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James Hargreaves Plumbing Supplies is investing in the future of low- carbon heating, providing a pathway of training, upskilling and support for heating engineers, installers and plumbers nationwide.
The company has committed £500,000 to open the door to a dedicated Low Carbon Centre at its headquarters in Burnley.
James Hargreaves has teamed up with a number of global manufacturers and the pioneering new Low Carbon Centre will incorporate a Daikin Sustainable Home Centre in conjunction with world-leading heat pump manufacturer, Daikin UK.
“This is a major step forward for us, a great new facility specifically designed to train heating engineers, installers and plumbers to be best-placed on delivering an efficient and effective low carbon future,” said Bill Davies, Sales Director at James Hargreaves.
The Low Carbon Centre showcases the leading low-carbon heating manufacturers. Inside, the technical workshop incorporates ‘live’ working displays to enable a unique ‘see and feel’ experience for tradespeople.
In addition, the Daikin Sustainable Home Centre provides a second-to-none experience showcasing Daikin’s wide range of low carbon products. A purpose built training room has been designed to provide the space for installers to obtain the skills and knowledge they need to become part of the UK’s low-carbon future, including domestic air source heat pumps, energy efficiency for domestic heating, water supply regulations, underfloor heating and system design.
“Our fully-qualified, in-house team and the Low Carbon Centre facility are now available to all heating engineers, installers or plumbers from across the UK, not just our existing customers,” said Davies.
“Low carbon is the future, but it is still new territory for many working in the heating industry, bringing with it many questions and different demands. While these new technologies and associated products provide undoubted business opportunities, they can also lead to nervousness and concern.
“Knowledge is king and our Low Carbon Centre is designed to provide the best information and highest-level training. Customers will get a real feel for all the product options and the chance to examine at close quarters a range of ‘live’ working models from multiple-manufacturers.
“Our success and growth as a company continues to centre around carrying high levels of stock, offering day-to-day expertise and, of course, providing the best service to customers. We are now taking that philosophy into our approach to low carbon, and the early response from installers has been excellent.
“We are delighted too by the response from major manufacturers and to incorporate a Daikin Sustainable Home Centre within the Low Carbon Centre is a massive plus. Daikin is a hugely respected and influential name within the industry and it is very pleasing that they want to be a key part of what we are doing here.”
Iain Bevan, Commercial Manager – Heating & Renewables at Daikin UK, added: “We’re delighted to have partnered with James Hargreaves in opening a Daikin Sustainable Home Centre within their site, featuring a Daikin showroom and air source heat pump training centre.
“Being able to explore and discuss heat pump technology and the significant cost savings they offer in person is vital, as is knowing that it will be installed by a highly trained professional – and that’s what our Sustainable Home Centres are all about. We’re confident that together we can make a significant contribution towards our national net zero targets.
“Heat pumps have huge potential to reduce energy usage and bills in the home. Over its 15-year lifespan*, switching from a fossil fuel boiler to an air source heat pump can save homeowners more than £3,000 when compared to a gas boiler, more than £6000 compared with oil and more than £9,000 compared to LPG.
“With lifetime savings of between 24 and 37 tonnes of carbon*, switching from gas, oil or LPG to a heat pump can have a massive impact on the carbon footprint of your home.”
James Hargreaves believes that it is well placed to support the trade in the future and that, in turn, will help to generate further growth for a company that celebrates its 100th anniversary this year.
Bill Davies added: “First and foremost, we must ensure that all our customers – many that we already know well and others that we hope to get to know in the coming weeks and months – are completely comfortable with low carbon energy and have all the necessary skills, qualifications and training to install efficiently.”
