Making sure every part of the heating and hot water system operates at maximum efficiency is key to getting the best return on investment following a boiler upgrade.

For commercial buildings, each system should be designed to take into account the individual characteristics of the building and its precise usage pattern.

However, even if the specification is correct and the system is properly installed and controlled, it may still not be operating at the peak of its design performance. Choosing the right boilers, possibly in conjunction with renewables such as solar collectors, is the right place to start.

Controls, too, are vitally important to the system's specification and can make a big difference to the overall efficiency. Getting all of these to work in conjunction with one another in the most efficient way is where the skilled commissioning engineer excels.

Thorough commissioning requires significant product knowledge and systems expertise and as such is an added value service that can pay for itself many times over. For the customer it guarantees peace of mind by checking and proving that every part of the installation is set up and operating as it is designed to do. This includes getting any air out of the system, setting up flow rates, checking the operation of the boiler and the controls, testing the flueing and ventilation, and configuring the system to operate at maximum efficiency.

A new heating system is not cheap but it will deliver considerable fuel cost savings provided it is set up and operating properly.

With the sophistication of modern, high efficiency boilers, it is perhaps surprising that many new boilers are not fully commissioned and fail to perform at the high levels. Indeed, it is an industry-wide problem and, for the more complex commercial installations, specialist commissioning companies or boiler manufacturers' own services are worth considering. Good commissioning will not just focus on the boiler or the main heating appliance and should cover the whole heating system including the electrical side, for which pumps account for considerable running costs, and are therefore another key area for savings.

For larger installations, significant reductions in running costs can be achieved by what may seem relatively minor adjustments. The customer does not usually have the experience to programme the installation to take into account all the required operating conditions.

Left in the default setting?

In practice the system is either left in its default factory setting or the customer has to read, understand and then implement the instructions from the manual. Employing independent commissioning services or, alternatively, a manufacturers' specialist services will help to ensure any special requirements are established and a proactive approach adopted to setting up the whole installation to optimise efficient operation. Having gone to the trouble and expense of determining the best system and having it professionally installed, it is only sensible to make sure the installation is going to perform to its design criteria.

It is difficult for the investor to know whether the new system is operating efficiently, especially when fuel prices fluctuate as regularly as they have been in recent years. However the last thing an investor wants to do when he has spent a significant amount on a new heating system is to have to set and reset temperatures and reconfigure heating zones continually.

Using commissioning services will help to provide peace of mind and reassurance that the system will reliably achieve its heating objectives and that the interaction between the controls and boiler are optimised for fuel savings.

Buderus provides comprehensive commissioning services that go well beyond the simple testing of burners and boilers. Establishing the ongoing heating demands of a building with the investor is an essential part of optimising controls and involves defining operating times, zones, weather compensation and heat curve adjustment, setting for underfloor or radiator options and priority requirements for domestic hot water.

Because, in the commercial sector, each installation has different requirements which need to be incorporated into the system design, individual attention should also be paid to making sure the projected savings are achieved by correct commissioning and maintenance.

Commissioning is money well spent and although it is often the final stage before the heating system is turned on, it is certainly worth taking the extra time to ensure the process is properly carried out.