Nor-Ray-Vac heats historic hangar at Hendon

When curators of the Royal Air Force Museum at Hendon dismantled and reconstructed the Grahame-White Aircraft Factory on Museum land, they created a unique exhibition hall – an important grade II listed industrial building housing priceless early aircraft and associated exhibits.

But heating it was a problem. The system specified for the refurb was gas-fired wall mounted plaque heaters but these proved entirely unsuitable for the purpose of the building.

They were soon replaced with Nor-Ray-Vac continuous radiant tube heating – a system that emits low-intensity heat with even distribution, suitable for creating comfort conditions for visitors and staff but without affecting the valuable aircraft on display.

A system comprising six 38kW linear burners with one discharge fan was installed. The heaters are controlled in two separate zones, allowing the Museum to shut down heating in one section when it is necessary to do so. As a result, unnecessary use of fuel is eliminated and running costs are kept to a minimum.

In its new position on the Museum site, the building sits alongside other period buildings left from the inter-war years when Hendon was an important RAF station. The building has been moved complete with five huge timber Belfast trusses that span the full width of the structure.

The choice of Nor-Ray-Vac heating was based on previous experience. Mike Gell, Building and Services Manager at the Royal Air Force Museum comments: ‘We have used this type of radiant heating for a number of years in other Museum buildings on this site and similar AmbiRad heating in our sister museum at Cosford, Shropshire. We have found it to be a cost-effective solution for heating our large display halls and aircraft hangars.’

Web: www.ambirad.co.uk