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Merit was appointed as lead mechanical, EC&I and HVAC contractor for the Combined Heat and Intelligent Power Plant (CHiP) and National Grid Gas Pressure Reduction Facility in London.
- Close work with the client in the development of early designs prior to commencement of fabrication.
- Simplified the pipe support design subsequently reducing fabrication and installation time.
- Altered designs of air handling units to reduce overall build footprint and allowing more effective space management.
Merit carried out the design and modular construction of pipe racks, steelwork and process pipework with full welding/material traceability as well as site-wide electrical small power and lighting design for the project.
The scope of works included supply and install of steelwork; bio-liquid welded system; LTHW to primary and secondary circuits; cooling water; engine jacket water; instrument air; HVAC process services; and AHUs, amongst others. The design received at the tender stage was extremely limited and incomplete. For example, the 3D model was incomplete, systems isometrics were at the information stage, valve schedule was not available and the instrumentation schedule was not available.
Merit worked closely with the client to develop the design to a stage where spooling isometrics could be extracted to commence fabrication. We also developed a modular philosophy for the structural steelwork racks to commence fabrication. The EC&I package was also developed to allow plant selection, procurement and initial site enabling works.
We designed the modular pipe rack which integrated with the structural steelwork and process pipework into mechanical modules that were delivered to the site complete with only mechanical joints to be carried out. We also simplified the pipe support design which reduced the fabrication and installation time required. This example of modular assembly removes a substantial element of works from the site and also reduces health and safety risk.
In addition to the modular pipe racks and steelwork, Merit also developed a design to stack the Air Handling Units which reduced the overall build footprint and allowed the incorporation of the pipework racks at a high level with cantilever support frames, thus removing space management issues. We worked closely with the client on the Electrical Containment and Instrumentation (EC&I) package by developing the systems at an early stage. This resulted in the early agreement of work scope and developed and agreed on the testing procedure on completion of works.