16 June 2026
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Valeria Vezzo, CEO at Soleco Engineering Srl, discusses the Heat Pumps tighter noise rules make controlling vibration essential to ensure compliance and avoid noise issues.
The UK heat pump market is growing faster than at any point in its history. MCS recorded nearly 58,000 certified heat pump installations in 2024 — a new annual record and a 75% increase on the previous year, and 2025 saw a further rise, with the total number of retrofit installations now more than four and a half times higher than five years ago.
With the government targeting hundreds of thousands of installations per year by the end of the decade, the pressure on installers to deliver high-quality, compliant work has never been greater.
Alongside this rapid growth, the regulatory framework has been evolving continuously. Recent changes to permitted development rules have made it easier than ever to site heat pumps across a wider range of UK properties. At the same time, noise compliance requirements have been progressively tightened, and MCS-certified installers are now required to carry out formal acoustic assessments before every installation. The standard — MCS 020(a) — has undergone significant revision, with limits becoming increasingly stringent as deployment accelerates into denser residential areas.
Why vibration is the hidden factor
Heat pump outdoor units contain compressors and rotating components that generate mechanical vibrations during operation. When units are mounted on hard surfaces — concrete bases, patios, lightweight frames or wall brackets — those vibrations travel directly into the building structure, producing structure-borne noise that is often more disruptive than airborne sound and significantly harder to resolve after installation.
This is a challenge that Soleco Engineering, an Italian company with over 50 years of experience in vibration isolation and seismic protection, understands well. Experience across international markets suggests a consistent pattern: structure borne noise is frequently underestimated at the installation planning stage, and invariably more costly and disruptive to address once the unit is in operation.
The engineering approach to noise compliance
The most effective way to prevent vibration transmission is to isolate the unit mechanically from the supporting surface at the point of installation. Properly selected anti-vibration mounts — whether spring-based or elastomeric — absorb the mechanical energy generated by the compressor before it can enter the building fabric. The choice between mount types depends on factors including unit weight, operating frequency, mounting configuration and exposure conditions.
For residential applications, elastomeric mounts in thermoplastic elastomer are particularly well suited: compact, durable and effective across a wide frequency range, they perform reliably in the outdoor conditions typical of UK installations — including resistance to UV, ozone and temperature extremes. Spring-based mounts, including wind-resistant patented designs, offer additional isolation depth for installations on lightweight structures or in more demanding acoustic environments.
In both cases, correct selection is essential. A mount chosen for the wrong load range will underperform regardless of its design quality. Like others Soleco Engineering provides technical guidance to help installers identify the appropriate solution for each application. This service has become increasingly valuable now that acoustic assessments are a mandatory requirement.
For MCS-certified installers, incorporating anti-vibration isolation at the planning stage is one of the most effective steps towards a compliant, high-quality installation. It reduces the risk of failing a noise assessment, protects the building structure from long term mechanical stress, and extends the operational life of the equipment itself. As noise standards continue to evolve, anti-vibration isolation is increasingly recognised not as an optional extra — but as a fundamental component of responsible heat pump installation practice.
