Building on our Smart Energy series, which began with a look at how the UK’s energy infrastructure will power the Smart Society, I am working with Sector Director, Bill Edrich to begin a deep dive into moving the energy system towards its smarter rebirth. Over the next 20 years, there will be a wholescale move away from gas. Heat networks may be in their infancy now, but they are going to become really important.
Mapping Sheffield’s heating network
I believe you must start by understanding the current baseline – where the demand is, where the supply is, where the infrastructure is right now.
Taking a city scale, I have used Sheffield to create an example of how that baseline can be established. I’ve created an open map using Google’s powerful My Maps to examine and highlight Sheffield’s known energy infrastructure. That includes mapping heat sources, heat sinks and the city’s extensive district heating network.
We chose Sheffield for a couple of reasons. First, we’ve recently worked with Sheffield City Council on its 5G Urban Connected Communities bid, which will bring many benefits if successful, including real-time city-wide energy monitoring at a factory level. Second, Sheffield is an interesting place when it comes to heat, as it already has a network that includes specific heat waste sources.
We showed the map to Mark Woodward, director of Green Directions and a Sheffield energy expert: “There is a lot of information and excellent data here, including specific things like the heat recovery data from individual sites. There will always be new additions to make as new sources come online, such as the heat network connected to the Blackburn Meadows Biomass Power Plant run by EON, and the new network funded by the Heat Networks Investment Project (HNIP), which links the EON and Veolia networks.”
We think that our interactive map for Sheffield and Rotherham is a fantastic communication and visualisation tool. We are keen to get it right and build on this start, so if you know of something missing or would like to contribute, please get in touch and we’ll start the conversation.
See Sheffield’s heating network for yourself
Though the map is still in draft format – a work in progress – you can click the image below or access it on Google Maps here.
Again, if you have any further insight, suggestions for additions or expertise to share, we’d love to hear from you.
Learn more about Perform Green
You can learn more about Perform Green by looking at how the company was founded, our list of clients and some of our recent work. If you’d like to speak to us about an opportunity that we can help with, email info@performgreen.co.uk or phone 01242 964032.