To help meet Ireland’s gas utilisation levels, Armstrong Industrial: Gas has provided another two of its 3MW boiler houses to a main gas interconnected site
The boiler houses pre-heat the incoming gas before it undergoes pressure reduction. The additional boilers enable Ireland to meet its projected gas demand for the next regulatory period.
Armstrong Industrial: Gas initially supplied the current 9.5MW system at the site in 2022 and provided the latest two on a critical fast-track timeline. The upgrade increased the site’s heating capacity by 60%, bringing it to a total of 15.5MW.
Critical infrastructure to meet demand for capacity increase
Located on Ireland’s coastline, the interconnection point is critical infrastructure for importing gas from the UK. After conducting a gas market demand assessment, the operator required an increase in the interconnector’s capacity.
The addition of Armstrong’s boilers increased the capacity of the interconnector from 6 million to 6.9 million standard cubic meters of gas per day.
On specification, on time
The project required Armstrong Industrial to design, build, and test the two 3MW boiler houses on short notice, aligning with the customer’s specifications.
The units were to be delivered to site, tested, commissioned, and handed over to the customer by the end of October 2025, in time for the planned increase in gas flows to the country.
The project also required integrating the new boiler houses with the two existing units that Armstrong supplied in 2022, and with the existing master control panel.
How Armstrong Industrial did it
When preparing the proposal for the customer, the division conducted an assessment and planning exercise to ensure that specifications could be met in the required timeframe.
In this project, the division used its standardised boilers, pumps, and controls, leveraging proven, low-risk technology.
The division also used low-NOx condensing boilers and ensured that condensate was neutralised to a pH level of 6-8 before discharge. During boiler commissioning, the division adjusts the gas valves to deliver the optimum carbon dioxide setting, and records these levels to demonstrate compliance with the boiler manufacturer’s recommendations.
Fast-track timeline
Once the tender request was received in October 2024, the division’s Offerings Manager prepared and submitted a full tender return pack within 10 days, and responded to the customer’s technical clarifications the following month.
After Armstrong Industrial was advised that it had won the tender and received the purchase order in February 2025, it submitted its design calculations and indicative drawings within a month. This then led to design approval in April 2025, and the division began procurement activities immediately.
By July 2025, manufacturing had begun; the project’s key challenge was the timeframe for design and manufacturing. The units specified were large enclosures, measuring 10m x 3.7m x 3.2m, excluding the flue terminals, and occupying considerable floor space in Armstrong’s manufacturing facility.
The boiler houses were ready for the customer to inspect in September 2025, at Armstrong’s dedicated factory in Droitwich. That same month, the units were transported to site, and Armstrong Industrial’s service team commissioned them the following month.
Results
The process is designed to keep the site’s gas outlet temperature above 2°C. The boilers are modulated at the appropriate output to achieve this constant temperature (after pressure reduction). The site continues to achieve this constant outlet temperature, but now has more heating capacity available to accommodate future increases in gas flow (load demand).
