Commercial Case Study: Fairwood Fabrications

In 1996 Barclays Bank voted Fairwood Fabrications Ltd Small Business of the Year in South Wales and the company has an enviable list of clients including Elf Oil, BP Chemicals, British Steel and AMEC.

Fairwood Fabrications was established in 1979 and through its commitment to invest in improving the technical skills and services it provides, the company continues to be a leading supplier of steel fabrication services to the South Wales Steel, oil and petrochemical industries.

Fairwood Fabrications is also fully dedicated to develope good and safe working practices - the company won the BP Chemicals Safety Award for completing one million working hours without suffering any lost time due to accidents - and in 1999 invested in the expansion and redevelopment of its site at Port Talbot. The developments included new and improved equipment for the workshop, modernised office facilities and in-house training facilities.

Fairwood undertook a total review of the energy requirements of the site, with a number of key objectives:

• Reduce costs
• Improve the heating system in both the office and workshop areas
• Reduce the handling of gas cylinders for cutting, to improve working practices and reduce downtime
• Use the same source of energy for multiple applications

Following the review, consideration was given to both oil and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to meet the site's energy needs. Fairwood contacted Calor for advice on the use of LPG and, after receiving a comprehensive assessment of the site's requirements and how specific heating problems could be solved with gas powered radiant heaters, the company opted for a Calor powered system supplied by 3 bulk storage tanks, each containing 2000 litres of propane.

The workshop, which is a working area for up to 36 employees, is used to cut, fabricate and weld steel sections: activity which demands open areas and a high roof housing a gantry crane. To overcome ventilation issues associated with the workshop, Calor advised the use of radiant heating, and four radiant heaters manufactured by Ambi-Rad were installed in the roof space above the crane.

The radiant heaters were positioned to provide warmth directly onto the welders and fabricators, and are powered by propane from one of the bulk tanks. A separate gas line was installed in the workshop to provide propane for up to 10 sets of burning gear for oxy-propane cutting. The installation of a gas line infrastructure removed the need to handle propane cylinders and has enabled the workforce to remain more static and therefore receive maximum benefit from the radiant heating system.

Steve Sharp, works co-ordinator at Fairwood Fabrications, commented: "The new heating system, combined with an integral gas line for cutting not only cost-effective - it also allows our welders and fabricators to work much more efficiently. Introducing the gas line and eliminating the need to handle cylinders regularly has improved productivity and the workforce benefit from the direct warmth provided by the Ambi-Rad heaters."

On Calor's recommendation, Fairwood chose a combination boiler to provide heating for the offices, along with hot water for the toilets and washroom. An LPG powered Gariston Genus combi boiler was selected to run radiators in the canteen and 11 offices which form the 380 sq. m (over 4,200 sq. ft) of office space.

Steve Sharp concluded: "The redevelopment of our Port Talbot site was a considerable undertaking, and I am pleased to report that the installation of our new LPG system was completed without a hitch - thanks primarily to the comprehensive advice and assistance we received from Calor. We set out a number of key objectives and these have been met: the workshop and office heating is effective yet cost-efficient; we have reduced handling of cylinders and the associated costs; and we now have an energy source which can be used across virtually every application within the company.

"Although we were originally advised to install oil-fired heating, we are delighted that further consideration revealed the greater benefits of an LPG powered system. In fact, we are so impressed the versatility and efficiency of the fuel, and the high standard of service from Calor, that we plan to establish a paint shop facility in the near future, heated by Calor powered Ambi-Rad heaters."