Otago Dental Facility Auckland - Solar Hot Water

By Apricus Eco Hot Water & Heating

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Otago Dental Facility Auckland - Solar Hot Water banner

High-performanceits solar system slashes energy use at new Otago University dental facility

The University of Otago is working towards their aspiration to be a recognised centre of excellence for sustainability, in practice and research, with an Apricus solar system on the new Manukau dental facility.

The University of Otago Faculty of Dentistry will open a Jasmax designed, state-of-the-art dental facility next to the Manukau Super Clinic on Great South Road, Manukau in the coming month. The building includes a number of environmentally sustainable features, including an Apricus Energy solar hot water system.

“Hot water is a very significant energy demand in any medical facility and this building will use 1,450 litres of hot water per day, requiring 247,000kWh of energy every year” says Marcus Baker, Apricus Eco Hot Water & Heating. “Beca asked us to design and project manage a system that would minimise this energy consumption. The system installed reduces this energy use by 73% over the year, delivering a significant saving and reduction in associated carbon emissions. This is achieved with only six Apricus ETC30 collectors, using 40m² of roof.”

Apricus Eco Hot Water & Heating worked closely with Jasmax and the construction team to overcome a number of challenges to implement the system whilst meeting the University of Otago H&S policy of a permanent ban on roof access once the scaffolding was removed.

“This situation is helped by the Apricus control system being fully integrated with the Building Management System, providing live notifications if there is a fault and performance reporting over time,” says Marcus Baker.

Staff and students at the facility will provide dental services to patients from Manukau and surrounding areas. The Counties Manukau dental teaching facility and patient treatment clinic will follow the long-standing social contract model operated successfully in Dunedin, where patients receive treatment provided by students under supervision at a highly-accessible cost, he says.

Up to 48 final-year dental students will be assigned to the Counties Manukau facility at any one time.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Harlene Hayne says by making a real difference to people’s lives and a community’s health and wellbeing, the University will be living its strategic commitment to providing for the national good and improving lives.

Other benefits of the project include strengthening relationships and partnerships with Māori and Pacific communities based on mutually beneficial goals incorporating patient care, research and education, and providing increased opportunities for North Island based oral healthcare professionals to access continuing education.

The system installed by Solar Works.

Apricus Eco Hot Water & Heating
Bay of Plenty
Otago Dental Facility - Auckland

Products used in
Otago Dental Facility Auckland - Solar Hot Water

Professionals used in
Otago Dental Facility Auckland - Solar Hot Water

About the
Professional

Apricus specialises in sustainable hot water and central heating systems for residential and commercial buildings. We work with architects, specifiers, facility managers and homeowners to bring solutions that reduce their environmental impact and meet their hot water and central heating needs.

Apricus brings the latest renewable hot water technologies into the New Zealand market, leading with innovative solar hot water collectors, CO2 hot water heat pumps and pellet biomass boilers. We aim to offer the most reliable eco alternatives to burning fossil fuels like gas, oil and coal.

Our products include:

  • Apricus All In One - heat pump for domestic hot water heating. 
  • Reclaim Energy Heat Pump - for domestic hot water heating.
  • EasyPell Heat Pump - for domestic heating, cooling & hot water heating.
  • Easypell Pellet Boiler - domesitc heating & hot water.
  • ÖkoFEN Pellet Boiler - commercial heating & hot water.
  • Apricus - evacuated tube solar hot water systems for homes and commercial buildings.

Our pellet biomass boilers are produced by one of Europe's leading manufacturers, ÖkoFEN, a specialist in pellet boilers and a supplier of space-saving, cost-effective, simple solutions for storing pellets. Offering storage tanks suitable for all space and pellet requirements. The pellet boilers can provide enough hot water for even the most extensive home heating needs, using radiators, underfloor pipework, or a combination. The wood pellets burned are made in New Zealand from waste sawdust and wood shavings, providing 100% renewable heating, whatever the temperature outside.

Our range of hot water heat pumps use some of the most environmentally friendly refrigerants while offering outstanding performance. The very low global warming potential makes these systems the perfect electric alternative to gas hot water systems. Households can now reduce their energy costs and improve the sustainability of their home with ease.

The Apricus solar systems have robust frames, easy-to-use controllers and high-efficiency pumps. The high-performance, reliable designs can withstand New Zealand’s extreme environmental conditions. This is combined with a careful focus on quality and continual improvement by the team at Apricus International.

All complete system packages are individually designed for maximum savings, and on-shore technical support and global experience ensure quality and precision for every installation.