Fit for the future – Vaillant partnership helps Gasway take green mainstream

Amidst growing debate around how we tackle the climate challenge, a unique partnership between Vaillant and Gasway has demonstrated the importance of innovation and collaboration in helping the industry achieve its carbon neutral future.

Founded in 1982, Gasway is a large heating company in East Anglia with a proven track record, delivering excellence in heating systems including domestic gas, renewables and commercial heating.

In 2016 the business was acquired by Flagship Group, a housing association with over 32,000 homes in the region, supporting its vision of solving the housing crisis in the East of England.

With this number of homes, it is vital to have a leading heating manufacturer on board to meet the full heating specification requirements of the homes, while also enabling Gasway to continue to serve the private market.

A simple decision

Andy Merrill, senior contracts manager at Gasway commented: “Based on the existing relationship and the value that Vaillant can offer on a project, the decision was made to continue the relationship when Flagship Group acquired Gasway. The Vaillant team are incredibly knowledgeable, and their training is second to none – but more than that it's about the level of support and aftercare you get. I’ve dealt with other suppliers before where they charge extra if you have a problem, and you can’t get anyone out for a few days. With Vaillant, it’s just a quick call and they’ll send an engineer out as soon as possible. It goes without saying that Vaillant’s product quality is exceptional too. Although we have the comfort of knowing the manufacturer guarantees are in place, 99 per cent of the time we don’t need to use them.”  

It was this solid working relationship between Vaillant and Gasway, that made the company’s move to focus on renewable technologies straightforward.

Andy continued “Not too long after the initial Gasway acquisition, we got to the position where, as a Group, we were starting to look at the business’ transition to low carbon heating and identifying the most suitable supplier to support us.

“Again, Vaillant was the perfect fit. It was important for us to trust that the products would deliver the efficiencies we were looking for. As this is still a relatively new area for us, knowing we would be supported with expert advice, bespoke training, system designs and technical consultancy, as well as customer service, were all just as important in making the transition as hassle-free as possible. In our industry this peace of mind is priceless.”

Flying the Sustainability flag

Fast forward five years, and the long-term partnership is continuing to play a key role in supporting Gasway as it delivers on Flagship Group’s progressive commitment to improving the lives of its tenants with energy-efficiency improvements.

This year alone Flagship Group has invested £2million in improving its homes through a series of energy efficiency measures – including 400 low carbon heat pump systems. Here, Vaillant’s foresight and knowledge have played a key role in ensuring the successful installation and use of these heat pump systems across its portfolio.

Andy comments: “Sustainability remains a key concern across the entire industry. By its very nature though, retrofitting an air source heat pump in a mid-terrace property can be challenging.

“Therefore, having Vaillant on board from the initial specification and planning phases through to installation has been invaluable – not just in delivering on expertise but providing bespoke solutions to our exact requirements. Take for example the size of the hot water cylinders. Following discussions regarding the challenges we were encountering due to limited space for hot water cylinders, the team helped us design heating systems that were capable of meeting the heating and hot water demand whilst considering the limitations of the properties.

“The education of the end user also needs to be taken into account when adopting new technologies. Although heat pump technology is not new, it’s widescale use is, so there is still a huge learning curve to overcome. In the UK, we are so used to flicking a switch to turn a boiler on but getting the most out of low carbon heating requires a new way of thinking so that the settings are correct, and the home will benefit from the low temperature heat generated. Inevitably this needs to be explained and understood by the end user, many of whom may be experiencing this technology for the first time.

“The good news is that we get a lot of support from Vaillant via a wealth of information, content and videos which we use to educate tenants about the technologies and instil confidence about the new heating system they will be using.”

Innovation and collaboration

Andy adds: “We also have some exciting collaborative projects in the pipeline designed to support low carbon take up, including a more concerted focus on training and apprenticeships.

“Ultimately, the low carbon heating challenge is complex and one which will not be achieved by a silver bullet solution. It will require a multi-technology approach, from the integration of renewables, hydrogen, solar and even solutions which haven’t yet emerged. While the industry is certainly heading in the right direction, we still have a long way to go. Working with our long-term partner and technology leader, Vaillant, means we can continue to help advance our sector whilst meeting customer demand. We know Vaillant is forward thinking and are already working on solutions, such as hydrogen boilers, that will ultimately help futureproof our business.”

Steve Cipriano, Commercial Director at Vaillant comments: “We are committed to working with clients to empower them not just with product innovation itself but the advice and consultancy to make the low carbon transition easier, we call this the Vaillant standard.

“Our work with Gasway is a great example of this. Alongside the specification of some of our most energy-efficient technologies, we continue to support with technical expertise, one-to-one consultancy, a variety of training resources and even help inform the strategic decision making needed to progress Flagship Group’s energy efficiency framework.

“Going beyond the role as a supplier, this long-term partnership is indicative of the importance of innovation supported with collaboration to unlock the future vision.”

For further information, visit: vaillant.co.uk