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Intelligent heating controller cuts fuel bills

A Cambridgeshire company that usually specialises in 'clocking-on' technology and prison access systems has invented a controller that it says cuts 30 per cent or more of the fuel used by central heating systems.

The new system, called HeatingSave, replaces the boiler time clock of an existing central heating system with a microprocessor controller that constantly monitors the outside air, boiler and room temperatures.

These temperatures are then fed into a mathematical model that continuously learns the heat loss profile of a building and then only fires up the boilers when absolutely necessary - potentially saving large amounts of oil or gas in the process.

Tensor, which operates from a 12,000 sq ft factory attached to a country house in Hail Weston in Cambridgeshire, also claims the invention of the world's first smart card based time and attendance system in 1991 and the world's first biometric version, also incorporating access control systems in 2002. The company employs over 100 people.

Nigel Smith, chairman of Tensor, told Sapling.info: "Over 98% of central heating systems use hopelessly inefficient controls based on technology that was around 100 years ago. The beauty of HeatingSave is that it retro-fits to your existing heating system without the need to alter your plumbing. With most domestic heating bills set to rise by around 40% this year, we expect robust demand for the HeatingSave technology."

Published on Sapling: September 2008

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