Site Characterisation and Profiling of Heat User

Name: Student ID no.: Supervisors: Date:

Aastha Shrestha 2017008872 Anna Palliser and Tapuwa Marapara 19 November 2018

©Aastha Shrestha | Site Characterisation and Profiling of Heat User Demand for Invercargill, New Zealand

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DISCLAIMER This report was commissioned for Southern Institute of Technology (SIT)’s Environmental Management final year student research project and has been completed in accordance with SIT research guidelines. It is a part of a Venture Southland feasibility study. Although the project was not ready to be officially launched, Venture Southland wanted to ensure that the researcher (student) had enough data to complete the project successfully and supported the student by assisting with the completion of an online survey detailing the project and specific questions relevant to the proposed District Heating Scheme for Invercargill CBD. The survey was changed from face-to-face interview to online format due to lack of response. Unfortunately, the timeframe of the project changed to align with contracting processes of one of the other partners and the project was not officially able to be launched. Venture Southland has quite extensive experience in community and business engagement and consultation and agree that this will be a very significant aspect of the project once it gets launched. This report does not necessarily represent the views and opinions of Venture Southland and the recommendations and conclusions contained within this report are those of the researcher only.


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Abstract Shared energy systems such as District Heating (DH) are centralised energy provision networks that provide heat to different users within a network. Through shared localised power generation, DH schemes create energy savings, efficiency gains, carbon reduction and assist in pollution control. DH is a technology which can be considered to meet sustainability targets, however, lower temperature and demand reduction measures are essential. They involve significant investment and have a long lifetime and operation and therefore, their economic competitiveness need to be assessed in the light of present investment costs and possible changes in future demands. Fossils fuels have been the major energy supplier for DH systems around the world. The CO₂emission from these plants can be reduced by replacing the energy source from fossil to non-fossil-based fuel. Venture Southland is investigating the scope of a new biomass fired DH scheme for Invercargill CBD with the help of the Grant Smith Consulting Group who have been contracted to undertake the feasibility study. This DH system would be beneficial to the businesses located in the CBD by reducing the energy and maintenance costs. The aim of this project was to profile heating/ cooling energy demands of businesses within the inner-city, which would form a part of the feasibility study. About 160 businesses were approached, but only 9 responses were received which was clearly far too few for any statistical analysis. Based on the results achieved, this paper will discuss why the response rate was so low and how it could have been improved. Due to inadequate survey responses and time constraints, this study was not able to provide sufficient data to achieve its aim. However, desktop research on DH systems and their key characteristics around the world was undertaken and the results obtained were analysed. The study also successfully followed appropriate research guidelines and discussed and developed recommendations for similar future research.


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Acknowledgements I would like to thank first and foremost, Anna Palliser, for giving me a way forward to do this project with Venture Southland. I would like to express my gratitude towards Venture Southland for giving me an opportunity to be a part of their project and especially acknowledge Isabel Huther, the business projects coordinator for Venture Southland, who worked with me very closely and facilitated me throughout my research project. I am expressly very grateful to my supervisors Anna Palliser and Tapuwa Marapara for their boundless support in completing this project. Without them, I would have not been able to gather and come across what I have achieved during this project. Their patient guidance, enthusiastic encouragement and useful critiques have been immensely useful and appreciable for this research work. My sincerest thanks to SIT, my programme manager, Christine Liang and the course technician, Phil Lockett for facilitating me with this research. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Erine van Neikerk, who provided the theoretical background on research in EM 200 Research & Statistics paper. At last but not the least, I would like to heartily thank my family, friends and classmates for their continuous backing and wonderful support that they have shown during my study at SIT and especially during this research.


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Table of Contents DISCLAIMER ............................................................................................................................ i Abstract ......................................................................................................................................ii Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................. iii List of Figures ..........................................................................................................................vii List of Tables ......................................................................................................................... viii List of Acronyms and Abbreviations ........................................................................................ ix Chapter 1 : Introduction ............................................................................................................. 1 1.1

Project Overview ......................................................................................................... 2

1.2

Study Area ................................................................................................................... 3

1.3

Rationale...................................................................................................................... 5

1.4

Aim .............................................................................................................................. 7

1.5

Objectives .................................................................................................................... 7

1.6

Ethics ........................................................................................................................... 8

1.7

Delimitations ............................................................................................................... 9

1.8

Limitations .................................................................................................................. 9

1.9

Health and Safety ...................................................................................................... 10

Chapter 2 : Literature Review .................................................................................................. 11 2.1

Introduction ............................................................................................................... 11

2.1.1

Background of District Heating Systems ........................................................... 12

2.1.2

History of District Energy .................................................................................. 13

2.2

How a District Heating Systems works..................................................................... 14

2.3

Applications of District Energy................................................................................. 16

2.4

Classification of DHS based on source type and user demand ................................. 18

2.4.1

Heat Source Type ............................................................................................... 19

2.4.2

End-user Demands ............................................................................................. 19

2.5

Efficiency of DHS ..................................................................................................... 20


v 2.6

Future Competitiveness of District Heating .............................................................. 21

2.7

Literature on Methodology and Data Analysis ......................................................... 23

2.7.1

Interview ............................................................................................................ 23

2.7.2

Different Types of interviews ............................................................................ 24

2.7.3

Online Surveys and e- survey ............................................................................ 25

2.7.4

Approaches to e-surveys .................................................................................... 28

2.7.5

Online Survey Tools .......................................................................................... 29

2.7.6

Designing the Online Questionnaire: ................................................................. 31

2.7.7

Data Collection .................................................................................................. 32

2.7.8

Problems with Online Surveys........................................................................... 34

2.7.9

The Future of Online Surveys ............................................................................ 35

2.7.10 Possible Analysis Techniques .............................................................................. 36 2.7.11 Public participation in environmental decision making ....................................... 36 2.8

Summary of the literature .......................................................................................... 37

Chapter 3 : Methodology ......................................................................................................... 39 3.1

Introduction ............................................................................................................... 39

3.2

Site Selection ............................................................................................................. 40

3.3

Preparation of the Questionnaire ............................................................................... 40

3.4

Interviewing Businesses ............................................................................................ 41

3.5

Surveying Businesses ................................................................................................ 41

3.4.1

Selection of Participants .................................................................................... 42

3.4.2

The Online Survey Process ................................................................................ 42

3.5

Data Analysis ............................................................................................................ 42

Chapter 4 : Results and Data Analysis ..................................................................................... 44 4.1

Results ....................................................................................................................... 44

4.1.1

Business Details ................................................................................................. 44

4.1.2

Is the property leased? ....................................................................................... 44


vi 4.1.3

Type of business/ institution? ............................................................................ 45

4.1.4

Opening hours of business/ institution? ............................................................. 46

4.1.5

What kind of heating system are you currently using? ...................................... 46

4.1.6

How old is the current heating system and who is the manufacturer? ............... 47

4.1.7

What kind of cooling system are you currently using? ...................................... 48

4.1.8

How old is the cooling system? ......................................................................... 48

4.1.9

How comfortable is the building? ...................................................................... 49

4.1.10 Do you feel the building …? ................................................................................. 49 4.1.11 What is your net floor area heated/ cooled (m²)? .................................................. 50 4.1.12 What kind of lighting are you using? .................................................................... 50 4.1.13 What is your average energy usage [kWh] per month? (Information can be found on your energy bill) .......................................................................................................... 51 4.1.14 Do you have any plans to change the building soon?............................................ 52 4.1.15 Has EECA undertaken an energy audit of your building? .................................... 52 4.1.16 Are you interested in reducing your energy needs and carbon footprint? ............. 53 4.2

Summary of the Results ............................................................................................ 54

Chapter 5 : Discussion ............................................................................................................. 55 Chapter 6 : Recommendations and Conclusion ....................................................................... 57 6.1

Recommendations ..................................................................................................... 57

6.2

Conclusion................................................................................................................. 57

References ................................................................................................................................ 59 Appendices ............................................................................................................................... 64 Appendix A .......................................................................................................................... 65 Appendix B .......................................................................................................................... 66 Appendix C .......................................................................................................................... 67 Appendix D .......................................................................................................................... 68


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List of Figures Figure 1.1

Google Map of the area showing the proposed DHS location with the servicing businesses of the CBD area (enclosed in red) ...................................................... 4

Figure 1.2

Historical development of district energy networks, to the modern day and into the future .............................................................................................................. 6

Figure 2.1

Early history of District heating ......................................................................... 14

Figure 2.2

How district heating works for household usage ............................................... 15

Figure 2.3

District energy Systems ..................................................................................... 15

Figure 2.4

Advantages and disadvantages associated with e-surveys................................. 27

Figure 2.5

Addressing the potential weaknesses of online surveys .................................... 34

Figure 4.1

Pie chart representing percentages of business in leased and unleased buildings ............................................................................................................................ 45

Figure 4.2

Bar graph showing different type of business of the respondents ..................... 45

Figure 4.3

Bar graph representing the opening hours of the businesses involved in the survey ............................................................................................................................ 46

Figure 4.4

Bar graph showing different types of heating system used by the respondents 47

Figure 4.5

Bar graph showing the kind of cooling system currently being used by the respondents ........................................................................................................ 48

Figure 4.6

Bar graph showing the respondents' comfortability of their buildings .............. 49

Figure 4.7

Pie chart representing respondents' feeling of their buildings ........................... 50

Figure 4.8

Pie chart representing kinds of lighting the respondents use ............................. 51

Figure 4.9

Responses to whether the respondents have plans to change their buildings .... 52

Figure 4.10 Pie chart showing respondents' knowledge on energy audit of their buildings . 53 Figure 4.11 Column graph representing interests of respondents in reducing their energy requirements as well as carbon footprint ........................................................... 53


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List of Tables Table 2.1 Technology Options Associated with District Heating......................................... 17 Table 2.2 Benefits and Drawbacks of E-survey Approaches ................................................ 29 Table 4.1 Number of Respondents Responding to their Knowledge Regarding their Heating Systems ................................................................................................................. 47 Table 4.2 Number of Respondents Responding to How Old the Cooling System Is ........... 48 Table 4.3 Number of Respondents Responding to Their Average Energy Usage per Month .. ............................................................................................................................ 51


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List of Acronyms and Abbreviations CBD:

Central Business District

CHP:

Combined Heat and Power

DE:

District Energy

DEC:

Dunedin Energy Centre

DES:

District Energy Systems

DH:

District Heating

DHS:

District Heating Scheme

DoC:

Department of Conservation

E-survey:

Electronic survey

EECA:

Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority

EU:

European Union

GHG:

Greenhouse Gases

GWh:

Giga Watt hour

HVAC:

Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning

ICT:

Information and Communication Technology

ILT:

Invercargill Licensing Trust

kWh:

kilo-Watt hour

MoU:

Memorandum of Understanding

MW:

Mega Watt

NDA:

Non-Disclosure Agreement

SIT:

Southern Institute of Technology

UNEP:

United Nations Environment Programme

URL:

Uniform Resource Locator


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Chapter 1 : Introduction In a world seeking solutions to its energy, environmental, and food challenges, society cannot afford to miss out on global greenhouse-gas (GHG) emission reductions and the local environmental and societal benefits of these. At present, the world faces serious threat and problems related to energy and environment. The environment is threatened for instance by increment in GHG emissions, which have contributed to concentrations in the atmosphere having already reached concerning levels in terms of their potential to cause climate change. An important action to address energy and environmental challenges lies in the intelligent and efficient use of energy, including reducing/reusing energy waste and using low-carbon fuels (Rezaie & Rosen, 2012). The heat demand in many European cities and most parts of the world remains mostly supplied by individual fossil fuel-fired boilers, contributing to an inefficient and unsustainable energy system. An improvement of energy efficiency and an increase of renewable energy use must be achieved in order to decrease the fossil fuel consumption in the heating sector. District Heating (DH) infrastructures have an important role to play in the task of increasing energy efficiency and thus making these scarce resources meet future demands. The fundamental idea of DH is ‘to use local fuel or heat resources that would otherwise be wasted, in order to satisfy local customer demands for heating, by using a heat distribution network of pipes as a local market place’ (Werner, 2017, p. 618). It comprises a network of pipes connecting the buildings in a neighbourhood, town centre or whole city, so that they can be served from centralised plants or a number of distributed heat producing units. This approach allows any available source of heat to be used. The main importance of district heating is lower heating costs when international fuel prices are high and when lower environmental or climate impacts are valued by internalisation of external damage costs into national taxes or fees (Werner, 2017, p. 618). The heat distribution costs are low in dense urban areas with concentrated heat demands. The limitations are lower competitiveness at low international fuel prices and high distribution costs in suburban and rural areas with less concentrated heat demands (Werner, 2017, p. 618). According to Werner (2017, p. 626), in order to obtain low distribution costs, short distribution pipes giving high linear heat densities are preferred. An analysis of 83 major European cities in four different countries revealed that those cities which have high population densities give low distribution costs (Werner, 2017, p. 626).


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1.1 Project Overview This project was proposed by Venture Southland which is a Joint Committee of the Invercargill City Council, Southland District Council and Gore District Council in Southland, New Zealand. Venture Southland is the economic development agency for Southland, delivering a wide range of initiatives, services, and events to promote and grow the region alongside the Southland communities. Its registered office is at 143 Spey Street, Invercargill, 9810, New Zealand. This project is facilitated and coordinated by Venture Southland on behalf of the Invercargill Licensing Trust (ILT) and Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA). Venture Southland proposed a cluster central city District Heating Scheme (DHS) with shared energy resource providing heating to the central ILT sites namely Kelvin Hotel, New Hotel (now Barluca and Kiln), Waxy O’ Shea, and Speight’s Ale House located in the Central Business District (CBD) of Invercargill to reduce the energy and maintenance costs. It is investigating the scope of this new DHS with the help of the Grant Smith Consulting Group, who have been contracted to undertake the feasibility study. It proposes to provide heating to further private and institutional public buildings within the inner-city of Invercargill. The heating will likely be provided from a low emissions biomass fired boiler or solar thermal system with preferable fuel source as wood pellets as they are high quality biofuel, carbon neutral and cost less, making them a sustainable fuel source. Other heating and/ or cooling opportunities will be considered within the feasibility study. It investigates additional servicing opportunities for businesses including Quest Apartments, H & J Smith, Court House, Department of Conservation (DoC) office, SIT office, Library, Tuatara Backpackers, Civic Theatre, Invercargill City Council, and SBS Bank. Further potential servicing opportunities will be investigated for the Ibis Styles hotel, Classic Motorcycle Mecca, SIT campus and other businesses located within the inner parts of the Invercargill city as indicated by the red quadrilateral in Figure 1.1.


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1.2 Study Area The study area for this research is Invercargill, the most southerly city in New Zealand. It lies in the temperate climatic zone and the average temperature is 15ºC. Venture Southland proposed Central Heating system as an opportunity for significant cost savings, improved air quality and carbon reduction for the community and the proposed new ILT Hotel through a combined heating plan, allowing future efficiencies. The potential users of this DHS will be businesses, institutions and others which fall within the red quadrilateral as shown below (Figure 1.1). The area is enclosed by Don Street on North, Tay Street on South, Jed Street on East and Dee Street on West as shown in the figure below.


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Figure 1.1 Google Map of the area showing the proposed DHS location with the servicing businesses of the CBD area (enclosed in red), From “Google Maps”, 2018, retrieved from: https://www.google.co.nz/maps/@-46.410988,168.3526234,17z


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1.3 Rationale Cities such as Lockport and New York in the USA were pioneers of district heating as it was first commercially introduced during 1870s and 1880s (Werner, 2017, p. 619). The basic idea behind district heating is to utilize local fuel or heat resources to fulfil the heating demands of local people by using a heat distribution system of pipes. DH systems have been able to cover the heating necessities of local people including market perception, use of local resources and environmental impact (Werner, 2017, p. 618). According to Werner (2017, p. 624), fossil fuels have been the major energy supplier for DH systems in the world, for example Russia uses natural gas whereas China uses coal as the main fuel. But in future, the carbon dioxide (CO₂) emission from these plants can be reduced by replacing the energy source from fossilbased fuel to non-fossil-based fuel. District heating is not a new concept. When it was first implemented (i.e. firstgeneration heating systems), it used steam as heat, passing through concrete ducts and steam traps but the system resulted in high heat loss due to high temperature of steam and poor insulation (Stevenson, 2016, p. 15 & 16). These systems are still in use in some parts of the world (e.g. Manhattan and Paris) whereas some places (e.g. Salzburg, Hamburg and Munich) have recently upgraded their system. The second generation of DH featured pressurized water with supply temperatures over 100ºC (Stevenson, 2016, p. 16). As described by Stevenson (2016), second generation district heating also lacked in quality but then after third generation was introduced, it started using alternatives and cheaper fuel types. The third generation of DH is often referred to as “Scandinavian District Heating Technology” where a main feature of the technology was the use of pre-fabricated parts during the construction phase (Stevenson, 2016, p. 16). According to Stevenson (2016), the most recent and advanced heating systems (i.e. fourth generation district heating) was introduced first in Denmark and has a balanced system between dispatchable (biomass, biogas or waste incineration) and non-dispatchable energy resources. As per Stevenson (2016), several studies namely the heat map Europe study concluded that because DH is considered to be more efficient and environmentally friendly technology, it should be considered as a means to meet sustainability and climate reduction targets. He, however, highlights the need for progress towards lower temperature and demand reduction measures.


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Figure 1.2 Historical development of district energy networks, to the modern day and into the future. From “District Energy in Cities: Unlocking the Potential of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy”, by UNEP (2015). Retrieved from: http://habitat3.org/wpcontent/uploads/UNEP-District-Energy-Report-2015.pdf

In New Zealand, Dunedin Energy Centre (DEC) is the largest district heating plant of 30 MW capacity which supplies approximately 60 GWh per year to University of Otago, Dunedin hospital and Cadbury consuming 13,000 tonnes of coal annually (Oberschneider, 2016). According to the report, a trial was carried out using wood fuel instead of coal which encountered no technical constraints and resulted in fewer emission of carbon dioxide gas. The clean wood materials tend to have lower ash contents and more benign ashes and can be fired at higher co-firing ratios (Livingston, 2016, p. 3). The Dunedin City Council is currently


7 investigating the feasibility of firing the system through a new biomass boiler. A business case is currently being prepared to identify cost-benefits and feasibility. District heating is primarily used for space heating and water heating purposes in countries with a cold climate and large heating demands. Due to the large operational costs involved, efficient operation of the producing units in a district heating system is desirable. However, before a production plan can be constructed, a prediction of the heat demand needs to be determined (Dotzauer, 2002, p. 277). Because DH systems involve significant investment and have a long lifetime and operation, the economic competitiveness of new DH systems needs to be assessed in the light of present investment costs and possible changes in future demand (Ahlgren, 2013, p. 5). This research examines the possibility of a new biomass fired DHS in the CBD of Invercargill, New Zealand. It examines the technology used in other schemes to reduce future risk and provide Venture Southland with the required information to consider for the feasibility study of such a scheme. A new DH scheme will differ from other schemes, as technology changes and customers’ demand change. This research will assist in the site characterisation of as well as support in profiling the heat/ user demand within the inner block of the city which will form a part of the feasibility study.

1.4 Aim The aim of this research was to study the feasibility of a new District Heating Scheme in Invercargill CBD by providing information to Venture Southland which would support in the site characterisation as well as profiling the heat/ user demand in the area.

1.5 Objectives To support the aim, the main objectives of this research project were: ➢ To undertake desktop research on DH schemes and their key characteristics around the world; ➢ To develop a questionnaire, database and cover letter for Venture Southland to collect data from the respondents who are the representatives of the various business involved in the proposed scheme;


8 ➢ To arrange time and undertake structured interviews with the interviewees; ➢ To conduct the online survey using survey tool- SurveyMonkey; ➢ To analyse the survey results; ➢ To develop the Heat and Cool map with Venture Southland, if time permitted; ➢ To do a topographic map with Venture Southland by property search, if time permitted; ➢ To source any data on solar insolation and temperature days data for the central city; and ➢ To build a stakeholder pitch document with Venture Southland to explain the information gathered and put into context for district scheme if time permitted.

1.6 Ethics This research was conducted under the blanket approval of the Southern Institute of Technology (SIT) for research students and abided by SIT ethics guidelines and protocols. As this research is a part of a Venture Southland project, the researcher also abided by the Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) as well as the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Venture Southland and SIT. The information from the online survey was presented in clusters to ensure confidentiality. All ethical issues that need to be addressed have been taken into consideration. However, the main ethical principles abided by the researcher are summarised as follows: 1.

Integrity and Objectivity: The researcher maintained integrity at all times and the participants were not deceived in any way. The objective of the study was made clear to the participants. Attempts were made not to bring bias or personal opinions into the subject.

2.

Privacy and Confidentiality: Personal information of the participants was kept confidential. The material was only made available to authorized people with the consent of the participants.

3.

Informed Consent to the participants: The participants were provided with all relevant information to make an informed decision. For interviews, an information sheet along with a written consent form was provided and for online surveys, an introductory email with


9 details of the project was sent out to the participants, ensuring their safe and informed participation. These can be found in Appendices section of this report.

4.

Participants’ Safety: When conducting interviews, the research was conducted in a safe environment making sure that participants did not feel harassed, unsafe and uncomfortable at any stage of the research process.

5.

Dissemination: All participants were informed about the purpose of the study and the ways the results were to be disseminated before participating.

6.

Responsibility during the analysis of data and reporting of findings: No alterations were made to the data, irrespective of the findings or contradictory outcomes.

1.7 Delimitations There were some boundaries that were set for the study which delimited this project. This research does not include the entire DH feasibility undertaken by Venture Southland, but only gives an outline about the heat/ user demand. The reason for this was the timeframe of the student project. The respondents involved were limited to only those who had their businesses located in the study area.

1.8 Limitations The limitations that influenced the result of this study were: 1.

The respondents’ willingness to respond: A big limitation of this study was that many of the potential users of the DHS were unwilling to participate and disclose their information which may be very significant to the project.

2.

Change of methodology: As a result of the non-response to the request of interviews, the methodology was changed to a survey, however, the participants did not respond very well to the survey either, which severely impacted the research.


10 3.

Time constraints: On account of a need to change methods and the significant time trying to engage the potential users, the final four objectives were not met due to time constraints.

1.9 Health and Safety The Health and Safety forms from Venture Southland were carefully read and signed by the researcher as well as the research supervisor. As a part of the methodology, interviews were held in a workplace or other public venue rather than in private places to protect the safety of the researcher. Additionally, the information about where the researcher was going was always given to a third party to ensure the researcher’s safety. But when the methodology evolved from structured interviews to online surveys, these only involved online procedures and had no potential physical risks to the researcher or the respondents. Furthermore, the MoU from SIT, containing health and safety issues was also signed by the researcher, research supervisor and the representative from Venture Southland to address all the Health and Safety issues.


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Chapter 2 : Literature Review The Literature Review is “concept-centric” (Webster & Watson, 2002, p. xvi) and is stated as, “a detailed and justified analysis and commentary of the merits and faults of the literature within a chosen area, which demonstrates familiarities with what is known about the research topic” (Saunders, Lewis, & Thornhill, 2012, p. 668). In regards with this definition, the literature review will be discussed in the following four perspectives: 1. Background of District Heating Systems- how it works and its applications 2. Classification of DHS based on source type and user demand 3. Efficiency of DHS 4. Future Competitiveness of District Heating The literature will also cover reviews of methodological approaches (both interviews and surveys) in this study. It will assess different types of interviews as well as surveys and their strengths and weaknesses. A brief discussion about public participation in environmental decision making will provide some insights into problems of engaging stakeholders in research projects such as this one.

2.1 Introduction There has been a growing concern among the consumers of the world about whether the earth’s resources will continue to sustain the living standards enjoyed by the people. The world today faces serious threats and problems related to energy and environment. The increasing Greenhouse- Gas (GHG) emissions, which have contributed to atmospheric concentrations have already reached alarming levels in terms of their potential to cause climate change. An important action to address energy and environmental challenges lies in the intelligent and efficient use of energy, including reducing/reusing energy waste and using lowcarbon fuels (Rezaie & Rosen, 2012, p. 2). District Heating (DH) uses local fuel or heat sources that would otherwise be wasted, in order to satisfy local customer demands for heating, by using a heat distribution network of pipes as a local market place (Werner, 2017, p. 618). It has also been able to cover the heating necessities of local people including market perception, use of local resources and environmental impact.


12 District heating infrastructures have an important role to play in the task of increasing energy efficiency and thus making these scarce resources meet future demands. The inclusion of DH in future sustainable cities allows for the wide use of Combined Heat and Power (CHP) together with the utilisation of heat from waste-to-energy and various industrial surplus heat sources as well as the inclusion of geothermal and solar thermal heat (Lund et al., 2014, p. 1). According to Werner (2017), the district heating economy can be hence characterised as economy-of-scope instead of economy-of-size that characterise other parts of the energy system, giving a fundamentally different business situation for district heating. This literature review will include the background of DH systems, how these systems work, history of district energy, applications of DE, classification of DHS based on the type of source and user demand, efficiency of DHS, and the future competitiveness of DH. This will also include literature on the research methodology and will discuss the literature on online surveys, the advantages and disadvantages associated with conducting online surveys

2.1.1 Background of District Heating Systems District heating infrastructures play an important role in increasing energy efficiency and making scarce resources meet our future demands. District heating (or cooling) comprises a network of pipes connecting the buildings in a neighbourhood, town centre or whole city, so that they can be served from centralised plants or a number of distributed heat producing units. This approach allows any available source of heat to be used and replaces the need for individual, building-based boilers, furnaces and cooling systems. The development of district cooling has been more recent compared to the development of district heating and are therefore neither as common nor as extensive as district heating systems (Werner, 2017, p. 618). According to Stevenson (2016, p. 17), there are four main trends running through the development of DH as illustrated in Figure 1.2: 1. Lower distribution temperatures 2. Reducing the materials used for distribution 3. Prefabrication 4. Divergence of fuel types The inclusion of district heating in future sustainable cities allows for the wide use of combined heat and power (CHP) together with the utilisation of heat from waste-to-energy and


13 various industrial surplus heat sources as well as the inclusion of geothermal and solar thermal heat (Lund et al., 2014, p. 1). The pipelines from the heating (or cooling) plant to each of the connected buildings distribute thermal energy in the form of hot water, steam, or cold water. The energy is then extracted at the buildings and the water is brought back to the plant through the circulating pipelines, to be heated or cooled again.

2.1.2 History of District Energy The concept of district heating and/or cooling together is called District Energy (DE) (Gochenour, 2001, p. 1). The heat/ cooling is produced centrally in precise location, from where the heat/ cold is distributed to the consumers located in different buildings, in the form of hot water or steam/ cold water circulating in a distribution piping network (Gochenour, 2001, p. 1). The history of this concept dates back to 1622 when the Dutchman, Cornelius Drebbel proposed a DH system based on a model of fresh water supply. After that, some concepts arose in England in the 1777 and in Russia in 1832 when the first gravity heating system was commissioned (Gochenour, 2001, p. 2). Almost after a hundred years, in 1877, Birdsill Holly designed the first commercially successful DH system in Lockport, New York. His intended areas of interest in district heating were; 1) to heat dwellings/ buildings; 2) to furnish steam to fire engines to operate the pump; and 3) to smother flames by filling a space with steam (Collins, 1959, p. 157). The first purpose soon became the paramount one. According to (Gochenour, 2001, p. 2), by 1887, twenty DH systems were in operation in the United States; Co-generation and District Cooling were introduced as early as 1890. In the report, Gochenour states that wider introduction of the systems began in the beginning of the twentieth century with the purpose to rationalize ways of heating a number of boilers from a single boiler through a suitable distribution medium.


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Figure 2.1 Early history of District heating. From District energy trends, issues, and opportunities: The role of the World Bank, by Gochenour, 2001, p. 3. The distribution medium in the United States was steam whereas hot water was the predominant in Europe; Germany, Denmark and Russia being the countries in the forefront in developing the DE systems (Gochenour, 2001, p. 3). After applications in heating of buildings used for apartments, offices and commerce, DH was also used for industrial applications. Today, as modern district energy rapidly gains acceptance, systems are being built in increasing numbers in cities and communities across the world. Cities are adopting district energy systems to achieve important benefits including: affordable energy provision; reduced reliance on energy imports and fossil fuels; community economic development and community control of energy supply; local air quality improvements; CO₂ emission reductions; and an increased share of renewables in the energy mix (Riahi, 2015, p. 22).

2.2 How a District Heating Systems works The basic idea behind district heating is to use local heat production plants to produce hot water (Wernstedt, Davidsson, & Johansson, 2007, p. 1378). A typical District Heating System generally includes a high-powered central boiler fuelled by oil, or many heat source options such as gas Combined Heat and Power (CHP), energy from waste or renewable energy sources like wood chips, biomass, etc. The hot water travels through a network of wellinsulated pipes buried underground. This network carries the hot heating water (or steam) into the heat interface units located in each building. This provides heating and hot water control


15 like a traditional boiler. Each building/ house still has the ability to individually control their own temperature requirements. A heat exchanger captures the heat from the network and transfers it to the network inside the building/ house (radiators or underfloor heating or domestic hot water production systems for baths, showers, etc.). The cooled water then goes back to the central boiler to be reheated and circulated again.

Figure 2.2 How district heating works for household usage. From “What makes a city green?”, 2010, retrieved from: http://preematravelseurope.blogspot.co.nz/2010/07/stockholmtradition-and-innovation.html

Figure 2.3 District energy Systems. From “District Energy in Cities: Unlocking the Potential of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy”, by UNEP, 2015, retrieved from: http://habitat3.org/wp-content/uploads/UNEP-District-Energy-Report-2015.pdf


16

2.3 Applications of District Energy District Energy (DE) is a proven solution for delivering heating and cooling services. Modern district energy is an inherently diverse system that connects multiple thermal energy users to efficient or renewable energy sources, such as co-generation (CHP), industrial excess heat (IEH), municipal waste, biofuels, geothermal heat, and solar and wind energy (OECD/ IEA, 2017). Because they can use diverse energy sources, including locally available resources, DE systems are flexible, allowing for economies of scale as well as reliable heating and cooling services, without depending on a single supply source (OECD/ IEA, 2017). DE systems can provide space heating/ cooling and domestic hot water for large office buildings, schools, residences, hotels, hospitals, apartment complexes, and other municipal, institutional, and commercial buildings. Municipalities can incorporate district energy into the infrastructure of their downtown business districts or encourage its use in such new developments as office building complexes and industrial parks. In 2008, DH met about 12% of the heat demands in residential and service buildings in the European Union (EU27) (Ahlgren, 2013, p. 1). In Northern, Central and Eastern European countries, DH often accounts for above 50% of the heat market and on an average, more than 80% of heat provided by DH is based on renewable sources or waste heat from industrial processes and electricity generation (Ahlgren, 2013, p. 1). District cooling systems, however, are not as widely used as DH systems. According to Werner (2017, p. 619), majority of district cooling systems appear in cities such as Singapore, Tokyo, Stockholm, Paris, Dubai, Chicago, Toronto, Courbevoie outside Paris, Helsinki, Barcelona, Vienna, Berlin etc.


17 Table 2.1

Technology Options Associated with District Heating


18

Note: Technology Options Associated with District Heating. From District Energy in Cities: Unlocking the Potential of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, by UNEP, 2015, retrieved from http://habitat3.org/wp-content/uploads/UNEP-District-Energy-Report2015.pdf

2.4 Classification of DHS based on source type and user demand District energy systems are classified based on different aspects. They can be categorised on the basis of the heat transport fluid: low pressure steam, hot water and hot air; the thermal energy transported: heating, cooling, and cooling and heating, and further on the basis of the type of heat resources: using a separate source of energy for heat or using recycled energy/heat (Rezaie & Rosen, 2012, p. 4). Generally, a DH System can be categorised based on two main parameters including the type of heat sources and the level of end-user demands.


19

2.4.1 Heat Source Type The heat sources in DH systems are generally modelled based on their efficiency and heat generation output. A minimum efficiency index has been defined depending on the type of the heat source (Talebi, Mirzaei, Bastani, & Haghighat, 2016, p. 5). For example, the primary energy saving index (PES) has been defined to evaluate the efficiency of a CHP heat source:

1 𝑃𝐸𝑆 = [1 − ( )] X 100% CHP 𝐻η CHP 𝐸η + Ref 𝐻η Ref 𝐻η Where, CHP Hη is the heat efficiency in cogeneration production, Ref Hη is the efficiency in separated heat generation, CHP Eη is the electricity efficiency in cogeneration production, and Ref Hη is the efficiency in separated electricity generation. The minimum value of the PES for CHP heat sources with the nominal size of smaller than 1 MW should be a positive value while this value is more than 0.1 for sources above 1 MW according to Talebi et al. (2016). Similar types of indices have been defined for other types of heat sources. Heat sources are categorized as permanent and non-permanent types. In the permanent heat sources like CHP, geothermal, and biomass sources, the heat generation continuously exceeds the heat demand of the network (Talebi et al., 2016, p. 4). The convertible renewable sources into thermal energy such as wind and solar energy with high rate of fluctuations are categorized as non-permanent sources, where the generation profile fluctuates over time. The generation mainly does not match with the user demand profile in this case, and therefore another energy source is usually integrated to meet the peak demand of the system (Talebi et al., 2016, p.4).

2.4.2 End-user Demands In designing a DH system, one of the main concerns is the number and variety of the users connected to the system. According to Talebi et al. (2016, p. 4), residential buildings utilize lower end-use temperatures for heating while industrial users require higher fluid temperatures, meaning that the user-demand level in a network results in different arrangement of the DH systems. As per Talebi et al (2016, p. 4), one arrangement is to design a network


20 based on the maximum demanded temperature, while another option is to use a multi-loop network with different operational temperatures associated with each of them. Optimization of energy systems is a key issue in the design of more sustainable development models, especially in urban areas, where almost all the electrical energy is produced in remote large-scale power plants, and cooling and thermal requirements are produced locally in each dwelling or building (Ortiga, Bruno, Coronas, & Grossman, 2007, p. 2). According to Ortiga et al. (2007, p. 2), an accurate prediction of energy demand is the most important data for the simulation and optimization process. The DH system modelling of the users’ network consists of two levels: understanding the heating demand profiles of the users in order to define the total load required for the network, and calculation of a heat exchanger for each user (Ortiga et al., 2007, p. 2). Businesses and households view energy as an input, an expense of doing business or maintaining a home (Wernstedt, Davidsson, & Johansson, 2007, p. 1379). According to Wernstedt et al. (2007), they are less concerned with how many kilowatt hours they purchase than with the services that the energy provides, e.g. space heating. This relationship provides the basis of demand-side management (DSM), which can be defined as "The planning and implementation of strategies designed to encourage consumers to improve energy efficiency, reduce energy costs, change the time of usage or promote the use of a different energy source" (Wernstedt et al., 2007, p. 1379). DSM strategies try to reduce the peak load and change the shape of the load profile through the techniques of peak clipping, load shifting and energy conservation and can reduce energy consumption with the associated financial and environmental benefits (Wernstedt et al., 2007, p. 1379). Since building heterogeneity in each district system is elevated, especially in the urban setting, and each building has its own properties and corresponding demand profile, it is very important to determine the model which could predict the demand profile of the entire district with acceptable accuracy (Talebi et al., 2016, p. 5).

2.5 Efficiency of DHS DH offers opportunities to both decrease the use of fossil fuels for space heating and to achieve high total energy efficiency (Difs, Wetterlund, Trygg, & Soderstrom, 2010, p. 638). Different strategies of energy production, conversion, and user-side demand have been proposed to conserve energy in the building sector, i.e., increasing the energy efficiency of


21 buildings with refurbishment technologies such as thermal insulation, double and triple glazing, solar shadings, cavity wall, reflective coating windows, efficiency enhancement, the functionality performance of HVAC equipment, integrating renewable strategies such as BIPV and solar collectors, utilizing natural ventilation (Talebi et al., 2016, p. 1). In addition to these technologies, one of the viable solutions is to improve the energy efficiency in buildings, which can be accomplished by using DH systems. According to Rezaie & Rosen (2012), other advantages of DH are known as the improvement of resource and energy management as well as reduction in the user-side costs, including operation, maintenance, and safety expenses. Moreover, flexibility and safety in selection of the energy source such as biomass and geothermal energy instead of fossil fuels, which dominates the current heat market, is another attractive option of the DH systems. The most used technology is that of biomass micro-cogeneration systems which consist mainly of boilers that are required to meet certain energy efficiency conditions. The use of biomass is complicated with respect to DH because using biomass to fire micro-cogeneration systems is less attractive for areas with low population densities, as the investment per household is considerably higher (Cansino, Pablo-Romero, Román, & Yñiguez, 2011, p. 3805). Similarly, it is less attractive in areas with many small buildings (e.g. detached houses), than in areas with a few, much larger buildings (e.g. apartment blocks), because of the expense involved in making connections to each house. Biomass gasification is a thermo-chemical conversion of carbonaceous material into combustible gas through partial oxidation. Its applications range from heat only, through electricity or CHP production in gas engines or combined cycles, to synthesis of biofuels. Several studies that have investigated biomass gasification applications for integration in DH systems, conclude that the gasification technologies perform better than the combustion technologies with respect to economic viability as well as energy conversion performance (Difs et al., 2010, p. 638).

2.6 Future Competitiveness of District Heating A variety of fuels like biomass, natural gas, recyclable wastes, etc. are used in a DH system, which helps improve total energy system efficiency by avoiding the use of high exergy fuels for pure heat generation and offers distribution possibilities for excess heat. Since DH is


22 mainly based on heat recycling, the total cost for DH minus the heat distribution cost can be regarded as the payability for recycled heat (Persson & Werner, 2011, p. 568). Hence, the total future competitiveness of DH is a combination of two main components firstly the cost difference between centralised and decentralised heat supply and secondly the heat distribution cost (Persson & Werner, 2011, pp. 568-569). The total heat demand of a land area, city or settlement (heat density) is often used to describe and evaluate the conditions for the implementation of DH; since sellable amount of heat over a certain area dictates the feasibility of any DHS (Persson & Werner, 2011, p. 569). When heat densities decrease, it is primarily the specific distribution cost that increases. If DH network expansion is included as a part of an optimization process, then the future competition between collective and individual heating options and heat demand per square metre, need to be addressed. By analysing DH expansion seen from a national perspective, it is possible to model the benefits that a DH system may provide in terms of adding flexibility to the overall energy system with respect to both utilization of heat, which would otherwise be wasted, or utilization of electricity which would otherwise be wasted or exported at low rates, as well as with respect to providing storage capacity (Münster, et al., 2012, p. 54). The future competitiveness of DH is dependent on three factors: the future competition on the heat market, the current use of DH and the future city shapes (Persson & Werner, 2011, p. 576). Compact cities have better conditions for DH and cooling than sparse cities, and therefore future competitiveness of DH additionally involves socio-political decisions and demographic considerations as well. According to Werner (2017, p. 628), future context foresees promising possibilities for district heating and cooling, but strong efforts are required in order to realise them. One important effort is to enhance the current DH technology to align with future conditions associated to renewables and buildings with low heat demands with an introduction of the fourth generation of DH technology (Werner, 2017, p. 628). According to Werner (2017, p.628), DE systems have strong potentials to be viable heat and cold supply options in a future world. He, however, focuses that a common vision and assessment for the future for DE in the world is still missing and require more efforts for the identiﬁcation, assessment, and implementation of these potentials in order to harvest the global beneﬁts with DE systems.


23

2.7 Literature on Methodology and Data Analysis Every researcher should approach each study with as much objectivity, ethical diligence, and rigour as possible and regardless of whether the study is qualitative or quantitative, it should be robust (Jackson, Drummond, & Camara, 2007, p. 22). A research requires systematic design, collection, analysis and reporting the findings and solutions. The aim of methodology is to help understand in the broadest possible terms, not only the products of scientific enquiry but the process itself (Brannen, 2005, p. 182). As this research began with collecting data by the means of a structured interview, later followed by an online survey which is a mix of qualitative as well as quantitative research methods (multi-method), literature on both the methods will be discussed. Interviews follow qualitative research method which is primarily concerned with what Lincoln and Guba (1985) call “the human as instrument” approach (Jackson et al., 2007, p. 22). The purpose of the qualitative research interview is to contribute to a body of knowledge that is conceptual and theoretical and is based on the meanings that life experiences hold for the interviewees (DiCicco-Bloom & Crabtree, 2006, p. 314). Survey research is defined as "the collection of information from a sample of individuals through their responses to questions" (Check & Schutt, 2012, p. 160). This type of research allows for a variety of methods to recruit participants, collect data, and utilize various methods of instrumentation (Ponto, 2015, p. 168). Survey research can use quantitative research strategies (e.g., using questionnaires with numerically rated items), qualitative research strategies (e.g., using open-ended questions), or both strategies (i.e., mixed methods) (Ponto, 2015, p. 168). This strategy may enter into one or more phases of the research process: the research design; data collection; and interpretation and contextualization of data (Brannen, 2005, p. 181).

2.7.1

Interview The research interview, one of the most important qualitative data collection methods,

has been widely used in conducting field studies and ethnographic research (Qu & Dumay, 2011, p. 238). It is a purposeful conversation between two or more people, requiring the interviewer to establish rapport, to ask concise and unambiguous questions, to which the interviewee is willing to respond, and to listen attentively to be able to explore the answers further (Saunders, Lewis, & Thornhill, 2012, p. 372). The research interview is flexible,


24 context-sensitive and dependent on the personal interaction of the interviewer and the interviewee; and according to the perspective taken (Kvale, 1992, p. 22). Interviews may be highly formalised and structured, using standardised questions for each research participant or they may be informal unstructured conversations and in between, there are intermediate positions depending on the level of formality and structure used (Saunders et al., 2012, p. 374). For example, an interview may contain some highly structured sections and some unstructured parts, depending on its purpose.

2.7.2

Different Types of interviews There are three types of interviews: unstructured, semi- structured and structured. Each

interview type has its advantages and its disadvantages, as briefly outlined below. Selecting one depends on the research design and what the researcher wants to get out of the interviews (Saunders, Lewis, & Thornhill, 2012, p. 374).

2.7.2.1 Unstructured Interviews Unstructured interviews are informal and are used to explore a general area in depth; therefore, referred to as ‘in-depth interviews' (Saunders et al., 2012, p. 345). According to (DiCicco-Bloom & Crabtree, 2006, p. 315), the most widely used unstructured interview originates from the ethnographic tradition of anthropology during which the investigator identifies one or more ‘key informants’ to interview on an ongoing basis and takes jottings or short notes while observing and questioning. The interviewee is given the opportunity to talk freely about events, behaviour and beliefs in relation to the topic area, so that this type of interaction is sometimes called non-directive (Saunders et al., 2012, p. 375).

2.7.2.2 Semi-structured interviews According to Saunders et al. (2012, p.374), in semi- structured interviews, the researcher will have a list of themes and possibly some key questions to be covered, although their use may vary from interview to interview; which means some questions in interviews may be omitted, given a specific organizational context that is encountered in relation to the research topic. While the unstructured interview is conducted in conjunction with the collection of observational data, semi-structured interviews are often the sole data source for a qualitative


25 research project and are usually scheduled in advance at a designated time and location outside of everyday events (DiCicco-Bloom & Crabtree, 2006, p. 315). Conducting semi-structured interviews requires a great deal of care and planning before, during and after the interviews regarding the ways questions are asked and interpreted (Qu & Dumay, 2011, p. 247).

2.7.2.3 Structured Interviews Structured interviews use questionnaires based on a predetermined and ‘standardised’ or identical set of questions and referred to as interviewer-administered questionnaires (Saunders et al., 2012, p. 374). According to Saunders et al. (2012, p. 374), these are interviews that strictly adhere to the use of an interview protocol to guide the researcher and is a more rigid interview style, in that only the questions on the interview protocol are asked. Each question is read out by and then the response is recorded on a standardised schedule, usually with pre-coded answers; as a result, there are not a lot of opportunities to probe and further explore topics that participants bring up when answering the interview questions (Saunders et al., 2012, p. 374). As per Saunders et al. (2017, p. 374), this method can be advantageous when researchers have a comprehensive list of interview questions since it helps target the specific phenomenon or experience that the researcher is investigating. While there is a social interaction between the interviewer and the interviewee, such as the preliminary information that is provided to the interviewee, the interviewer should read the questions exactly as written and in the same tone of voice so that no bias is indicated (Saunders et al., 2012, p. 374). Saunders et al. (2012, p. 374) suggest that structured interviews make for convenient interviewing and will gather the correct information that is needed, so there should not be much need to do follow-up interviews for missed or forgotten questions. As structured interviews are used to collect quantifiable data, they are also referred to as ‘quantitative research interviews’ (Saunders et al., 2012, p. 374).

2.7.3 Online Surveys and e- survey The use of the internet to conduct marketing and opinion research is much more of a revolutionary development (Taylor, 2000). There have been major advances that did not however change the thinking about how to collect and analyse data and the way the


26 questionnaires were designed. Brannen (2005) argued that in understanding the practice and value of working qualitatively and quantitatively, it is necessary to distinguish between the context in which researchers’ design research for purposes and frame questions, from the context in which they make sense of their data and re-contextualize them in relation to ontological, epistemological and theoretical assumptions (p. 182). Many aspects of people’s lives are captured and electronically recorded be it in cashless financial transactions, communication via e-mail, text message, or instant message, voice telephone records, medical records, or interactions with official government agencies (Blank, 2008, p. 539). The extent and easy availability of electronic data is breath-taking for anyone adapted to the painful cost of collecting data offline (Blank, 2008, p. 539). According to Blank (2008), the declining cost and ease of accessibility are the main reasons behind increases in electronic record gathering and storage and these trends are likely to continue. The enormous growth in online activities has created all sorts of new approaches for research. There has been a tremendous increase in internet use and computer‐mediated communication (Wright, 2006). As an increasing amount of communicative activity takes place through this new medium, there has likewise been a significant increase in primary research on virtual communities, online relationships, and a variety of other aspects of computer‐mediated communication (Wright, 2006). According to Wright (2006), studies of online populations have led to an increase in the use of online surveys, presenting scholars with new challenges in terms of applying traditional survey research methods to the study of online behaviour and Internet use. These factors alone are likely to encourage much more use of online data in future research. One of the methodologies for collecting data is survey method which is an important tool to collect the data. Online survey methodologies differ greatly (Taylor, 2000, p. 56). Jansen, Corley, & Jansen (2007, p. 2) define electronic survey (e-survey) as one in which a computer plays a major role in both the delivery of a survey to potential respondents and the collection of survey data from the respondents. The technology for online survey research is young and evolving (Wright, 2006). According to Wright (2006), survey authoring software packages and online survey services make online survey research much easier and faster today but many researchers in different disciplines are unaware of the advantages and disadvantages associated with conducting survey research online. As per Jansen et al., (2007, p. 1), the three most common reasons for choosing an e-survey over traditional paper-and-pencil approaches


27 are decreased costs, faster response times and increased response rates. Although researchers agree that faster response rates and decreased costs are attainable benefits, response rates differ based on variables beyond administration mode alone (Jansen et al., 2007, p. 1). Advantages include access to individuals in distant locations, the ability to reach difficult to contact participants, and the convenience of having automated data collection, which reduces researcher time and effort. Disadvantages of online survey research include uncertainty over the validity of the data and sampling issues, and concerns surrounding the design, implementation, and evaluation of an online survey. The chart below represents the advantages and disadvantages associated with- surveys:

Advantages

Disadvantages

• Access to unique population (individuals in distant locations) • Abililty to reach difficult to contact participants • Save time for researchers • Save money compared to paperbased surveys • Convenience of having automated data collection

• Sampling issues • Access issues • Uncertainty over the validity of the data • Concerns surrounding the design, implementation, and evaluation of an online survey • Costs of survey products and their services vary

Figure 2.4 Advantages and disadvantages associated with e-surveys. From “Researching Internet‐Based Populations: Advantages and Disadvantages of Online Survey Research, Online Questionnaire Authoring Software Packages, and Web Survey Services”, by (Wright, 2006), retrieved from https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.10836101.2005.tb00259.x Researchers in a variety of disciplines are finding the internet as a productive area for conducting survey research. Because the cost of computer hardware and software has been continuously decreasing, and the popularity of the internet increasing, more segments of society are using the internet for communication and information (Wright, 2006). According to Wright (2006), many organizations have driven online, many of them promoting their presence using search engines, email lists, and banner advertisements; and these organizations not only offer information to consumers, but also present opportunities for researchers to access a variety of populations who are affiliated with these groups.


28

2.7.4 Approaches to e-surveys Today’s technology has been making it possible to offer variety of e-survey approaches. Depending on the design, surveys can be conducted through email or they can be posted on the web and the URL provided to respondents who have already been approached (Ilieva, Baron, & Healey, 2002, p. 362). The collection of survey data via computers can be categorised into three main categories based upon the type of technology relied upon to distribute the survey and collect the data: point of contact, e-mail-based, and web-based (Jansen et al., 2007, p. 2).

2.7.4.1 Point-of-contact It involves having the respondent fill out an e-survey on a computer provided by the researcher, either on-site or in a laboratory setting, for organization members who do not use computers in their jobs (Jansen et al., 2007, p. 2). Point-of-contact surveys have also been popular among researchers wishing to have tight control over the context of the study (i.e., lab based) (Jansen et al., 2007, p. 2).

2.7.4.2 E-mail-based surveys According to Jansen et al. (2007, p. 2), email-based surveys are generally defined as survey instruments that are delivered through electronic mail applications over the Internet or corporate intranets. They are generally seen as being delivered more cheaply and faster than traditional paper and pencil surveys; however, they still require the researcher to manually code the data into a database after receiving completed surveys (Jansen et al., 2007, p. 2). Researchers have extensively used e-mail surveys within corporations and online user groups (Jansen et al., 2007, p. 2).

2.7.4.3 Web- based survey Web-based survey is the technique currently receiving the most interest from researchers (Zhang, 2000). They are generally defined as those survey instruments that physically reside on a network server (connected to either an organization’s intranet or the Internet), and that can be accessed only through a Web browser (Jansen et al., 2007, p. 2).


29 According to Jansen et al. (2007, p. 2), because a web-based survey is created using a coding language, the potential exists for the survey to change based upon previously answered questions (e.g., providing a different set of questions based on reported tenure in the organization). Additionally, these surveys can use animation, voice, and video to enhance the user’s experience. Web-based surveys are often connected directly to a database where all completed survey data is categorized and stored for later analysis (Jansen et al., 2007, p. 2). Since this research uses web-based survey, a further literature on web-based survey will be reviewed as a part of data collection. The table below illustrates the benefits and drawbacks of different e- survey approaches: Table 2.2

Benefits and Drawbacks of E-survey Approaches

Approach

Benefits • • • • •

Drawbacks

• Cost of equipment • Scheduling time with respondents • Finding acceptable location • Potentially time-consuming development • Potential for time consuming data collection effort • May not be able to reach large sample • Possibility of incompatible software • Potential for limited access within target population • Confidentiality issues may decrease return rate • Respondents comfort level with software and attachment process Turnaround time (quick delivery and easy • Time-consuming development return) • Potential for limited access within Ease of reaching large number of potential target population respondents • Potential for technology problems to Can use multiple question formats decrease return rate Data quality checking • Security issues may threaten validity Ease of ensuring confidentiality or decrease return rate Can provide customized delivery of items • Lack of control over sample Can capture data directly in database • Potential for bias in sample

No software compatibility issues Fewer computer access issues Access to populations without computers Point of Identical instrument across all respondents Technology available for multiple Contact question formats • Potential to capture data directly in database • Turnaround time (quick delivery and easy return) • Ease of reaching large number of potential Email-based respondents

• •

Web-based

• • • • •

Note: Benefits and drawbacks of e-survey approaches. From “E-survey methodology”, by (Jansen, Corley, & Jansen, 2007, p. 2), retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/267836472_E-Survey_Methodology

2.7.5 Online Survey Tools In recent days, data collection and analyzing are become easier by utilizing the online tools available in the market. All commercial survey tools are more or less same in feature and


30 techniques. Online survey tools are very useful for academic research and for market research. There are currently dozens of online survey software packages and web survey services available to researchers willing to pay for them (Wright, 2006). Knowing how to use the simple computer system and basic knowledge of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) like e-mailing, designing questionnaire, using of excel sheet for analysis etc. is essential for the researcher using an online survey tool (Wright, 2006). There are many free as well as paid online survey tools available in the market which offer prominent packages and services (Wright, 2006). Some of them are: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Active Websurvey Apian Software CreateSurvey EZSurvey FormSite HosterSurvey Infopoll InstantSurvey KeySurvey Perseus Pollpro Quask Ridgecrest SumQuest SuperSurvey SurveyCrafter SurveyMonkey SurveySite WebSurveyor Zoomerang These tools are often free to some extent but needs to be paid for some specific features

or if these tools are used for longer research purpose. It is easy to collect data by sending mails to the target audience and is easy to design your own questionnaire by using a survey tool. The data may be collected using these tools and saved in the database. The online survey tool used in this research is SurveyMonkey. SurveyMonkey is an internet programme and hosting site that enables a person to develop a survey for use over the internet (Waclawski, 2012, p. 477). It offers standard features with pricing of $20 a month for basic subscription and free email support. The limitations of the service are that the survey is


31 housed on company server for a set amount of time and limited to only 1000 initial responses (Wright, 2006). The questionnaire can be set up with a variety of responses including yes/no responses, selecting one or more from a list and drop-down menu responses. The designer can draft a survey questionnaire and save the draft for further editing (Waclawski, 2012). A Uniform Resource Locator (URL) can be copied and pasted into an email to a survey population or the URL can be placed in a specific web page that the survey population is directed to (Waclawski, 2012, p. 477) Survey Monkey provides a survey completion progress bar so that the total number of survey questionnaires completed can be easily read (Waclawski, 2012, p. 477). Conducting and analysing surveys are difficult and consumes more time for the researcher. But using survey software helps make academic research easier. It allows researcher to create and design their own surveys within short period of time. Tools like SurveyMonkey offer researchers from different field an exciting opportunity to carry out their own surveys and research (Waclawski, 2012, p. 477).

2.7.6 Designing the Online Questionnaire: The Internet has added a new dimension to the design of questionnaires as it offers a wide area of new design opportunities resulting in web questionnaire design challenges for the researcher (Deutskens, Ruyter, Wetzels, & Oosterveld, 2004, p. 24). The questionnaire is only one element of a well-done survey but no matter how well constructed or easy to complete, it is not the main determinant of response to mail or other self-administered surveys (Dillman, 2007, p. 149). There are several ways for increasing the response rate which can be applied to online surveys. An example of this is tailoring a questionnaire to the interests and style of the target audience and knowing something about respondents’ attitudes, perceptions, needs, decisions, behaviour, lifestyle, and demographics may have implications for how (sections of) questionnaires are prepared (Selm & Jankowski, 2006, p. 441). A problem here is that the Web questionnaires are often designed by persons with little or no training in survey methodology, resulting in poor questionnaire design (Selm & Jankowski, 2006, p. 441). Implementation procedures have a much greater influence on response rates. According to Dillman (2007, p. 149), multiple contacts, the contents of letters, appearance of envelopes, incentives, personalization, and sponsorship and how it is explained, and other attributes of the


32 communication process have a significantly greater collective capability for influencing response rates than does the questionnaire design. In addition to the presentation of the questionnaire, it is important for researcher to include contact information, information about the study, and something about their credentials when creating an invitation to participate in a survey (Wright, 2006). This not only is a requirement for most institutional researches, but also helps to enhance the credibility of the survey and creating opportunities for email interaction between the researcher and participants, which is valuable, especially when participants have questions (Wright, 2006).

2.7.7 Data Collection There are three main ways to electronically distribute questionnaires (Selm & Jankowski, 2006, p. 442): 1. Sending respondents, the entire questionnaire in an email message (the email survey, with or without attachment); 2. Emailing respondents an introductory letter with a hyperlink to the web-based survey; 3. Placing a general request for respondents in an electronic communication environment (e.g., a newsgroup) or on a web page.

In email-based surveys, the electronic questionnaire is sent unsolicited and without warning, which can lead to critical and hostile responses, forcing the researchers to revise their strategy (Selm & Jankowski, 2006, p. 444). This might be overcome by web-based questionnaires, however, requiring the respondents to access web browsers (Selm & Jankowski, 2006, p. 444). The participation in a web survey is sometimes solicited by sending an email message in which a link to the web-based questionnaire is included. Most email software offers transformation of URLs into direct links to the web site, hence reducing additional actions on behalf of the respondents (Selm & Jankowski, 2006, p. 444). Below are the suggested six main advantages of using web technology (Selm & Jankowski, 2006, p. 444): • • • • •

Possibility of point-and-click responses; Provision of structured responses; Use of an electronic medium for data transfer and collation; Provision of visual presentation of the questions permitting review; Flexible time constraints for respondents;


33 •

Employment of adaptive questions to reduce the number and complexity of questions presented to users As per Selm & Jankowski (2006), researchers employing web-based surveys for

investigating purposive samples often require online respondents to enter a survey identification, ensuring that only the selected sample completes the questionnaire because once a survey is posted to the Web, anyone who stumbles across it can fill it out (p. 444 & 445).

2.7.7.1 Problems with Web-based Questionnaires According to Couper & Miller (2008, p. 833), with the arrival of web-based surveys, it was expected to address the low response rate seen with mail and telephone surveys, but this was never the case. In fact, web surveys appear to be at a disadvantage relative to other modes as a recent meta-analysis suggests. The response rate challenge affects all types of web surveys, from list-based samples to pre-recruited probability-based panels and opt-in or volunteer panels (Couper & Miller, 2008, p. 833). Some respondents feel uncomfortable with the manner in which they are addressed while some are sceptical about the confidentiality provided that the header in the email consists of all of the addresses of other respondents (Selm & Jankowski, 2006, p. 445). As per Selm & Jankowski (2006), a key issue in the debate about the potential of online surveys is assurance of respondent anonymity, as it is difficult to achieve full anonymity (p. 445). Such a degree of anonymity may be attained when respondents employ anonymous remailers to respond, but is probably beyond the technical competence of most potential respondents (Selm & Jankowski, 2006, p. 445 & 446). Confidentiality, however, can be considered a satisfactory alternative, as this can be assured by informing respondents that their email addresses will not be recorded with their survey responses, in addition to the fact that the survey data will only be analysed at the aggregate level (Selm & Jankowski, 2006, p. 446). As stated by Couper & Miller (2008, p. 835), there are several areas where more research attention in the next few years is likely to be seen. One is increased attention to the inferential challenges facing all survey methods in a changing society and another is that the web itself is changing. It is yet to be figured out is what this will mean for traditional surveys and how can the increased interactivity of the web be used to improve measurement (Couper & Miller, 2008, p. 835).


34

2.7.8 Problems with Online Surveys If not properly addressed, online surveys have potential weaknesses (Evans & Mathur, 2005, p. 201). Some of them are: • • • • •

Perception as junk mail Respondent lack of online experience/expertise Unclear answering instructions Privacy and security issues Low response rate

How the potential weaknesses of online surveys may be moderated can be illustrated by the following chart:

Potential Weaknesses Perception as junk mail Respondent lack of online experience/ expertise Unclear answering instructions

Privacy and security issues

Low response rate

Possible Solutions •Opt-in surveys only •Brief e-mail with URL link

•Simple instructions: "Click on" access to survey •Easy to answer

•Adequate pretests •Use of pop-up windows

•Clear and highly visisble •Respondent- friendly policies •Limited number of contacts •Small incentives •Good survey techniques

Figure 2.5 Addressing the potential weaknesses of online surveys. From “The value of online surveys”, by Evans and Mathur, 2005, Internet Research, 15 (2), p.210, retrieved from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/220146842

2.7.8.1 Low Response Rates Out of all these potential weaknesses, low response rate has been considered as one of the most problematic issues with online surveys. Today’s online populations are less


35 interconnected and less interested in participating in surveys not relevant to their interests which makes attaining response rates for some studies more challenging for many survey topics (Andrews, Nonnecke, & Preece, 2003, p. 191). According to Andrews et al. (2003, p. 191), when the survey is never submitted, non-responses (read the invitation) and attritions (dropouts while taking the survey) are indistinguishable. As per Andrews et al. (2003), the response rates of Web-based surveys using unsolicited e-mail invitations is significantly higher than unsolicited e-mail-based surveys significantly only in participation; however, nonresponse problems are continually encountered (p.191). However, there has been conflicting evidence regarding the influence of prenotification on survey response rates (Sheehan, 2006). Factors such as survey design, survey distribution procedure, participant’s ability to answer and their motivation often affect the response rates (Andrews et al., 2003, pp. 191, 192 & 193). To improve response rates, these practices should be applied (Evans & Mathur, 2005, p. 211): •

Limit the number of times respondents are contacted, offer small incentives, and develop the best possible surveys.

•

With online surveys, researchers can use incentives to improve the response rate without issuing the incentives to those who do not respond.

•

The response rate will improve if a survey is short, relevant, and of interest to the targeted respondent.

•

Consider that it is not the number of questions that affect the response rate, but the amount of time and effort needed to complete a survey.

2.7.9 The Future of Online Surveys As an increasing number of people discover the web and become frequent and competent users, the Web will become more representative of the general population and, therefore, survey results will be more reliable and generalizable (Kaye & Johnson, 1999, p. 334). With easy access, immediate feedback, low cost, and verifiable delivery, it is possible that web-based questionnaires might someday compete with traditional survey vehicles for which techniques for drawing random and representative samples must be in place (Kaye & Johnson, 1999, p. 334). Cyber surveys can be excellent vehicles for reaching a targeted group of Web users. However, until the cyber environment is made more conducive to online studies,


36 researchers must take certain limitations into account when designing online surveys and when interpreting the results (Kaye & Johnson, 1999, p. 334). Much work remains not only on the challenges such devices present for instrument design, but also on the opportunities these new tools present for data collection that is not restricted in time and space as traditional methods often are (Couper & Miller, 2008, p. 835). The ability to do electronic diary data collection, to conduct surveys in response to actions taken by a respondent and the like, present an exciting area of future research for Web surveys (Couper & Miller, 2008, p. 835).

2.7.10 Possible Analysis Techniques Internet and online surveys are cheap and fast compared to the offline alternatives. Responses can be automatically checked against other answers and stored directly in a dataset, ready for analysis (Blank, 2008, p. 546). Simple analyses, such as descriptive statistics and frequencies, can be automatically produced which can largely eliminate the time-consuming, difficult, and costly steps of data cleaning and data input (Blank, 2008, p. 546).

2.7.11 Public participation in environmental decision making Finding the best way to engage stakeholders in research designed to discover their knowledge and opinions is always problematic. Public participation processes have always played a crucial role in providing local people with ‘‘voice’’ in environmental decisions, and the forces of globalization have made that role even more important (Martin, 2007, p. 172). Public participation is glorified as a way to improve the quality of environmental decisions with the basic notion that better decisions result when a diversity of viewpoints, values, and interests are taken into consideration (Martin, 2007, p. 174). Diverse perspectives can help ensure that site-specific knowledge and local ways of knowing are not overlooked by privileging dominant systems of knowing, such as scientific expertise and can help produce decisions that reflect balanced trade-offs between competing interests (Martin, 2007, p. 174). Effectiveness in the communication processes by which a community makes its environmental decisions, especially argumentative or potentially argumentative decisions, is a key factor of community sustainability, not easy to achieve (Senecah, 2004, p. 13). According to Senecah (2004, p. 14), effective participatory processes have the potential to not only support good environmental decision making, but also build a community’s ability to engage other


37 issues in more productive ways that support a solid public base and a higher quality of community experience and relationships. Factors such as openness, trust-building, dialogue, feedback, active listening, and information flow characterise effective public participation (Senecah, 2004, p. 16). As per Senecah (2004), despite of many descriptors that are used to describe effectiveness factors, building trust is the most important way to improve participation (p. 20). Trust is overwhelmingly the most commonly identified missing or present element in ineffective or effective processes, ultimately support the creation, enhancement, or maintenance of trust (Senecah, 2004, p. 20 & 21). Senecah (2004) argues that meaningful public involvement requires that they have a “trinity of voice” (p. 22 & 23). Voice includes: ‘Access’ to the information, education, and technical assistance needed to actively participate in decision-making; ‘Standing’, or civic legitimacy, so that one's concerns are given authentic consideration; and ‘Influence’, that is, the real potential to affect a decision, as well as how that decision is made (Senecah, 2004, p. 22 & 23).

2.8 Summary of the literature According to the literature review above, it can be concluded that compared to other fuel sources, a biomass- fired (wood pellets) boiler is a very viable and sustainable option for central city heating scheme. The findings demonstrated the importance of district heating networks, which offer the possibility to use local heat sources that would otherwise be unused due to technical, spatial, or economic constraints. It showcased the future competitiveness of DH that can be dependent on three factors such as the future competition on the heat market, the current use of DH and the future city shapes. Therefore, energy strategies should consider both demand and supply side of the energy system and DH should be considered as an essential infrastructure for achieving sustainable cities. The literature on methodology and data analysis explained what an interview is, its types, what an online survey is and how it can be conducted to collect data from different businesses involved in this project. It also described how the data collected from the respondents can be organised, presented, making it easy to interpret and analyse. According to the literature on public participation in environmental decision making, effective participatory processes helps in environmental decision making, as well as build a community’s ability to engage other issues in more productive ways that support a solid public base and a higher


38 quality of community experience and relationships. It suggested that factors such as openness, trust-building, dialogue, feedback, active listening, and information flow characterise effective public participation.


39

Chapter 3 : Methodology 3.1 Introduction This chapter will provide an overview of the research methods that were applied in this study. It will address the research design adapted for this study including online survey, research questions, the data collection methodology and a summary of analysis of the data. It will also address the change of methodology from face-to-face interview to an online survey. The research consisted of mixed-method, predominantly quantitative, with a few qualitative research questions. The first stage of this project was to undertake desktop research, which is a research technique basically involving collecting data from existing resources. It is very effective and involves using various online search engines like Google, Google Scholar, Science Direct, etc. for modulated searching. The searching techniques were refined in such a way that results were promising and relevant and the research guideline was followed intellectually. Initially, the second stage of research was to conduct face-to-face interviews. The data collection began by conducting structured interview, providing an information sheet and consent form to interviewees who had agreed that they would be willing for an interview. Several days were spent trying to arrange interviews by phone, and calling and visiting the business premises, but there was a very little positive response. It was assumed that this would be the best way to approach the respondents, however, in doing so, only one person was willing to be interviewed. Sometimes it was not possible to speak with the key person who was aware of energy management, while at other times, people simply said that they were too busy. Out of seven businesses visited, the researcher was able to collect only one response. At the end of these attempts, it was considered that this would not be an efficient way of collecting data. So consequently, there was a turning point in research methodology as it switched to an online survey. An online survey is a questionnaire that the target audience can complete over the Internet. This method was thought to be more successful in terms of time and energy involved in the data collection process. Google Earth Pro was used to collect contact information of different businesses located in the CBD area. After collecting the contact information (i.e. telephone numbers and website), a total of 160 potential respondents’ database was prepared using MS- excel. The first point of


40 contact was telephone calls that were made to the businesses to know the key person (property/ energy manager or engineer) who could fetch the relevant information regarding their energy consumption. A brief introduction of the researcher, the project and the kind of information required from the informant was briefly explained after which the email addresses of the key informants were noted to send out the invitations to participate in the online survey.

3.2 Site Selection Since this research was proposed by Venture Southland in conjunction with the ILT and EECA, the site selected, and methodology adapted for this study were specified by Venture Southland. It identified the businesses located in the inner-city blocks as possible clusters for a DHS. Referring to the literature reviewed, the heat distribution costs are low in dense urban areas with concentrated heat demands which would mean that the CBD having a good density of businesses might be a good option for a DHS. In order to investigate the feasibility of a central city heating and cooling loop that could benefit the city, the CBD area of Invercargill city was selected to gather information about the energy volumes, heat sources and demand requirements of different businesses located in that area. The potential customers of this DHS will be the businesses which fall within the area.

3.3 Preparation of the Questionnaire A set of questions was set by Venture Southland comprising the customer information covering of the businesses and the questions associated with their energy volume, heat source and demand requirements as shown in Appendix D. These questions were designed for interviews, however, used for only one interview, and then used in survey by entering them into SurveyMonkey. As this research used web-based survey, an email was sent to those businesses who were accessible via email address obtained from the telephone call. The email comprised a cover letter explaining the usefulness of the study, the impact the respondents could have by participating, and assurance of respondents’ confidentiality. It also outlined the details of the study including what it is about, the purpose of the study, the reason why it is needed, the name of the researcher conducting the study and the contact details and a short description of how the information provided would be handled to ensure confidentiality. A


41 hyperlink to the survey was sent out to the respondents via Campaign Survey along with the introductory cover letter about the project.

3.4 Interviewing Businesses Essentially, all research requires that individuals be asked whether they are willing to participate in a study before information about them is, in fact, obtained (Olson, 2011, p. 81). With the purpose of gathering information from the businesses (participants) regarding their energy volume, heat source and demand requirements, an information sheet along with a consent form was given to the interviewee so that they gave their informed consent to participate in the interview (See Appendix A & Appendix B for information sheet and consent form). The information sheet outlined the details of the study including what it is about, the purpose of the study, the reason why it is needed, the name of the researcher conducting the study and the contact details and a short description of how the information provided would be handled to ensure confidentiality. After obtaining their consent, the interview was carried out and the data was collected in the datasheet questionnaire. As mentioned earlier, following this methodology, only one interview was attainable. So therefore, in due course, the methodology changed to online surveys.

3.5 Surveying Businesses The survey tool used for this research was SurveyMonkey. Venture Southland’s account was used to access the tool. A survey questionnaire was developed which comprised of customer information covering and questions related to the customers’ energy demand to profile a heat/ cooling map. A mailing list of the businesses was prepared from the email addresses that were collected from the telephone calls and the participants were emailed using Campaign Survey. The email consisted of an introductory information letter with a hyperlink to the SurveyMonkey survey. The introductory letter included information about the DHS project remarking what the project was about, why the research was being conducted, who is conducting the project and that the information collected would be kept strictly confidential (See Appendix C for the introductory cover letter).


42

3.4.1 Selection of Participants The participants for the online survey were the representatives of different businesses located in the study area (CBD, Invercargill). As the study area and businesses were preselected for this research, the participants (respondents) were those who somehow represented these businesses. Some of the representatives who are not aware of their energy demand were given an option of having their property/ maintenance manager or engineer who manage their energy consumption, contacted for the information.

3.4.2 The Online Survey Process A database was created using Google Earth Pro whereby accessing to names, addresses and contact details of the businesses and tabulated in MS-excel sheet. After obtaining the emailing list of each business located in the study area, the first point of contact was a telephone call. Arrangements were made with Venture Southland and SIT, both providing a platform for telephone calls to the businesses. A brief introduction of the researcher with the context of research, the kind of information required were informed to the businesses via telephone call to access the key informant’s contact details (email addresses) so that the survey questionnaire could be fetched.

3.5 Data Analysis For data processing and analysis, the data recorded on the datasheet from the single interview was entered in an excel sheet. As for the online survey, SurveyMonkey enabled auto generation of the data that put to ease in automatic generation of data collected into different charts and tables making it ready for interpretation. It also generated data of individual responses which made it easier to get more insight to the data. In the data obtained from the single interview, the questions were listed exactly in the same manner as in the survey questionnaire and responses to them were input along, making it easy to relate with the survey questions. The aim of analysing the data from datasheet as well as the survey was to produce a detailed and systematic recording of the questions addressed and to link the responses and questions together under a sensibly comprehensive classification system. All the data from the


43 survey that was automatically generated was saved into pdf files and excel sheets. The data thus obtained from the interview and the online survey were carefully matched in such a way that made it convenient for interpretation. A total of 9 responses were obtained.


44

Chapter 4 : Results and Data Analysis 4.1 Results Although about 159 businesses were approached to send out the survey; only 8 responses were received. Because the questions presented at the single interview were the same as those presented in the survey, the results from 8 survey responses were combined with the results from the interview. This chapter will include the results thus obtained based on both 8 survey responses and 1 interview response to give a total of 9 responses. It will also include an overall summary of the results. It will, however, not disclose or record any demographic information of the businesses and other details due to confidentiality reasons.

4.1.1 Business Details All the businesses (respondents) involved in this study responded to the demographic question of the survey which included the name of their business, physical address, email address and phone number. However, due to confidentiality issues, these information are not contained within this report.

4.1.2 Is the property leased? The purpose of this question was to identify the owners of the buildings/ properties. Out of the nine, eight of the businesses were in leased buildings while one was not. The pie chart below illustrates the percentage of the businesses in leased buildings


45

Is the property leased? 11%

89%

Yes Figure 4.1

No

Pie chart representing percentages of businesses in leased buildings

4.1.3 Type of business/ institution? The response to this question signifies that of the nine respondents, who all were businesses, five of them were running commercial business while the remaining four were running other businesses such as community services, charity shop and travel agency. The bar graph below shows the number of businesses running different types of businesses.

Respondents (%)

Type of business/ institution 56%

60%

44% 40% 20% 0% 0% Institutional

Entrepreneurial

Other (please specify)

Business type Figure 4.2

Bar graph showing different type of businesses of the respondents


46

4.1.4 Opening hours of business/ institution? The importance of this question is linked with the amount of energy required by the respondents based on the time spent in the building (business hours). Most of the respondents chose the option “Other”, specifying different opening hours and days of their businesses, the average of which was 13 hours, 6 days a week. Three of them responded that their business hours are 8 hours, 5 days per week as indicated in the bar graph below.

Opening hours of business/ institution? Other (please specify)

67%

8 hours, 5 days per week

33%


0%


0% 0%

Figure 4.3

10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%

Bar graph representing the opening hours of the businesses involved in the study

4.1.5 What kind of heating system are you currently using? According to the bar graph below, most of the respondents are using electrical heating/ heat pump to serve for their heating purposes. About 44% of the respondents chose “Other” specifying that they use diesel heaters or small fan heaters or panel heaters for heating. However, none of the respondents used diesel boiler with radiators, or LPG gas boiler with ducting radiators, or coal boiler with radiator to serve their heating purposes.


47

What kind of heating system are you currently using? Coal boiler with radiators

0%

LPG gas boiler with ducting radiators

0%

Diesel boiler with radiators

0%

Electrical heating resistance or heat pump with ducting or heat/ cool distributed systems

56%

Other (please specify)

44% 0%

Figure 4.4

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Bar graph showing different types of heating system used by the respondents

4.1.6 How old is the current heating system and who is the manufacturer? Only three of the respondents answered by mentioning the manufacturer’s name and size of their heating system while the rest of them responded that they didn’t know by typing “no” as stated in an option for the question. However, only two of them responded to the age of their heating system as 4 years and about 38 years. The table below shows the customer knowledge of the respondents regarding the manufacturer/ size and years of their heating systems they were using. Table 4.1

Number of Respondents Responding to their Knowledge Regarding their Heating Systems

Answer Choices

No. of Respondents

Manufacturer

3

Size

3

Years (from the system’s plate date/ building date)

2

I don’t know (type “no”)

6


48

4.1.7 What kind of cooling system are you currently using? As illustrated by the bar graph below most of the respondents do not use any cooling system whereas 22% of them use heat pump/ air conditioning unit to serve their cooling requirements. However, none of them used ducted air- conditioning, or fans, or specified any other cooling system.

What kind of cooling system are you currently using? Respondents (%)

100% 78%

80%

60% 40% 22%

20% 0%

0%

0%

0% Ducted air- Heat pump/ air conditioning conditioning unit(s)

Fans

We don't use Other (please any specify)

Cooling system type Figure 4.5

Bar graph showing the kind of cooling system currently being used by the respondents

4.1.8 How old is the cooling system? As addressed by the previous question that most of the respondents did not use any cooling systems, this question was limited to only those who had a cooling system. Only two of the respondents responded that they use heat pump/ air- conditioning unit(s) for their cooling purposes aged 3 years and 5 years. Table 4.2

Number of Respondents Responding to How Old the Cooling System Is

Answer Choices

No. of respondents

Years

2

Manufacturer

2


49

4.1.9 How comfortable is the building? As shown in the bar graph below, more than half of the respondents feel that their building is about right in terms of comfortability, followed by 33% of them responding “Too cold”. One of the respondents, however, responded that their building is hot and cold at different times.

How comfortable is the building? About right

56%

Hot and cold at different times

11%

Too cold Too hot

33% 0% 0%

Figure 4.6

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Bar graph showing the respondents' comfortability of their buildings

4.1.10 Do you feel the building …? The pie chart below illustrates how the respondents feel their building is in terms of cost to heating. As expected and according to the pie chart, most of the respondents feel that their buildings cost a lot in winter as compared to summer. About 22% of the respondents feel that their buildings are relatively low cost to heat and same percentage of respondents also feel that it is about the same cost year- round.


50

Do you feel the building is ...?

Is expensive to heat

11%

22%

Is relatively low cost to heat

22%

Costs a lot in winter but not in summer Costs a lot in summer but not in winter Is about the same cost year- round

45%

Figure 4.7

Pie chart representing respondents' feeling of their buildings

4.1.11 What is your net floor area heated/ cooled (m²)? The purpose of this question was to know the area of heating or cooling required by the respondents. Out of the nine respondents, six mentioned their net floor area while three skipped this question, one of them stating that they were unsure.

4.1.12 What kind of lighting are you using? According to the pie chart below, most of the respondents use standard lighting for their building while only two of them use high-efficient lighting. Since the use of high-efficient lighting is considered as means of improving energy efficiency of any building, results suggest that most of these buildings are less energy efficient.


51

What kind of lighting are you using? High-efficient lighting 22% Standard lighting 78%

Standard lighting

Figure 4.8

High-efficient lighting

Pie chart representing kinds of lighting the respondents are using

4.1.13 What is your average energy usage [kWh] per month? (Information can be found on your energy bill) Of all the responses to this question, one of the respondents mentioned the cost instead of units [kWh], which was put in as units by the factor of $0.25 per kWh. Clustering the respondents’ responses to their average energy consumption per month, the averages of their lowest and highest average energy usages per month are 885 kWh and 2085 kWh respectively, as shown in the table below. Three of the respondents did not know about their average energy usage per month. Table 4.3

Number of Respondents Responding to Their Average Energy Usage per Month

Answer Choices

No. of respondents

Average kWh

Lowest usage (summer)

6

885

Highest usage (winter)

6

2085

I don’t know (type “no”)

3

-


52

4.1.14 Do you have any plans to change the building soon? As outlined by the bar graph below, most of the respondents are fine with their buildings and have no plans to change the building soon while the rest of them responded that they cannot afford to refurbish.

Do you have any plans to change the building soon? No, we cannot afford to refurbish

33%

No, it is fine as it is

67%

Yes, we are going to refurbish the site

0%

Yes, we are thinking about refurbishment

0%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% Figure 4.9

Responses to whether the respondents have plans to change their buildings

4.1.15 Has EECA undertaken an energy audit of your building? As per the pie chart below, most of the respondents were unaware if an energy audit of their building was undertaken by EECA and according to three of them, an energy audit was not undertaken for their building. Results suggest that most of the respondents might not have had an energy audit undertaken for their buildings.


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Has EECA undertaken an energy audit of your building?

Yes

33%

No I don't know

67%

Figure 4.10

Pie chart showing respondents' knowledge on energy audit of their buildings

4.1.16 Are you interested in reducing your energy needs and carbon footprint? As indicated by the column graph below, most of the respondents are interested in reducing their energy needs and carbon footprint whereas a few of them (22%) are not much interested in doing so.

Respondents (%)

Are you interested in reducing your energy needs and carbon footprint? 100% 80% 60%

67%

40%

20% 0%

22%

0%

Not so much

Not at all

11% Yes, very interested

Yes, interested

Interests Figure 4.11

Column graph representing interests of respondents in reducing their energy requirements and carbon footprint


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4.2 Summary of the Results Since only 9 overall responses were collected out of total 160 potential respondents (customers of the proposed DHS), this was clearly far too few for any kind of statistical analysis. Thus, the results obtained from the data above cannot successfully address whether a new DHS for the Invercargill CBD is feasible, nor can it entirely support in profiling the user demand. However, the results that were obtained were analysed. According to the results obtained, most of the businesses are commercial and in leased buildings. The opening hours of three of the businesses is 8 hours, 5 days per week during which they operate electrical heating. However, most of the businesses do not use any cooling system. As per the data, 56 % of the businesses feel that their buildings are about right in terms of comfortability but about 45 % of them feel that it costs a lot to heat during winter (more kWh consumption) than in summer. The businesses do not have plans to change their building soon. The averages of their lowest and highest average energy usages per month are 885 kWh and 2085 kWh respectively. Regarding their knowledge about the energy audit of their buildings, most of the respondents do not know if it has been done while some responded that it has not been undertaken. Nevertheless, about 78% of the respondents are interested in reducing their energy demand and carbon footprint, which means they might buy the opinion of a shared energy load which not only reduces their footprint but also reduces their heating/cooling cost.


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Chapter 5 : Discussion As discussed in the previous chapter, the data obtained were not sufficient in supporting the investigation of feasibility of a new DHS for Invercargill CBD. Based on the results achieved, this chapter will discuss the methodology adapted in this research in terms of possible reasons why the response rate of interviewing and surveying was so low. It will also discuss on how the participation could have improved and what could have been done for better results which would support in achieving the aim and objectives of this research. As mentioned in the Methodology chapter, the method was switched from interview to online surveys because a very low response rate was achieved. Phone call being the first point of contact, the participants had no prior notice or appropriate idea about a DHS, which is an unusual proposal. The methodological approach could have been different in the sense that some public consultation could have been conducted prior to their participationcommunication. Maybe what was needed to engender more participation was more discussion with potential participants before trying to get information from them. A meeting hosted by Venture Southland, where all key persons from each business were invited to discuss ideas before they were approached separately would have been useful. It is recognised, however, that this was not possible because of the way the project had been halted. The low response rate reflects that it was not an ideal methodological approach. Maybe if more information regarding DHS had been given to the respondents, so that they would consider into buying the opinion of a shared heating load. From respondents’ point of view, the lack of clear information or even propositions and possibilities given to them maybe the reasons for their lack of engagement. According to Brulle (2010, p. 93), when individuals are provided with full information regarding a particular risk and are then included in the development of responses to it, they are much more likely to engage in taking action than if given only limited information or responsibility. It can also be assumed that the participants had no time and were not interested in the scheme. There might as well have been a trust issue with giving details, after all they were being asked for their energy information that included in some way their financial information. Referring to the literature review, (Senecah, 2004, p. 20) said that building trust is the key most important thing when wanting good participation in decision making.


56 Walker, Senecah, & Daniels (2006, p. 200) explain how people need to be brought together and this should be at early stages in the decision-making process. According to Walker et al. (2006), all relevant information should be given to the people with the chance to question and challenge it, to make their own perspectives, and to discuss with each other and the agencies, etc. what they all think may be a good way to move forward. Another assumption could be made that there were more important ongoing social issues, for e.g. the CBD upgrade, which meant that everyone was thinking about if they were going to stay in their properties, as it would bring about significant changes in their businesses. This may well have distracted people from any interest in a DHS because they were not sure if they would be in their properties in a year’s time. It could also be that people must have thought that it was something related to the new development so were reluctant to respond. Since the project was newly proposed and was still under its development phase, there were likely to be numerous potential changes in the project itself. Some of the changes werethe location of the boiler which was initially planned to be located in the Invercargill Railway Station. The study area also changed- further servicing more businesses. With the CBD upgrade as an emerging issue, chances are that the project may take more time to come into action phase. Perhaps, better response rates would have been attainable, had the student project time frame been different. The approaches advocated by this research do very little to accomplish the objectives and aim which was originally set. As the methodology approached did not achieve positive results, the next chapter will include some recommendations as well as conclusion that relates to how the objectives and aim of this study could have otherwise be met.


57

Chapter 6 : Recommendations and Conclusion This chapter will summarise the key findings and highlight some of the significances of this study. It will also make some recommendations in terms of opportunities for future research, modifications to methodology/ objectives and provide new insights/ approaches to thinking about the research problem.

6.1 Recommendations In future, a recommended approach for these kinds of studies would be a public engagement program or a meeting hosted by Venture Southland, inviting different businesses who were the potential customers of the new DHS, where they would participate and be entitled to voice any queries or doubts about the project and the information that was required from them. Even if they disagreed and were not willing to be a part of it, they would at least know what was going around, know the whereabouts of the project and discuss the scheme. Keeping community adaptation to new technology in mind, for people to have an opinion of a new DHS, a little more information should have been provided. As the participants were told about this over the phone and only a brief information was given in the introductory email, the idea of how it works must have been unclear. To overcome this, a hyperlink to documents or videos about the working principles and advantages of a DHS along with the survey link could have been attached with the introductory email, giving them some insights to the proposed DHS for Invercargill. People would be more interested to sign up, had they known more about how their information would be used. It is highly recommended to future researchers conducting similar research to be as informative as possible, with examples demonstrating similar schemes used elsewhere. In terms of approaching the respondents, the first point of contact being crucially important, prearrangements of meetings with follow- up calls would be beneficial as well as time saving and is suggested so that people can be approached easily, and the response rates are higher.

6.2 Conclusion Although the aim of this research was to study the feasibility of a new District Heating Scheme in Invercargill CBD by providing relevant information to Venture Southland which


58 support in the site characterisation as well as profiling the heat user demand in the area, the results could not provide sufficient data which would support in meeting the aim of the research. Despite the problems associated with this research, it was found that most of the commercial businesses are in leased buildings with different opening hours, three of them opening 8 hours, 5 days per week during which they operate electrical heating. Most of the businesses do not use any cooling system, with some finding their buildings too cold. Therefore, a district heating scheme rather than a cooling one could be beneficial. According to the results, most of the businesses feel that their buildings are about right in terms of comfortability but as expected, cost more to heat during winters compared to summers. They, however, have no plans to either change their buildings or refurbish. The averages of their lowest and highest average energy usages per month are 885 kWh and 2085 kWh respectively. Considering the responses, the results also suggest that energy audit of their buildings have not been undertaken. However, most of the respondents are interested in reducing their energy demand and carbon footprint, signifying their interest in a shared energy load that would reduce their energy maintenance and costs. This research undertook desktop research on DH schemes and their key characteristics around the world. For collecting data from the potential customers of the DHS, a questionnaire, information sheet and consent form were developed to conduct structured interviews, which eventually evolved to online surveys using SurveyMonkey. Although, only 9 responses were obtained out of 160 potential respondents, the results were analysed. But due to inadequate responses and time constraints, this study was not able to support the investigation of a new DHS by providing Venture Southland with required information to consider the feasibility study of such a scheme. Therefore, the last four objectives of this study were not met. This research, however, successfully followed proper research guidelines and the report discussed and developed recommendations for similar future research.


59

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64

Appendices Appendix A:

Information Sheet for Interview

Appendix B:

Consent form for Interview

Appendix C:

Email Cover Letter (Online Survey)

Appendix D:

Questionnaire for Interview/ Online survey


65

Appendix A Information Sheet for Interview


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Appendix B Consent Form for Interview


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Appendix C Email Cover Letter (Online Survey)


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Appendix D Questionnaire for Interview/ Online Survey


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