain battery temperatures during the test.

Matthew continued to say: “We set a high expectation for what we wanted to achieve in terms of weight and energy efficiency savings, so to accomplish the test results we have gives us a high level of confidence that our technology will change the requirements of electric vehicle HVAC forever.

“More than two years after setting out our strategic goals, it’s fantastic to see our Vehicle Thermal Management System on the roads in and around the UK.”

Ian Gillott, Managing Director at Wrightbus, said: “We are pleased to have integrated the Grayson Vehicle Thermal Management System into part of our fleet. This has resulted in our StreetDeck Electroliner becoming the most efficient double-deck battery-electric bus in the world – something we are immensely proud of.

“Thermal management is critical to vehicle efficiency and the partnership between Grayson and Wrightbus has allowed us to fully optimise this. Being a leader in the zero-emissions transport industry, it is pleasing for us that Grayson is doing all it can to further enhance our vehicles’ performance and green credentials.”

Matthew went on to add: “We are now into the next stage of the development to further improve our product to optimise the performance and green credentials of electric vehicles whilst meeting new legislation coming into effect in 2024.

“The VTMS is the latest system we have introduced to our product range, and we’re delighted to have played a small, but important role in the StreetDeck Electroliner being named as the world’s most efficient double-deck battery-electric bus.

“Both firms share a passion for innovation and that will only continue as we aim to deliver greener transport solutions for the sector.”

Grayson Thermal Systems has worked hard to ensure the VTMS is extremely versatile as it embarks on the next set of customer programmes to productionise its platform for the commercial vehicle sector, including HGVs (up to 28 tonnes), refuse collection and off-highway vehicles destined for mining and construction.

Midlands News, News

West Midlands Mayor backs Grayson Thermal Systems to become global electrification leader

Hundreds of jobs could be created in the West Midlands with zero-emission technology advancements creating global export opportunities for Grayson Thermal Systems.

That was the clear message presented to Andy Street, the Mayor of the West Midlands, during a recent visit to the firm’s Tyseley base, with bosses at the 44-year-old firm convinced that the switch to greener transport solutions presents a ‘once in a generation’ opportunity for their company and the region as a whole.

Managing Director Stuart Hateley believes the area’s traditional strengths in innovation and R&D are already paving the way for new contracts across the world and wants the Government to get behind this drive by making sure that all publicly funded projects feature initiatives that ensure UK-produced goods are given a boost.

His own company is doing its bit, recently investing £2m in R&D, employee upskilling and state-of-the-art testing technology to help it bring a range of zero-emission vehicle products to market that are now being sold into the battery, electric and hydrogen fuel cell, on-highway, off-highway and rail markets.

These solutions are headlined by its Battery Thermal Management System (BTMS), which keeps zero emission vehicles batteries at a stable temperature improving efficiency and extending life.

There has also been significant interest in its complete Vehicle Thermal Management System (VTMS), MagDrive Pump and Electric Water Heater, the latter providing an instant source of clean heat generation that can be transferred for passenger or driver comfort.

“West Midlands manufacturers have really embraced the electrification drive and are exploring ways where they can take conventional technology and transform it into products that will help OEMs achieve zero emission targets,” commented Stuart, who runs Grayson Thermal Systems with his brothers Ian and James.

“From the beginning of 2021 we have enjoyed significant success in the UK, mainland Europe, North America and even further afield with our new suite of products and this is just the start…the potential is huge, with £millions of contracts up for grabs that could create hundreds of jobs here and throughout the supply chain.”

He continued: “It was great to welcome Andy Street to look at our technology developments, which have led to our recent successes and discuss ways in which we could work together to ensure that Government-funded projects deliver even more benefit to the local area.

“A lot of the time it is about making the powers that be aware of what we do in the region and the amazing technical expertise and proven technology we have on our doorstep.

“The conversations were very positive and there was a genuine desire from all parties to explore ways where we could accelerate the development of the region’s ‘electric’ supply chain, boosting domestic and international trade in the process.”

Andy Street, the Mayor of the West Midlands, added his support: “We have a unique opportunity to lead the UK in electrification and the Green Industrial Revolution, and we’ve already enjoyed several funding successes that will help build a more sustainable future – not least when it comes to transport infrastructure.

“But we must continue to explore ways in which we can ensure the full benefit of our greener future can be felt by local businesses, who have the technology, skills and expertise required to bring our plans to life.

“The visit to Grayson Thermal Systems gave me a first-hand insight into the technology we have here in the West Midlands and the opportunities this can bring both locally and on a global scale, as well as the challenges faced by our regional manufacturers. I look forward to continuing to work with firms like Grayson Thermal Systems as we drive the West Midlands forward into a new era.”

Birmingham-based Grayson Thermal Systems has bounced back from the pandemic and is enjoying a surge of new projects, contract wins and orders for its zero-emission range of thermal management products.

Group turnover will grow by another 15% in 2022 and more than 40 new jobs have already been created, with further positions now available across engineering, operations and administration.

News

Lakeland Renews Incentive Tec Contract

A UK-leading kitchenware brand has chosen to renew its contract with specialist facilities services provider Incentive Tec. Household name Lakeland has paid tribute to the M&E services work carried out by Incentive Tec, leading building services company within the Incentive FM Group, signing a new three year contract. Both companies have been linked since 2012 and have developed a successful working relationship across three Lakeland’s main UK offices.

Lakeland, one of the UK’s home shopping pioneers, is known for an unrivalled collection of innovative cooking, baking, cleaning, laundry and seasonal product ranges with more than 4000 products.

Gary Marshall, Lakeland Director of Operations, said: “Lakeland takes great pride in the high standards of our buildings, providing an environment where our customers and staff feel safe and comfortable to shop and work. Incentive Tec has been very sympathetic to our approach and has worked closely with us through recent uncertain times. They are perfectly aligned with our high expectations of service and quality and we’ve built a great working relationship. It’s very important to us to have confidence in our building services provider, and Incentive Tec make that an easy task. We look forward to another productive three year partnership.”

Incentive Tec will now continue to service the three main Lakeland offices in Kendal, Windermere and Handforth, with expert engineering resource across each location.

Chris Windass, Managing Director of Incentive Tec, said: “The last few months have been unprecedented for the whole industry, and we’ve had to adapt accordingly. During Covid-19 we have evolved our contract delivery to suit Lakeland’s requirements. Due to the pandemic, our staff weren’t initially permitted onto the sites (apart from emergency reactive works), but now we’re back up and running and helping with their repatriation of their buildings and teams. For us as a company within Incentive FM it’s all about growth and development. Lakeland is a great client and very progressive in how they want services delivered. The new contract highlights the work of our staff and engineers who have instilled confidence for our clients.”

As well as M&E, Incentive Tec has been working with the Lakeland team to ensure a phased repatriation of their head office and retail units.

Construction, Contract Wins, News

United Living Services secures multi million pound maintenance contract with Hammersmith and Fulham Council

United Living Property Services has announced that they have secured a prestigious contract with Hammersmith and Fulham Council as part of its repairs and maintenance contract, in a 5-year deal worth in excess of £20million.

Starting on August 1st, 2020, United Living Property Services will be responsible for providing essential day to day repairs service across an area consisting of around 5,000 homes including both flats and houses, as well as delivering refurbishment works to any empty homes. This will be operated 24/7 with an out of hours service.

Under the terms of the agreement around 20 staff will TUPE across to United Living Property Services and the team will provide a wide range of services including plumbing, carpentry, groundworks and electrical works. United Living Property Services will be working alongside contractors of different disciplines across various geographical lots.

Conor Bray, Managing Director of United Living Property Services, said:

“We are committed to working closely with Hammersmith and Fulham Council to help improve the lives of its residents and their communities. Our data driven customer focus delivers real value to our customers, driving improvements throughout the portfolio and as a result we are seeing significant growth within our business.”