When completed, the £70 million development in Kingston-Upon-Thames will be heated and cooled by a sustainable open water heat pump system, instead of conventional combustion plant, with virtually no on-site carbon emissions.
The system works by recovering solar energy naturally stored in the Thames, with up to 150 litres of water a second being extracted after passing through a two-stage filtration process.
The water then passes through heat exchangers to harvest the low grade heat before being returned to the river with a temperature change of +/- 3°C and producing zero on-site carbon emissions,
Automation specialist Electraspec designed the bespoke pumping system control panel, equipped with two 18.5kW and two 30-kW WEG CFW11 variable speed drives (VSDs).
"Kingston Heights is an ambitious and pioneering project, so we were keen on providing WEG's VSDs because of their efficiency, reliability and ease-of-use," comments Eric Knight of Electraspec.
"By effectively controlling the flow according to temperature, WEG VSDs will contribute to boosting the pump system's energy efficiency and will play a key role in helping Kingston Heights achieve its energy saving targets."
Knight makes the point that the drives are designed to ensure precise control of pressure, flow and temperature while optimising power consumption through speed control, particularly in pump control applications.
With intelligent thermal management features providing automatic cooling to the internal components, the CFW11 also ensures reliable operation.
Additionally, Knight points to the drive's SoftPLC function that attributes PLC functions to the inverter and can be operated remotely.
"We are able to control the system from our laptops and are immediately alerted if there is a problem," he says. "For example, this function enables us to operate speed and run commands without having to be physically on site".
Thanks to its Multi-pump Control feature, the CFW11 is able to control up to five pumps and keep constant pressure regardless of flow fluctuations. The VSD also monitors suction pressure and tank levels, alternating the pumps according to their operating time, and ensuring uniform wear and tear for motors and pumps.