Britain’s prisons are struggling for accommodation space and one of the strategies for increasing capacity is to deploy modular buildings using offsite construction methods. This creates extra capacity that can be brought on stream quickly and efficiently. Using offsite construction methods is much faster and cheaper than building new prisons or extending existing buildings.
These accommodation units require fitting out to make them habitable for inmates, in the same way as a standard prison cell has plumbing and electrical services.
The Project
Cool Services was delighted to win the contract to supply and install air conditioning systems in more than 7,000 modular buildings for deployment in prisons. A team of F-Gas certified air conditioning engineers was assigned to this contract for 12 months from Cool Services’ head office in Shrewsbury.
The team installed and commissioned air conditioning systems in thousands of the units including sleeping accommodation, accessible accommodation and ancillary units during their manufacture.
Air conditioning in Modular buildings
Air conditioning is an excellent heating solution for modular and portable buildings as it does not require a mains gas supply and offers greater energy efficiency compared to electric heaters. By installing air conditioning units in portable buildings, occupants can enjoy room cooling during summer and reliable heating throughout the winter, ensuring year-round climate comfort.
The results
Our client commended the workmanship of the Cool Services team. Their ability to cooperate with other contractors working in close proximity in a very busy working environment was also praised. “Our field engineers are always professional” stated Group General Manager Jason Cooper. “They are highly skilled and organised, are dependable in adhering to Health and Safety standards and work in a tidy manner.”
While working at an offsite manufacturing location may have been unconventional for Cool Services, companies within our Group undertake similar projects installing electrical systems, intruder alarms, CCTV, fire alarms, and air conditioning units in modular buildings. The ease of relocating these units and the lack of the need for extensive foundations make them a popular choice for many government departments, schools, the NHS, other healthcare providers and many other businesses to address short-term accommodation requirements.