Amount of Work for Installing Heat Energy Commercial Meters and Heat Controls
The work needed to install commercial heat energy metering units and heat control equipment at the customer’s site includes several phases:
Stage # 1 – Receipt of the terms of reference. For this purpose, the customer submits to the heat energy supplier an application to introduce the commercial metering of heat energy and (or) the installation of heat control equipment, with a request to issue the technical specifications for installation (when the consumer is the customer) or to approve the terms of reference for design work (when the heat supply company is the customer).
Stage # 2 – The terms of reference for the design of the heat energy metering unit and heat control equipment (in case when the heat supply company is the customer) are issued and approved by the consumer.
Stage # 3 – The technical specifications for the installation of the heat energy metering unit and heat control equipment are drawn up and issued to the customer, payment by the customer for the work done by the heat supplier during preparation of the technical specifications(in case when the consumer is the customer).
During the preparation of the technical specifications, it is necessary to survey the object of metering – in this case, the internal building heating system. The purpose of the work in this Phase is to identify the working heat supply scheme and the most accurate assessment of the actual total heat load of the consumer, the structure of this load (heating, hot water supply, ventilation), and the range of change of each type of load during the day, both in heat energy consumption and in heat carrier consumption, identify the water pressure mode in the heat supply system and the actual flow resistance of the local heating systems.
Work in this Phase is performed through comparison of the design data with the actual modes of heat consumption.
Stage # 4 – The development of the working project of the heat energy metering unit and/or heat control equipment at the consumer site. Technical solutions on the installation of the metering unit adopted in the project should take into account the technological and operational features of the metering object and should not impair the technical characteristics of the object’s heating equipment, or reduce its reliability, electrical and fire safety.
These solutions must also satisfy the requirements of the:
- technical normative documentation;
- commercial metering equipment and units and heat control equipment;
- metering objects; and
- assembly and operation of the metering units and heat control equipment.
The working project is approved according to the established procedure. The composition of the working project and the procedure for its approval are presented in Section “Design, Construction and Installation of Heat Energy Metering Units”.
If needed, and also technically and financially viable, it is recommended to combine the introduction of the heat energy metering with the reconstruction of the building’s heat substation with the aim of conserving energy (modernization of the heat exchange equipment, installation of low-noise pumps, introduction of automatic heat consumption controls, installation of reliable locking and adjusting valves). In this case, the project to install metering units becomes part of the overall set of the energy saving equipment for the reconstructed heat substation. During the implementation of the metering unit installation project, special attention should be given to ensuring the straight sections needed before and after the meters, the length of which is indicated in the meters’ passports, as well as to overcoming the additional flow resistance caused by these devices. The heat energy supplier coordinates the project documentation within the scope of issued technical specifications.
Phase # 5 – Construction, installation and commissioning works. In this Phase, all components (devices, equipment, electrical equipment) and materials are procured, the cabinets for placement of the equipment are constructed and installed, welding and installation work is done for the installation of the heat carrier consumption and temperature meter, as well as work on laying of the connection lines according to the heat energy commercial metering system adopted in the project. In some justified cases, the work on construction of a separate building (premises) for the metering unit and control equipment is fulfilled. After the installation of the heat control equipment, it is checked out according to the manufacturers’ instructions. The purpose of the check-out work is to prepare the heat control equipment for its commissioning.
Phase # 6 – Acceptance testing. In this last Phase, the compliance of the metering units and/or heat control equipment with the working project as well as the presence of the passports for all devices, working capacity of the equipment and seals of the relevant places on the equipment are examined. In addition to manufacturer’s seals, the heating utility representative seals the equipment in order to prevent tampering with meter readings.
Phase # 7 – Issuance of the act of acceptance that commissions the heat energy metering unit. This work is carried out by the heating utility. The act of acceptance of the unit is signed by the the heating utility and the consumer, and is approved by the manager of the heating utility. The act specifies the initial recorded values of the parameters which are being registered. Then the unit is commissioned.
