A £15 million state-of-the-art hangar at RAF Brize Norton is showing its green credentials with a number of sustainable and cost saving features including energy efficient Nor-Ray-Vac continuous radiant tube heating from AmbiRad.
Home to the RAF's strategic air transport (AT) and air-to-air refuelling (AAR) forces, RAF Brize Norton is the largest station in the Royal Air Force, employing in excess of 6000 Service personnel, 1100 contractors and 350 civilians. The new two-bay 5000m2 hangar has 16 metre high doors and can easily accommodate the giant C130J Hercules.
With RAF bases typically on exposed sites the rapid response of conditions when hangar doors are opened required a heating system which was proven and highly efficient. Offering rapid heat recovery time and promising considerable cost savings over its lifecycle, the Nor-Ray-Vac system was once again up for the challenge of heating a hangar having been used extensively across many civilian and military hangars.
At RAF Brize Norton, the layout of Nor-Ray-Vac in the new hangar comprised 28 burners arranged in 8 zones with 4 vacuum fan discharge points. The unique design layout had to ensure that no part of the Nor-Ray-Vac system was directly over the fuselage, wings or tailplane of any aircraft. This was for two reasons; to prevent excess heat load on the aircraft and also, so as not to interfere with personal fall arrest systems.
Suspended at 16 metres, the system incorporated ducted fresh air to the burners and end vents to ensure compliance with Crown Fire Standards which are mandatory on Military premises. With a peak gas load of 118m3/h, the Nor-Ray-Vac radiant heating system provides rapid response to changed conditions and does not have to heat the volume of the building.
With the hangar now in use, AmbiRad’s energy efficient Nor-Ray-Vac system is once again a well proven method of heating a large aircraft hangar and will play a key role in ensuring the RAF maintenance teams working on the Hercules fleet stay warm.