The school summer shutdown provides an ideal opportunity to replace or upgrade plant room equipment with minimal disruption to learning. However, with tight deadlines, access challenges and compliance requirements, success depends on early planning - and choosing the right equipment that’s readily available when you need it.

Understand Current and Future Demands

Hot water and heating requirements in schools can evolve over time. New classrooms, expanded facilities, or rising student numbers often lead to increased demand. That’s why the first step in any upgrade should be a thorough assessment of current usage, combined with consideration of future growth. This will help to ensure the new system delivers reliable performance and long-term efficiency.

Consider Access and Installation Constraints

Many school buildings come with their own set of challenges: narrow corridors, tight entryways and limited plant room space. To keep projects on track and avoid costly structural alterations, compact systems that are easy to manoeuvre and install are ideal. The WaterMaster Evo is designed with these challenges in mind. Its small footprint allows installation in tight plant rooms

Ensure Legionella Compliance

Water hygiene is essential in any school setting, especially during holiday periods when systems may experience irregular use. Maintaining the right temperatures and circulation is key to reducing Legionella and remaining compliant with health and safety standards.  To help address this issue, systems like the WaterMaster Evo, which keeps stored water above 60°C with continuous recirculation, help deliver a safe, hygienic supply of hot water throughout the system.

Maximise installation efficiency

With a few short weeks available over the summer, plant room projects need to be completed quickly and with minimal disruption. That’s why selecting equipment designed for fast, hassle-free installation, such as factory-configured units with a compact footprint, can make all the difference. For example, the HeatMaster Evo combines hot water and heating in a single unit, streamlining system design and speeding up installation. This makes it a smart choice for tight summer deadlines.

Consider Total Cost of Ownership

While budget is always an important consideration – especially for schools with limited funding – it’s important not to focus solely on upfront costs. A significant proportion of a system’s total cost of ownership often comes from ongoing fuel consumption, so optimising both product and system efficiency is essential. Additionally, maintenance requirements and the cost and availability of spare parts can have a major impact over the system’s lifespan. These factors should be considered early on, as they can influence both the system design and the choice of products.

Support Sustainability Goals

It’s also worth remembering that many schools are working towards sustainability targets, so upgrading ageing plant room equipment is a smart way to reduce energy consumption and lower carbon emissions.  High-efficiency condensing boilers like the Evo S not only help meet these goals but also offer compatibility with hybrid or renewable systems, providing future-ready solutions. Additionally, the Evo S can also be cascaded, allowing multiple units to work together efficiently to match demand, improve redundancy and reduce energy use, which is ideal for schools with fluctuating usage patterns.

Plan for the future

A successful plant room upgrade should not only meet today’s needs but should be ready to adapt to tomorrows. That’s why scalable systems that can integrate easily with future expansions or new technologies are key to long-term flexibility. ACV systems are designed with this in mind, offering features like BMS integration and hybrid-ready configurations.

ACV Is Ready for Summer Shutdown

At ACV, we understand how critical timing is for summer school projects. That’s why we maintain strong stock levels across our full range of plant room equipment, from hot water cylinders and storage tanks to condensing boilers.

Whether you’re replacing a single unit or upgrading a full system, we’re ready to help with immediate product availability and expert support.