Avanti Brook School

PIPING MASTERCLASS AT AVANTI BROOK SCHOOL 

The new Avanti Brook School in Bishop Stortford put contractors and products to the test. With a strict deadline of September, speed and quality were top of the requirements. Rising to the challenge were contractors Redstar Mechanical, who would utilise Viega Megapress and Profipress in the mechanical services to meet the pressing deadline.

Race against the clock.

With the school due to open at the end of the summer holidays, there was no room for delays which added onto the pressure of the job. As Peter McKnight of Redstar Mechanical explains: “We knew when we started in February that we’d be working to a tight deadline. The school were quite keen for the systems to all be installed and commissioned by the start of the new year in September.”

To help move the project along swiftly and meet these strict timings, Redstar Mechanical turn to press technology. “We needed a system that gave us the speed on site which we couldn’t get with more traditional methods. Speed is ideal, but we also needed to know what we were installing was up to the job.”

For Peter, Viega was the obvious choice. Megapress alone offers time savings of up to 80% versus traditional methods. That time saving would prove to be critical on a job like this.

Working in a squeeze.

Strict timings weren’t the only challenge facing Peter and the team. The layout for the heating and pipework systems included a myriad of tight spaces that a traditional threaded or welded system would not have been able to get around. This is where Viega and the press systems pulled further ahead.

By utilising press, the contractors ensured they could easily work in tight spaces at a decent pace. Peter explains. “Because of the restricted working space, Megapress was the obvious solution. Its system meant that all we needed to do was cut, fit, and pull a trigger to install the pipes. There wasn’t the need for lots of equipment on site and the speed meant we could be in and out far faster.”

Megapress was used for the heating system throughout the school, taking energy from the plantroom to each corner of the building. Profipress was specified for use in the drinking water system, working in tandem with Megapress to deliver an efficient pipe system.  

Keeping drinking water clean.

Profipress also played a key role in delivering the clean and hygienic drinking water throughout the school. It was the perfect choice to update the existing copper pipework which ran through the school.

Profipress connections are made of high-quality copper and silicon bronze, guaranteeing resistance to corrosion, maintaining water quality, and preventing the introduction of contaminants. Additionally, the connections are designed with smooth internal surfaces and minimal crevices or dead spaces ensuring bacteria and sediment cannot accumulate.

For Peter, using Profipress to ensure no contaminants in the water was the sensible choice. “Press, especially Profipress is much more hygienic than other systems. It removes the need for any hot works thus meaning there’s no flux or contaminants in the system, removing the need to flush the system to keep it clean. This made Viega the faster and more hygienic choice.”

Safety first.

Guaranteeing an efficient installation is only part of the equation. The other key factor for the project was ensuring long term safety. Built into each Viega connection, SC-Contur is a series of considered design elements to aid installation and testing. Through the dedicated leak path, any unpressed connections are instantly highlighted to give long term peace of mind the system is secure.

This was something Peter was incredibly thankful for. “Having SC-Contur on Viega systems is incredibly useful. It allows you to test on the go, as if there’s a connection which hasn’t been pressed, it will alert you to it. You can then fix the problem then and there, and not have to wonder later. While we didn’t have any leaks working on the pipes, it was helpful knowing that if we had had an issue it would’ve come up immediately!”

By using Megapress and Profipress, installation time on site was greatly reduced without compromising on safety or quality. The pace of the final installation meant the project continued without delay, keeping the clients and contractors happy. 

Object Avanti Brook School, Bishops Stortford
Place Great Britain
Object type Drinking water installation
Area of use Education and science
Installation Redstar Mechanical
Back