London’s commercial stock ranges from Victorian warehouses in Southwark to 1960s concrete-framed offices near Westminster Bridge. These buildings often have single-phase supplies that cannot support modern electric heating loads without distribution-board upgrades and new sub-mains. We survey existing cabling, calculate diversity factors for intermittent occupancy, and coordinate with the building’s electrical contractor before any radiator or panel installation begins.
Damp winters and poor insulation in older masonry mean higher heat-loss calculations than suburban stock. We size emitters using actual U-values measured on site rather than generic tables, and we route surface-mounted conduit where chasing would breach listed-building consent. All work follows Part L and the London Plan’s energy-efficiency targets, with commissioning sheets left for the building manager’s records.
Edge cases include rooftop plant rooms with restricted crane access and multi-let floors where shutdown windows are limited to evenings. In these situations we pre-fabricate pipe runs off-site and use quick-connect manifolds so the system can be energised the same night. We also fit remote monitoring so faults can be diagnosed without entering tenanted space during business hours.
Technician insight
In London the thing that catches most people out with Commercial Electric Heating Installers is the single-phase supply still feeding many pre-1970 offices around Westminster Bridge Road; you cannot just hang more heaters without pulling new three-phase mains through the service riser, and that always adds time and cost.
Office fit-out near St Thomas’ Hospital
A three-storey Victorian building converted to serviced offices had no spare breaker capacity. We found the original rising main was only rated for lighting. We installed a new three-phase distribution board in the basement, ran dedicated feeds to each floor and fitted low-surface-temperature panels that met landlord fire regulations. The client occupied the space on schedule.
How it works
- 1
Site Survey
We attend during normal operating hours to measure existing electrical capacity, record heat-loss data and note any access or planning constraints.
- 2
Design & Quotation
Load calculations and emitter layouts are issued with a fixed price that includes all necessary distribution upgrades and building-control notifications.
- 3
Installation
Work is phased to minimise disruption; new circuits are installed first, followed by emitter mounting and final connections.
- 4
Commissioning & Handover
The system is balanced, controls programmed, and the client receives as-fitted drawings plus operating instructions.
Pricing
Every commercial quote follows a measured site survey; no two buildings share the same electrical constraints or heat-loss profile.