A new energy centre at Pilgrim Hospital in Boston uses low carbon technologies to reduce energy costs and carbon emissions significantly.
Through a combination of plant renewal and ongoing energy efficiency improvements Cofely is helping United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust (ULHT) reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions at Pilgrim Hospital in Boston. Many of the measures being introduced are also being evaluated for use in the Trust's other hospitals.

Cofely's 15-year contract to operate and maintain the new energy centre incorporates a commitment to achieve, on average, a 5 per cent energy saving each year. Rather than using a standard contract format, with inflation-linked annual rises, Cofely has committed to achieve any additional revenues solely through the energy savings it achieves. However, inflation-linked rises can be given only if the contractual 5 per cent annual energy efficiency saving is achieved.

Furthermore, Cofely plans to achieve the bulk of these energy savings in the early years of the contract so the hospital benefits as early as possible.

Cofely also financed the new energy centre, assisted the Trust in gaining grants from the Carbon Trust and other bodies and has assumed the financial risk relating to the new plant.

Pilgrim Hospital serves south and south east Lincolnshire. It operates a 24-hour major accident and emergency department, as well as offering all main specialties.

The United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust, which operates three other hospitals, aims to reduce its carbon emissions by 30 per cent by 2015. The Trust also aims to meet best practice for heat demand in acute NHS sites (50-55 gigajoules per 100m3).

In April 2008, following a tender under PFI rules to include finance, the Trust entered a partnership with Cofely to design, build and operate a new energy centre at Pilgrim Hospital. This followed a lengthy selection process that ensured the partnership could deliver a sustainable, energy efficient solution that matched the Trust's expectations for the next 15 years and beyond.

Experience of other hospital projects, an understanding of the health sector and a proven track record of working in partnership with customers to achieve continuous improvement were all factors in the Trust's selection of Cofely.

ULHT environmental services manager Kevin Thoy commented: 'We weren't just looking for a construction company to come in and build us a new energy centre. It was vital the partner we chose shared our vision of ongoing energy savings and was also able and willing to take a pro-active stance in delivering them.'

Consequently, the new energy centre was simply the first stage of an ongoing partnership which will see Pilgrim Hospital reduce its carbon emissions significantly, achieve a higher rating in sustainability league tables and lessen the financial burden of the Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy Efficiency Scheme (CRC EES). The carbon trading benefits alone are expected to exceed £90,000 a year.

The Energy Centre

The original boiler plant at Pilgrim Hospital, installed in 1976, was near the end of its life. ULHT took a pro-active approach to replacing it with a solution that would secure supplies of electricity, heating and hot water, reduce carbon emissions and make use of low carbon, sustainable technologies.

A further challenge was the quantity of gas available on the site was limited and the cost to bring further supplies to site was prohibitively expensive (approx. £750,000).

The energy centre was completed in 2009 and is set to reduce the hospital's carbon emissions by around 51 per cent, with financial savings in the order of £210,000 a year.

Key features of the energy centre include use of combined heat and power (CHP) and a biomass-fuelled steam boiler using locally sourced wood chip - backed by dual fuel boilers that will enable the hospital to select the most cost-effective fuels as market prices change, including bio-oils.

'Cofely's experience in low carbon technologies, combined with an understanding of the health sector, proved invaluable in choosing the best solution for the hospital.

'Cofely also helped us to secure the extra funding, including a £200,000 biomass grant from Lincolnshire County Council,' Thoy added.

Cofely's design uses a 526 kWe engine-based CHP which is supplemented by a 2.9 MW biomass steam boiler with further conventional dual fuel steam boilers. The CHP and biomass plant are used to meet base loads, while the conventional boilers are brought on stream during peak demand.

'A major innovation of the scheme is the integration of the different heat sources to ensure optimum performance while providing the flexibility to respond quickly to changing market conditions in the future,' explained Cofely's Richard Derry. 'The project optimises the limited natural gas supply in the CHP engine, while the fuel diversity and flexibility enables the Trust to utilise the most cost effective fuel source at any given time,' he continued.

The Trust is now looking at a similar strategy for Grantham and District hospital.

Ongoing energy savings

Before the contract began and while the energy centre was still being constructed, Cofely agreed to take over the operation of the existing plant. This enabled the team to gain an insight into the hospital's existing energy performance, as well as bringing Cofely staff into contact with the hospital's in-house maintenance team.

In addition, Cofely's Continuous Improvement team began to evaluate the systems in the hospital to identify other areas where energy savings could be made. Initiatives already include:

• Adjustments to the ventilation system in the main hospital to alter air flows and feed tempered air from circulation spaces into naturally ventilated wards, thus reducing demand on the ward heating systems. This is predicted to save around £40,000 a year.
• Power control measures have reduced low voltage power from 240V to 220V to reduce electricity consumption by around 8%.
• Challenging the need for six air changes per hour in wards, as these areas are naturally ventilated.
• Evaluation of wet heating systems to identify areas for improvement.

At each stage of evaluation, the Trust and Cofely establish the ideal energy performance for a particular scenario and then get as close to that as possible within budget. All such initiatives are expected to deliver a return on investment within three years.

Education programme

In parallel with these energy saving measures, the Trust and Cofely have embarked on a programme to educate staff and visitors about energy conservation and to flag up the Trust's work in this area.

The programme has included bespoke posters and leaflets, menu cards in canteens and restaurants and training seminars for hospital staff. In addition, energy champions from other NHS Trusts have been encouraged to visit the site.