Colchester Indoors Bowls Club

COLCHESTER, ESSEX

The Project

Colchester Indoor Bowls Club was established in 1982 and provides six indoor bowls rinks for use by its 1000 members of all ages. The facility also offers a restaurant, bar shop, changing facilities and viewing gallery to members of the club. The club had previously invested in new LED lighting which significantly improved the visibility within the building, saving a significant amount of CO2 and also reducing the ambient heat given off by the previous lights. The second stage of modernisation involved the replacement of their existing gas-fired boiler, in use since 1982 when the club first opened.

The Process

With the help of the LoCASE Energy Advisor, and the appointment of Camdon Ltd of Warrington, Cheshire, as suppliers & installers, it was identified that the best solution in meeting the club’s needs would be for a combination of 8 Mitsubishi under ceiling air-source heat pumps (10kW each) to be installed on the walls of the bowling green area. In addition to this the boiler feeding the social area would be replaced by 4 compact cassette units (5kW each).

The Outcome

Thanks to the expert advice and guidance given in applying and qualifying for a grant from LoCASE, Colchester Indoor Bowls Club received a grant of £10,000. The club’s new system has been up and running for over a year now and it has coped remarkably well for the whole period, through the many varied seasons. The installation of the new heating system will also enable the club to become eligible to hold national competition events as the temperatures will be maintained and uniform throughout – to EIBA standards.

The club is also estimated to make a cost saving of over £5,000 per annum and the carbon savings will be significant. Also, this successful project should safeguard two jobs and fifteen voluntary roles relating to the committee members.

Testimonial

“I am writing on behalf of all our Members here at the Colchester Indoor Bowls Club…We are delighted with all aspects of the system and, in particular, we thank you for the guidance given to us in applying and qualifying for a grant from LoCASE…This was without doubt a critical part of our budget assessment as without the grant I doubt that we would have been in a position to move forward…We would, at any time, be willing to show our system to any club that may be considering a similar system so please do not hesitate to contact us should the need arise”

Ashley W Hanmer – Hon. Secretary, Colchester Indoor Bowls Club