Commercial Gas Engineers in Glasgow

What is different about gas work in Scotland?

Building warrants

Under the Scottish building standards system, many alterations to a commercial building need a building warrant from Glasgow City Council before work begins. Installing a new gas appliance or altering pipework can fall within this, depending on the scope. We advise you to check with the council's building standards team early.

Road works

Excavation in a public road is coordinated through the Scottish Road Works Register. Glasgow City Council is the roads authority in the city. Permission is needed before opening the road or footway, and reinstatement must meet the national specification.

Motorways such as the M8, M74 and M77 are trunk roads managed on behalf of Transport Scotland.

The gas network

The network across central Scotland is operated by SGN. It owns the service pipe up to the emergency control valve. New connections and supply upgrades are arranged with SGN or through your supplier. Our engineers work on the pipework after the meter.

If you smell gas, call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999.

The Low Emission Zone

A Low Emission Zone covers the city centre inside the M8, the Clyde and the High Street. It applies to most vehicles, so vans and plant deliveries to central sites need to comply.

Commercial gas services in Glasgow

Restaurants, bars and hotels

Finnieston, the Merchant City, Byres Road and the streets around George Square have a dense hospitality trade. Kitchens change hands often, and each new operator needs the pipework tested, the ventilation interlock proved and a commercial gas certificate issued.

Our commercial catering service covers fit-outs, appliance connections and annual checks. We recommend a service and tightness test at least once a year, and more often for kitchens that trade every day.

Tenements and converted buildings

Many commercial units in Glasgow sit on the ground floor of tenement blocks, with shared supplies and long pipe runs through closes and basements. Clear isolation and labelling matter here, because one meter bank may serve several businesses.

Hospitals, universities and colleges

The large hospital campus in the south of the city, the two universities and the colleges all run extensive boiler plant. Testing is phased so that clinical and teaching buildings keep their heating. Work on these estates is usually done in sections during planned windows, with each section retested and purged before it is brought back on.

Industrial estates

Hillington, Queenslie, Cambuslang and Clydebank hold engineering firms, food producers, distribution units and trade counters. Gas feeds process ovens, steam boilers and high-level warehouse heaters. We install and maintain commercial heating systems for buildings like these.

Shipbuilding and riverside industry

Fabrication halls along the Clyde use radiant heating and process equipment on large pipework. Shutdowns are short and planned well in advance, with isolation points, the purge route and the vent location agreed before the day so the line is back in service within the window available.

The steps in a new commercial gas installation

Businesses in Glasgow often ask what a new installation involves. In outline:

• Site survey. We confirm the gas load, the pressure available and the route.
• Design. Pipe sizes, materials, isolation valves and ventilation are set out to IGEM/UP/2.
• Installation. Pipework and appliances are fitted, with safety and pressure points checked as work proceeds.
• Strength and tightness testing. New pipework is tested above working pressure, then at working pressure.
• Purging and commissioning. Air is replaced with gas, appliances are lit and set up, and safety devices are proved.
• Documentation. You receive test records and certificates for the building file.

More detail on testing and purging is on our gas testing and gas purging page. For buried routes, see underground gas pipework.

Nitrogen purging on larger systems

Industrial sites in Glasgow, particularly the older works in the east end and along the river, often have large diameter steel pipework that was extended many times over the years.

Small pipework can be purged directly. On larger diameters and longer runs, nitrogen is used as a buffer between air and gas so the two never form a flammable mixture inside the pipe. The purge is vented outdoors to a safe location and monitored with a gas detector until the readings confirm it is complete. Work follows IGEM/UP/1 or IGEM/UP/1A.

Decommissioning and repairs

When units are cleared for redevelopment, or plant is replaced with electric alternatives, the redundant gas pipework should be purged, cut back to a live valve, capped and recorded. Simply closing a valve leaves a dead leg full of gas, which is a hazard for the next contractor to cut into the wall.

We also investigate leaks and pressure loss on commercial pipework. Corrosion on external steel pipe, damaged flexible connections in kitchens and failed joints on old fittings are the most common causes of a failed tightness test. After an emergency isolation, we repair the fault, retest and purge so the supply can be restored. See emergency gas repairs. Our team is available seven days a week.

Areas we serve

We cover every G postcode district in the city, from the centre to Partick, Maryhill, Shettleston, Pollok and Drumchapel.

Gas Main Installation also works in Paisley, Renfrew, Clydebank, Bearsden, Bishopbriggs, Rutherglen, Cambuslang, East Kilbride, Hamilton and Motherwell. Our services are available across Scotland and the rest of the UK.