Unit 16 Principles of Public Health Engineering Assignment Brief 2026

Unit 16 Principles of Public Health Engineering Assignment

Introduction

The role of a public health engineer is a very important and diverse one in the construction process. Public health engineers design systems for water supply  and sanitation that help buildings work better for occupants, owners and the environment. This may vary from a drainage system in a hospital to a water-supply system in a high-rise apartment building.

This unit introduces students to the principles of public health engineering. They  will develop a broad understanding of domestic hot- and cold-water services, and sanitation and rainwater systems that serve large commercial and complex multi-zone buildings.

On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to calculate, design and select appropriate pipework systems and plantroom equipment for hot- and coldwater services, and sanitation and rainwater systems for large commercial buildings.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this unit, students will be able to:

LO1 Explain the different types of domestic water services systems and above ground drainage that serve large buildings

LO2 Identify relevant design considerations for buildings when selecting water, drainage pipework, plant and equipment

LO3 Develop sustainable design strategies for public health engineering

LO4 Design and specify water and sanitation services for large non-domestic buildings.

Essential Content

LO1 Explain the different types of domestic water services systems and above ground drainage that serve large buildings

Cold water

Sources of water (e.g., water quality, hardness, water treatment, corrosion) Distribution systems (e.g., direct, and indirect systems, boosted cold water systems, water storage, pressure reduction and control, domestic sprinkler systems)

Hot water

Hot water production (e.g., local vs central, vented and unvented, calorifiers, plate heat exchangers, local heaters)

Distribution systems (e.g., secondary circulation, pumps and balancing,  trace heating, avoidance of dead legs)

Above ground drainage

Sanitary pipework systems (e.g., attributes, primary ventilated stack system, secondary ventilated stack system, ventilated and unventilated branches,  stub stacks, pumped drainage systems) Kitchen and laboratory drainage

Rainwater systems

Rainwater pipework systems (e.g., gravity and siphonic systems, gutters and roof outlets, paved area drainage, sound attenuation, soakaways)

LO2 Identify relevant design considerations for buildings when selecting water, drainage pipework, plant and equipment

Cold water

Water regulations

Categories of fluid

Contamination risks

Air gaps and backflow prevention

Legionella prevention and monitoring

Disinfection and flushing of systems

Standards and codes of practice

Commissioning and maintenance

Hot water

Legionella prevention vs scalding

Thermal balancing

Hot water temperatures

Building regulations

Mixers and blending of hot water

Thermostatic control

Safety features for unvented hot water

Above ground drainage

Limits of stack system

Trap seal loss

High rise building drainage

Invert levels

Secondary venting

Air admittance valves (AAV)

Positive air pressure attenuators (PAPA)

Offsets and vent termination

Sewer capacities

Rainwater systems

Green, brown, and blue roofs

Pitched roof types

Rainfall intensities

Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS)

Rainwater attenuation

Building regulations and codes of practice Commissioning

System testing

Balancing

Quality checks Handover

LO3 Develop sustainable design strategies for public health engineering

Certification schemes (e.g., BREEAM, LEED)

Water flow rates and leak detection methods Requirements and solutions

Water consumption and water conservation measures

Types and techniques

Hot water generation

Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Solar thermal

Grey water recycling systems

Benefits and pitfalls

Rainwater harvesting systems Requirements and uses

LO4 Design and specify water and sanitation services for large non-domestic buildings.

Cold water systems

Cold water storage requirements

Cistern sizing

Probability theory and loading units

Cold water pipe sizing

Pressure

Flow rates and velocity

Booster set sizing

Hot water systems

Hot water generator sizing

Reheat/recovery period

Storage, semi-storage or instantaneous

Hot water flow and return pipe sizing

Circulating pump size

Mass flow rate and pressure drop

Rainwater systems

Surface water run-off calculations

Storm return periods/rainfall intensities

Gutter and roof outlet sizing

Attenuation tank sizing

Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria

Answer

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