Parsec’s leading consultants have returned from Vienna having been invited to visit the Herz valve manufacturing factory in Austria.

Established in 1896, Herz has survived through two world wars, and has transformed into an international specialist in the production of valves for heating systems operating in more than 50 countries. Herz pride themselves on the high levels of production quality and reliability they offer on all of their products, as they ensure that all work is in accordance with numerous national and international certificates.

The company was invited to gain an insight into the application and manufacturing process at the Herz factory, with a guided tour of the assembly line and a technical seminar led by Susan Juza, the sales director of Herz. As well as learning about the products across the Herz range, including control valves, actuators and temperature controllers, the team was also able to gain an insight into the technical elements by examining example systems and taking part in problem solving activities. The teams efforts were rewarded, as each member received a certificate for successful completion of the technical seminar.

Following the tour and the seminar, the team was then able to experience the production process first hand when they took part in making their own valves. With guided supervision from Herz factory workers, each visitor was given the opportunity to take part in making their own valves. Those who took part were provided special heat resistant gloves, and to create the valves, they poured extremely hot liquid metal into valve moulds.

The vast majority of production in the factory is still done by hand, with the exception of a few areas where there are machines manufacturing components. Herz pride themselves on quality, and it’s the skill and fine tuning of the factory workers that maintains this standard.

Managing director, Shaun Ackerley, said of the visit: “We’re extremely grateful to have been invited to Vienna to learn more about the manufacturing and technical processes at the Herz factory.

“With the growing demand for more sustainable and energy efficient systems, it’s a fantastic opportunity for us to be able to build these connections and have this level of insight into the different areas of production.”

Parsec is one of few consultancies in the UK to have the highest industry accreditations for carbon and energy calculations, and will be celebrating it’s tenth anniversary this year. The consultancy has carried out work on a range of public and private sector clients, including The National Trust and the NHS, and will be marking the notable milestone with an investment into the latest Building Information Modelling (BIM) software that will take Parsec’s quality of work to the next level.