Showersave Supports Passivhaus-Certified Leisure Centre With Sustainable Hot Water Solution

Showersave, part of The Keystone Group and a market leader in Waste Water Heat Recovery Systems (WWHRS), has collaborated with Blairgowrie Community Recreation Centre to deliver waste water heat recovery technology, helping create a low-carbon, future-ready facility for the local community. 

Pioneered by Perth and Kinross Council, the £36 million facility located in the centre of Blairgowrie features state-of-the-art amenities including a 25m swimming pool, sports halls, fitness suite, dance studio and a PE classroom for Blairgowrie High School students and the wider public. 

The former 1980s leisure facilities, which had served the community for over 40 years, no longer met the council’s vision of providing modern, high-quality spaces to support education, health and wellbeing. 

The new purpose-built centre includes a moveable pool floor, allowing the pool to be divided into two sections with different depths for flexible use. Designed by Holmes Miller, specialists in carbon-neutral developments, and delivered by BAM Construction, the facility sets a new standard for sustainable sports and leisure buildings in Scotland. 

Constructed from cross-laminated timber and glulam, the building has strong thermal and acoustic insulation, ensuring a comfortable indoor climate. Energy consumption is expected to be reduced by 80 per cent compared to a typical leisure centre due to a range of innovative energy-saving technologies incorporated throughout. 

A key contributor to these savings is the installation of Showersave’s WWHRS. By capturing heat from shower waste water, the system preheats the incoming cold feed that refills the system. Blairgowrie opted to install 18 Showersave Blue QB1-21 waste water heat recovery systems across the site, with each unit feeding two showers with sustainably heated water. 

With heat transfer through the copper pipe to warm the incoming cold mains water, the result is a 42 per cent reduction in hot water demand, helping to save energy and make showering more sustainable. Built to Passivhaus standards, the project followed a whole-building approach to eliminate carbon emissions. Passivhaus builds not only aim to deliver net-zero-ready facilities, but also to provide a high level of occupant comfort using very little energy for heating and cooling. 

James Martin, Account Manager at Showersave, commented: “The inclusion of Showersave in the Blairgowrie Community Recreation Centre project has been the perfect solution for delivering low-carbon, energy-efficient hot shower water provision. In a commercial setting, Showersave enables significant energy and cost savings.”

Es Tresidder,  Energy Consultant and Passivhaus Designer at John Gilbert Architects, added: “The 18 Showersave QB1-21 systems installed have been vital in helping achieve such a radical reduction in energy consumption, while ensuring that users always enjoy hot showers. This addition has ensured the Blairgowrie project achieves the rigorous standards required for Passivhaus certification.”

Now a vibrant space promoting health, fitness and recreation in Perthshire, Blairgowrie Community Recreation Centre, with the help of Showersave, combines advanced facilities with a commitment to environmental responsibility. 

Since 2005, more than 200,000 Showersave systems have been installed across the UK and Europe. Showersave is the only WWHR solution on the market designed, manufactured, and distributed by a single company – streamlining the supply chain and allowing faster response to the evolving demands of the construction industry. For more information on Showersave’s waste water heat recovery solutions, call 028 9334 4488, email sales@showersave.com or visit www.showersave.com. To find out more about the Blairgowrie Community Recreation project, visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cusymkW7AzQ.