Oil installers expand into heat pump technology with Danfoss
Darlington based AJ Clacher is the latest heating and plumbing contractor to recognise the benefits of gaining new skills in heat pump installation, following successful completion of a manufacturer led training course with Danfoss Heat Pumps UK.
Brothers Colin and Billy Brookes were looking to the future for their business and, after the company has spent 50 years providing conventional fuel installations, they recognised the opportunity to enhance their skills and offer air and ground source heat pump installations to their customer base.Colin Brooks explained, ‘We work in what is predominantly an ‘off grid’ area where there are lots of oil installations, with the alternative being heat pumps. There is clearly a large market for renewable heating systems, particularly as oil prices continue to rise.’
Aware of the growing business opportunities in the renewable sector, Colin and Billy began to investigate the best way to enter the market. They had worked with Danfoss products before on the heating controls side and were aware of the quality of the products, so, after becoming MCS accredited this year, began looking into becoming a Danfoss Heat Pumps Approved Installer.
Colin Brookes, director of AJ Clacher, said, ‘Our company has a reputation for high quality heating installations that has been built up over the past five decades, so it was really important that our heat pump installations were just as good. That meant using high quality heat pumps and ensuring that we had the right training and technical back up to maximise the efficiency of every installation.
‘After investigating several manufacturers, it was clear that Danfoss Heat Pumps UK was able to provide exactly what we needed. We also knew that the company had extensive experience in the manufacture of heat pumps as we had also been using other Danfoss products very successfully for many years, which gave us added confidence.’
Colin and Billy attended a two day ‘HP2’ training course run by Danfoss Heat Pumps UK at its Sheffield training school. The course is designed for experienced heating engineers and is also delivered at other training locations throughout the UK.
Colin added, ‘We were impressed with the quality of the Danfoss training. Their trainer was really knowledgeable and, because he had experience of resolving the issues which crop up in real life installations, he was able to give us a wealth of really practical information.
‘The training supplied by Danfoss Heat Pumps UK has put us in an excellent position to make the most of these new business opportunities, and because every installation is different it is also good to know that we can call on the company’s technical experts if we need any extra advice.’
AJ Clacher has since become a Danfoss Approved Installer which gives the company access to its full technical advice service. The company’s first installation will be of a Danfoss DHP-AQ air source heat pump at Billy’s own home, which will then be used as a showcase for future customers.
AJ Clacher has been operating in the domestic and light commercial heating market since 1961, employs 10 heating engineers and is Hetas, Oftec and Gas Safe registered.
