Commercial HVAC Installation
Integrated heating, ventilation and air conditioning — designed, installed and commissioned as a single mechanical services package to CIBSE and Approved Document F standards.
From £65–£95/m² fully installed
Fixed-price quote, held to the day.
6–20 weeks
Typical timeline from survey to commissioning.
5-Year Warranty
Parts and labour covered on every install.
F-Gas Certified
REFCOM-registered engineers on every job.
- Single point of responsibility across HVAC
- Coordinated commissioning of all systems
- Compliant fresh-air rates (10 l/s/person)
- Heat recovery via MVHR where possible
Why choose this
- Single point of responsibility across HVAC
- Coordinated commissioning of all systems
- Compliant fresh-air rates (10 l/s/person)
- Heat recovery via MVHR where possible
What's included
- VRF or DX cooling
- Gas or electric heating (or heat pump)
- MVHR fresh-air ventilation
- Kitchen extract & fire dampers
- Full BMS integration
Why integrated HVAC beats piecemeal
When cooling, heating and ventilation are procured separately, the interfaces are where things fail — a ventilation system that over-cools its supply air, a heat pump that fights an unaware VRF, controls that argue with each other at 3am. As an integrated contractor we own every interface, and commissioning is genuinely coordinated rather than a series of finger-pointing exercises.
The integrated approach also unlocks control strategies impossible with fragmented procurement — CO₂-linked MVHR overrides paired with VRF setback, kitchen extract that ramps down with occupancy, night-purge free-cooling that pre-cools the fabric using the MVHR fans overnight. All are standard on our integrated packages.
Approved Document F compliance
Commercial premises need mechanical ventilation delivering 10 l/s per person of fresh air. We calculate to CIBSE Guide A occupancy densities and design MVHR (mechanical ventilation with heat recovery) systems that reclaim 85%+ of the heat from exhaust air — cutting heating load dramatically.
ADF also mandates minimum extract rates for toilets, kitchens and printer rooms. We provide the compliance calculations in the O&M pack — your building control officer sees the numbers rather than taking our word for it. Testing on commissioning uses Testo 480 balometers with calibration certificates dated within 6 months of the reading.
Heat pump integration
For net-zero-ready fit-outs we replace gas heating entirely with air source heat pumps, sized to work in tandem with the VRF cooling. In shoulder seasons the two systems share load; in peak conditions each covers its own extreme. Combined COP across the year typically hits 3.2–3.8.
Hybrid systems (heat pump primary, gas backup for peak lopping) are still valid for existing buildings where full electrification would demand DNO reinforcement. We model both scenarios and present the capex vs opex trade-off — many clients pick hybrid for phase 1 and full electrification for phase 2 when the DNO uplift is due anyway.
Kitchen and specialist extract
Commercial kitchens need canopy extract at 10 m³/s per metre of canopy width, with grease filters, UV air treatment and integrated fire dampers linked to the gas interlock. We install to DW172 and IGEM/UP/19 for interlock — the two documents building control and insurers rely on.
Annual grease-duct cleaning is a legal and insurance requirement. We include the first-year clean in every kitchen extract handover and offer scheduled cleaning contracts thereafter. Fire damper drop-tests every 12 months are also included in our PPM Gold and Platinum tiers.
Controls and BMS
Every integrated HVAC package includes a full BMS strategy — supervisory controller, zone actuators, sensors and gateway to the client's estate BMS if required. We favour Trend IQ, Distech Controls or Cylon platforms as our default, all fully BACnet native.
Controls commissioning is where most HVAC contractors leave money on the table for clients — we invest 3–5 days of controls engineering post-mechanical completion, tuning setpoints, deadbands and seasonal changeover schedules. Post-occupancy energy monitoring at month 3, 6 and 12 confirms the design intent is being met.
Ongoing operation and PPM
Handover includes a fully populated O&M manual, tenant induction session and 12 months of DLP. Our Gold PPM tier covers quarterly filter changes, bi-annual mechanical service, statutory F-Gas leak checks and TM44 inspections. Platinum adds 24/7 reactive callout with SLA-backed response.
We report monthly on energy consumption, alarm history and any deviation from commissioned baseline. Deviations trigger a proactive engineer visit — you find out about a drifting sensor from us rather than from your facilities complaint log.
Metering, MID compliance and tenant billing
Multi-tenant commercial buildings need metered HVAC energy for accurate service charge apportionment. We install MID-compliant Class 1 electricity meters on every VRF outdoor unit, MVHR and heat pump, with pulse outputs or Modbus feeds to your tenant billing platform.
Heat metering to MID Annex MI-004 is provided where hot water or thermal energy is supplied to individual tenants (typical in mixed-use residential above retail schemes). Meters are UKAS-calibrated and re-verified every 10 years per statutory requirement.
Fresh-air quality and pollution filtration
Urban commercial buildings need ventilation systems that filter incoming air to at least ISO 16890 ePM1 60% (equivalent to old F7 rating). For central London and any site adjacent to arterial roads we default to ePM1 80% (F9-equivalent) — removing 80% of PM1 particles including diesel exhaust and road dust.
Activated carbon pre-filters address gaseous pollutants (NO2, VOCs, ozone) in the highest-pollution locations. All filters are lifetime-monitored via differential pressure sensors with alarm to the BMS on 60 Pa exceeded — driving proactive replacement rather than reactive change on user complaint.
Post-occupancy performance and continuous commissioning
Handover is the start, not the end. Our commercial HVAC packages include 12-month post-occupancy monitoring — quarterly review of energy consumption, comfort complaints, alarm history and any deviation from the commissioned baseline. Adjustments to setpoints, schedules and control strategies are made proactively as occupancy patterns emerge.
This 'soft-landings' approach typically improves year-1 energy performance by 8–15% versus a hands-off handover, and identifies design or install shortcomings while they are still remediable under our workmanship warranty. The additional 12-month engagement is included in every commercial HVAC contract at no extra charge.
Refrigerant strategy — R-32, R-454B and future-proofing
The F-Gas Regulation continues to phase down high-GWP refrigerants. R-410A production quota has fallen 79% since 2015 and continues to drop; equipment using R-410A is now costly to service and effectively obsolete for new installation. R-32 is the current default for new commercial equipment (GWP 675), delivering 68% lower environmental impact than R-410A.
R-454B (GWP 466) is emerging as the next-generation option for some VRF ranges and is now available across Daikin's VRV 5 and Mitsubishi's forthcoming City Multi releases. For any commercial project with 15+ year operational horizon we recommend specifying R-32 or R-454B, avoiding stranded assets as the phase-down continues. Our design service quantifies the whole-life refrigerant strategy including expected phase-down impact, service parts availability and end-of-life recovery obligations.
BMS strategy — from simple to headend integration
Commercial HVAC controls range from manufacturer standalone controllers (Daikin Cloud Plus, Mitsubishi MELCloud) through partial BMS integration (BACnet gateways to a supervisor) to full headend integration where every AC zone, MVHR unit, heat pump and metering point streams live data to a central Tridium N4 or Trend IQ supervisor.
For smaller commercial buildings (under 1,000 m²) manufacturer cloud platforms are usually sufficient — quick to deploy, low overhead and adequate for scheduling and alarm management. For larger buildings or estates, a proper BMS unlocks continuous commissioning, occupancy analytics and predictive maintenance that pays back the controls investment within 2-3 years. We deliver both approaches and honestly recommend the right level for the building's operational sophistication and FM team capability.
Frequently asked questions
Do you do the gas work too?＋
Yes — Gas Safe registered for commercial installations up to 70 kW. Above that we bring in specialist Gas Safe contractors we've worked with for years.
Can you get us to BREEAM Excellent?＋
Yes — heat recovery, low-GWP refrigerant, smart controls and metering all contribute credits. We work with your BREEAM assessor from RIBA Stage 3.
How long is a typical HVAC install?＋
6–12 weeks for offices under 1,000 m², 12–20 weeks for larger schemes with full BMS commissioning.
Can you TUPE the incumbent M&E maintenance contractor?＋
Yes — regularly done as part of full contractor changeovers on estates. Handover survey, records import and service continuity guaranteed.
Do you handle refrigerant compliance for the estate?＋
Yes — F-Gas Responsible Person service across multi-site portfolios, with centralised log books and reporting.
What if the client wants heat pump instead of gas mid-project?＋
We accommodate mid-design switches until end of RIBA Stage 4. Beyond that the switch is a change control — we quote the delta and programme impact.
Do you provide TM44 air conditioning inspections?＋
Yes — statutory TM44 inspections for systems above 12 kW rated cooling, lodged on the Landmark register with 5-year renewal reminders.
Can you deliver to Passivhaus and PAS 2035 standards?＋
Yes — we have delivered several Passivhaus commercial refurbishments and hold PAS 2035 accreditation for domestic retrofits under the same corporate umbrella.
How do you handle Building Safety Act obligations on tall buildings?＋
For residential and mixed-use buildings above 18 m or 7 storeys, the Building Safety Act 2022 introduces the Principal Designer and Principal Contractor gateway process. As mechanical contractor we support the Principal Designer with gateway 2 and 3 submissions covering compliance evidence for our systems — fire dampers, refrigerant leak safety, electrical isolation and structural loading. Full documentation packs are provided in the format the Building Safety Regulator requires.
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UK-Based Coordinators, 7 Days a Week
Our friendly team answers every call, message and booking request — day, night, weekends and bank holidays. No call centres, no bots, no waiting in a queue. Speak to a real coordinator who dispatches an F-Gas certified engineer fast.