Equinor, together with eleven other companies and organisations, has submitted a joint proposal to create a low carbon cluster in the Humber, the UK’s largest and most carbon-intensive industrial region. The application by the Zero Carbon Humber (ZCH) Partnership is a first step to creating the world’s first net zero
Seven of the UK’s most cutting-edge innovators in Smart, Zero Carbon Building Solutions have been selected for a rigorous business acceleration programme at Energy Systems Catapult. For its fourth ‘Innovator Challenge’, the Catapult is collaborating with Places for People, to help SMEs unlock new routes-to-market, secure investment and breakdown barriers to
Henley-in-Arden based commercial decoration company Harvey UK has won a contract to carry out the decorating and finishing of Birmingham’s tallest residential tower block. Harvey UK will carry out all of the painting, decorating and finishing work on 481 apartments in The Mercian 42-storey tower in Broad Street. The development
Bluestone National Park Resort has secured the green light for a restaurant development proposal and outlined plans for a £15 million investment into new lodges. A change of use application has been approved by Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Planning Authority, paving the way for Bluestone to restore Black Pool Mill
The built environment contributes around 40% of the UK’s total carbon footprint. Unfortunately, around half of this is from the energy used in buildings. Whilst many newly constructed dwellings are designed to be more energy-efficient, a major priority is decarbonising the existing building stock, of which 80% will still be
Equinor, together with eleven other companies and organisations, has submitted a joint proposal to create a low carbon cluster in the Humber, the UK’s largest and most carbon-intensive industrial region. The application by the Zero Carbon Humber (ZCH) Partnership is a first step to creating the world’s first net zero industrial cluster by 2040 and will support clean growth in the north-east of England. The bid, announced recently, for Phase Two funding from the UK Government’s Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, builds on a successful application for Phase One funding which was announced in April. The ZCH Partnership includes Equinor, Associated British Ports, British Steel, Centrica Storage Ltd, Drax Group, Mitsubishi, National Grid Ventures, px Group, SSE Thermal, Saltend Cogeneration Company Limited, Uniper, and the University of Sheffield’s Advanced Manufacturing Centre (AMRC). “We are proud to be a leader of Zero Carbon Humber, partnering with a broad group of forward-looking companies. This proposal can bring tremendous benefits to the Humber region, protecting industries, creating jobs, promoting economic growth and reducing emissions. Our bid demonstrates the kind of ambitious action that is needed to for the UK to achieve its net zero carbon target by 2050,” says Al Cook, Equinor executive vice president and UK country manager. The bid centres around two elements, the first being the Equinor-led H2H Saltend (Hydrogen to Humber Saltend) hydrogen project at Saltend Chemicals Park near the city of Hull. H2H Saltend will be largest plant of its kind in the world to convert natural gas to hydrogen, combining a 600 megawatt autothermal reformer with carbon capture. From first production H2H Saltend will reduce industrial emissions by nearly 900,000 tonnes per year. The second element is the hydrogen and carbon dioxide (CO2) pipeline network developed by National Grid Ventures that aims to link H2H Saltend to other industrial sites in the Humber region, enabling them in turn to fuel switch to hydrogen or capture their emissions. These sites include Drax Power station, SSE Thermal’s Keadby site, Uniper’s Killingholme site and British Steel at Scunthorpe. “We believe in the necessity of hydrogen and carbon capture to clean up heavy industry which is required to reach net zero targets. The technologies are proven and it’s now a question of putting them together. We and our partners have made great progress in our plans to decarbonise the Humber, through working with and learning from each other and also in engaging with national and local stakeholders. We are convinced that by continuing to work together we can make this happen,” says Grete Tveit, Equinor senior vice president for low carbon solutions. CO2 emissions from H2H Saltend and the other Humber sites will be transported by pipeline to Easington on the Yorkshire coast and then offshore to permanent storage under the Southern North Sea on the UK continental shelf. A consortium of world-class energy companies including Equinor is working to develop the offshore transport and storage infrastructure, and this network will be shared with the Teesside industrial cluster, where Equinor is also a partner in the Net Zero Teesside decarbonisation project. The total size of the ZCH proposal is GBP 75 million, comprising private and public funding. The funds will be used to progress work towards a final investment decision during 2023 with H2H Saltend and the associated infrastructure potentially coming online in 2026.
Seven of the UK’s most cutting-edge innovators in Smart, Zero Carbon Building Solutions have been selected for a rigorous business acceleration programme at Energy Systems Catapult. For its fourth ‘Innovator Challenge’, the Catapult is collaborating with Places for People, to help SMEs unlock new routes-to-market, secure investment and breakdown barriers to growth. The seven innovators that will get access to advanced energy system expertise from the Catapult plus specialist business support from a wider network of around 40 consultants, include: Amp X Atamate Clean Energy Prospector Pumped Heat Sero Studio Victoria Wondrwall The Zero Carbon Housing Solutions, Smart Buildings and Estates challenge called for innovators working in one or more of the following areas: Integrating innovative low carbon generation or infrastructure technologies into the building or estate fabric Zero carbon domestic heating solutions Leveraging data from end users, infrastructure and networks to create new services and business models that accelerate the transition to net zero Enabling active, interoperable control systems that delivers more efficient and flexible operation of the whole building & estate energy system Delivering better living environments. Paul Jordan, Business Lead for Innovator Support and International at Energy Systems Catapult, said: “Congratulations to the SMEs joining our 4th cohort for the ISP. Yet again we had our work cut out to select participants from the high number of quality applications. “To achieve Net Zero, we will need to fully decarbonise our ‘Buildings & Estates’ and the seven companies that we’ll now be working with, all have the potential to make a sizeable contribution. “I’m delighted to see such a range of solutions from digital platforms and building control, heat solutions and microgrids, to new business propositions like heat- as-a-service and digital twins. Our team is excited to be working with these promising innovators and helping them to accelerate towards full commercialisation.” Julie Alexander, Director of Technology and Innovation at Places for People, said: “The route to zero carbon is complicated, and with the huge variation in property types across the UK, the solutions will be varied, and in some cases, complex. “So much more needs to be done to understand how we can meet this challenge and how we can scale solutions that will be reliable and affordable. “Working with Energy Systems Catapult has allowed Places for People to gain access to SME’s that bring new and innovative approaches to this challenge, and to understand how we can work across the sector to deliver our own environmentally sustainable objectives. A Catapult panel robustly evaluated applications from across the UK. The seven companies chosen were: 1. Amp X Amp X is developing a transactive‐ready digital energy platform underpinned by autonomy, machine-learning, advanced data analytics and control systems ‐ aiming to provide flexibility services that can deliver cost and carbon savings for consumers, and to unlock new business models and revenue opportunities for different stakeholders across the system. Dr Irene Di Martino, Head of Amp X, said: “Amp X is addressing the challenges of the energy transition as our vision of the future moves smart energy from automated to autonomous, turning the edge of the grid into the locus of provision of grid flexibility, stability and resilience. “Consumer engagement is a key barrier to demand‐response as a scalable non‐wire‐alternative. The Amp X digital energy assistant will cater simultaneously for consumer preferences and grid needs, delivering demand‐side‐management at a very large scale through the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning. Our solution will allow for optimal energy management and dynamic load shaping behind‐the-meter in residential and commercial/industrial premises, enabling cost and carbon savings, though with no adverse impact on the needs and lifestyle of the end users. “Part of what we are wanting to validate with Energy Systems Catapult is what features of our solution work best for different user‐types and properties (ecosystems). “Our ultimate goal is to deliver an inclusive, future‐proof, fully transactive grid, where virtualised local energy markets exemplify the full democratisation and decentralisation of the grid, with peer‐to‐peer trading through the active participation of every producer and consumer across the grid.” 2. Atamate Atamate has developed a smart building platform that focuses on precise automated control and continuous monitoring of the internal environment to reduce energy consumption, simplify building management and optimise maintenance – while increasing occupant comfort and security. Joe Miles, Managing Director at Atamate said: “Atamate offers value across a wide range of building types. This spans energy savings, security and building management, through to improving maintenance and the indoor environment. “We have produced a monitoring and control system that is: holistic with a common data platform to share information and control services; simple to install, live with and maintain; affordable with a quantifiable payback; and retrofittable. “We think Energy Systems Catapult can not only provide the independent verification and credibility that we want, but help us better understand which markets value which parts of our offering.” 3. Clean Energy Prospector Clean Energy Prospector (Cepro) design, build and operate ‘community microgrids’ for new build residential housing developments, allowing third-party providers to finance the cost of installing low carbon infrastructure, rather than the housing developer. Cepro’s innovative business model means the cost of technologies needed to create zero carbon homes – such as solar PV, heat pumps, battery storage and digital control systems – are financed via a community Energy Services Company, mitigating costs for developer and helping to maximise the market attractiveness for zero carbon homes for individual house-buyers. Damon Rand, Head of Product at Cepro, said: “The UK builds 130,000 homes a year and only a fraction have solar PV, never mind heat pumps. By 2025 new build homes cannot install gas boilers but home builders have not yet worked out how to finance low carbon heating systems. “What we do is form community microgrids to enable external investment to come in and fund low carbon infrastructure, taking the risk and the cost off the balance sheet of the housing developer. “We’re hoping Energy Systems Catapult can review our value proposition and business plan in preparation to take on investment and scale the business.”
Henley-in-Arden based commercial decoration company Harvey UK has won a contract to carry out the decorating and finishing of Birmingham’s tallest residential tower block. Harvey UK will carry out all of the painting, decorating and finishing work on 481 apartments in The Mercian 42-storey tower in Broad Street. The development is being carried out by Sisk on behalf of Yorkshire-based Moda Living. The tower, on the site of the former Tramps nightclub, will include shared lounges, health and sports facilities, a dining club with demonstration kitchen, and a 200-metre running track on the roof. Harvey UK managing director Tony Harvey said the new block would service the growing demand for city centre accommodation in Birmingham. “The Mercian is set to become an iconic building in the heart of Birmingham and we are delighted to have secured this prestigious contract. It will have excellent facilities and will be finished to a very high standard,” he said. Established in 1966, Harvey UK is a family-owned finishing and maintenance specialist, working on major projects in the industrial, education, health, local authority and residential sectors. With offices in Henley-in-Arden and London, the group has a wide portfolio of blue-chip client projects including JLR, Muller, the NHS, Kier, Balfour Beatty, Skanska, Lendlease and the Royal Air Force.
Bluestone National Park Resort has secured the green light for a restaurant development proposal and outlined plans for a £15 million investment into new lodges. A change of use application has been approved by Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Planning Authority, paving the way for Bluestone to restore Black Pool Mill into a heritage restaurant and creating a cafe and exhibition space in the adjacent former cottage and forge building. The Black Pool Mill heritage restaurant will be open to locals and visitors to the county, as well as Bluestone resort guests, serving lunches, cream teas, and dinner throughout the year. The upscale restaurant will be able to accommodate around 160 diners, creating over 35 year-round jobs and showcasing produce from local suppliers. Bluestone has also launched a pre-application consultation to build 80 new lodges at the resort. The proposed lodge development will be set within Bluestone’s 500-acre site. It will provide an additional 80 environmentally sensitive, self-catered lodges. Bluestone will be investing £15m into the development, which will create and support more than 250 jobs in the construction phase as well as nearly 90 operational jobs on-site following the completion of the works. Bluestone said the new lodges were expected to increase spending in the surrounding area by up to £1m per year. “We are really pleased to have the application approved and are truly excited about our plans for Black Pool Mill. We will shortly begin work to restore the building, to be enjoyed once again by local people and visitors to the county. The Mill is a unique historic building that sits in a beautiful position on the Cleddau River. We are committed to breathing new life into the Mill whilst preserving and restoring its historic past,” said Liz Weedon, head of projects. “We are also really excited about our proposed development – which cements Bluestone’s firm commitment to further investment, job creation, and supporting the wider regional economy. It has been a very challenging year for everyone; we proud and privileged to be based in Pembrokeshire and see real potential for the county to significantly benefit from staycation demand in the future,” Liz added. The Narberth holiday resort employs more than 700 people and welcomed almost 155,000 visitors in 2019.
The built environment contributes around 40% of the UK’s total carbon footprint. Unfortunately, around half of this is from the energy used in buildings. Whilst many newly constructed dwellings are designed to be more energy-efficient, a major priority is decarbonising the existing building stock, of which 80% will still be standing when the UK is to meet its carbon-neutral status by 2050. In light of Energy Efficiency Day, Stacey Lucas from Sontay explains how the presence of building sensors optimise energy performance in both new and older buildings, driving the stock towards the all-important smartness and efficiency that is essential to the current and future health of our environment. Building sensors, installed as part of an efficient central management system, offer an ingeniously smart and effective way of remotely monitoring elements such as temperature, air quality and ventilation. In doing so, not only do they help maintain a healthy indoor climate for the occupiers’ comfort and peace of mind, sensors give property owners more agency over energy usage; a benefit that not only helps reduce heating and lighting costs, but also facilitates a significant reduction in a building’s carbon footprint. Their usage could therefore be crucial in driving environmental initiatives, such as the UK government’s pledge for carbon-neutral status by 2050. It is in no doubt, then, that sensors have found themselves at the heart of what we call smart buildings. According to the ‘Smart Building: Energy efficiency application’ document produced by the European Commission’s Digital Transformation Monitor, a smart building is defined as ‘a set of communication technologies enabling different objects, sensors and functions within a building to communicate and interact with each other and also to be managed, controlled and automated in a remote way.’ Sensors are smart devices that sense when and how a building’s energy performance can be adapted, consistently monitoring, measuring and evaluating data which feeds into a central management or control system. The rise of smart sensors A control system’s sustenance, sensors play an essential role in the energy-efficient operation of a smart building. Sontay’s smart sensors in particular offer full environmental sensing in a single device. This ingenious sensor can measure a myriad of elements including temperature, RH, CO2, light level, and occupancy or local devices independently. Typically, traditional sensors require up to seven cable inputs into a controller, making for a lengthy installation. A Sontay smart sensor, however, only needs a single cable connection to perform the same duty with greater efficiency, and can be mapped to any device or freely programmed into a building’s network. Efficiency can also be related to the health and wellbeing of occupants, as well as the climate. In terms of air quality, airborne volatile organic compounds (VOC), pollutants which are found in paints and other building materials, are known to have a detrimental effect. The same harmful chemicals are also present in hand sanitisers, aggressive cleaning products and detergents, the demand for which has been unprecedented since the onset of the coronavirus crisis. Air quality sensors are able to measure VOC levels and alert the control system or occupants of the need to take action when a potentially hazardous reading is recorded to allow for ventilation to kick in. There are also sensors available which prevent the unwelcome pervasion of CO2 in an over-inhabited space. A CO2 sensor with an LED traffic light-style display is a potential remedy for this issue. When showing green, the sensor is indicating that a room isn’t over-occupied and the risk to air quality is low. Should the sensor show amber, it’s a sign that windows require opening or fewer people need to be in the room to maintain the same healthy indoor environment. When the sensor turns red it is a call to action, as it indicates there is not enough ventilation and possible over occupancy in the room. At these last two stages, if a sensor is connected to a building management system, it will activate relevant ventilation procedure in order to ensure a space’s occupants do not feel uncomfortable. Controlling a whole host of elements including heating, cooling and lighting, smart building sensors can ensure dwellings run as energy efficiently as possible. Although small in size, sensors offer fierce capability, and will go some way to enabling both new and older buildings perform well into the future, for the benefit of our beloved environment. It only seems natural, therefore, to celebrate the humble building sensor on this Energy Efficiency Day.
