Client brief
Cambridge City Football Club was building new facilities at West Way, Sawston, and needed a heating and hot water solution designed in from the start. The client wanted a low-carbon system that would meet the demands of a busy sports venue while keeping long-term running costs down and aligning with current building regulations and decarbonisation targets.
As a new build commercial sports facility with variable occupancy and high hot water demand on match days and training sessions, the project required careful system design from first principles – sizing the heat source correctly, coordinating with the wider build programme, and ensuring the heating infrastructure was integrated seamlessly alongside the other M&E trades working on site.
Our solution
Better Planet designed and installed a twin air source heat pump system using two Nibe F2040-16kW units, each a single-phase variable speed compressor model, paired with two 500-litre hot water cylinders to meet the club’s substantial domestic hot water requirements.
Being a new build, the system could be designed without the constraints of retrofitting around existing pipework or distribution systems. This allowed for an optimised layout with short pipe runs, proper plant room planning, and full coordination with the other trades responsible for cold water supply, drainage, and electrical first fix.
The system was controlled via a Nibe SMO S40 user interface with weather compensation, using an external temperature sensor to continuously optimise output against outdoor conditions. Flow heating values were designed for a range of 0.25 to 0.79 l/s, ensuring efficient low-temperature operation across the heating distribution network.
The mechanical design incorporated full system resilience with dual expansion vessels, dirt separation, automatic air venting, pressure relief valves, circulation pumps, and magnetic filtration – all insulated to Armaflex Class O standard on 28mm pipework. A comprehensive electrical and controls specification covered 18 cable runs linking the SMO S40 to the outdoor units, cylinders, sensors, and circulation pumps.
Better Planet’s scope covered end-to-end delivery: site survey, bespoke system design, room-by-room heat loss report, supply and installation of all heat pump and plumbing components, electrical works, testing, commissioning, MCS registration, and building control notification. A detailed Project Planning Pack was issued to all parties involved in the build, including mechanical and electrical schematics, equipment space requirements, full specifications, and a site-specific risk assessment – ensuring clear demarcation between Better Planet’s scope and the attendances required from other trades.
Project success
The installation provided Cambridge City FC with a fully low-carbon heating and hot water system from day one of occupation – no fossil fuels, no gas connection, no future retrofit required. The twin heat pump configuration delivers built-in redundancy, critical for a venue that can’t afford downtime on match days, while the 1,000 litres of combined hot water storage ensures the club can meet peak demand without compromise.
Designing the system into the new build from the outset meant cleaner integration, shorter pipe runs, and a more efficient install – advantages that wouldn’t have been available on a retrofit.
The project is a strong example of how new build commercial developments can embed renewable heating from the start – delivering lower carbon, lower running costs, and a building that’s ready for the future from the moment it opens its doors.
