CIBSE GUIDANCE | HEAT-PUMP INSTALLATION PUMP PRIMER CIBSEs new heat-pump installation guide aims to equip designers, installers and operators with the knowledge to successfully deliver the 300,000 annual installations needed by 2025. Arups Joshua Bird summarises AM16 L ater this year, CIBSE will publish a new Applications Manual AM16 Heat-pump installations for multi-unit residential buildings. The manual will provide invaluable guidance to designers, installers and building operators looking to apply a range of heat-pump technologies to high-density housing. AM16 addresses areas of design that are crucial for good heatpump performance, including: the importance of sizing a heat pump correctly, mitigating the loss of capacity caused by defrost cycles and the impact of lower DHW temperatures on design. These themes are discussed briefly in this article Green industrial revolution Across all domestic and non-domestic building typologies, the regulatory and policy landscape is driving a transition away from gasfired heating systems towards electrically powered alternatives. Heat pumps currently provide the most energy efficient means of heating a building electrically and with a decarbonising electricity grid, they also represent an almost universally applicable low-carbon heat source. If the UK is to attain net-zero carbon by 2050, the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) recommends that 19 million heat pumps be installed. This would mean installing 294,000 each year by 2025 and 714,000 per year by 2028, which ties in with the UK governments ambition for 600,000 heat pumps to be installed every year by 2028, as part of its Green Industrial Revolution. The CCCs drive towards electrification of heating underlines the need for planning and design guidance for the application of heat pumps in the residential sector. The Microgeneration Certification Scheme and other industry bodies already offer a wealth of guidance on the design and installation of heat pumps in individual homes. However, there is currently a lack of specific guidance on the application of heat pumps to multi-residential settings, such as apartment blocks, care homes and student accommodation. This new Applications Manual brings together best practice and industry-wide 42 August 2021 www.cibsejournal.com CIBSE Aug 21 pp42-44 Heat pump guide.indd 42 23/07/2021 14:43