Created to showcase the best in UK low carbon innovation, the Awards recognise individuals and both public and private sector bodies that are developing and deploying innovative technologies or energy efficiency measures that help reduce the UK’s carbon emissions.
The Awards will be presented at a ceremony at the Royal Opera House this week. The winners will be chosen by a distinguished judging panel that includes Professor Sir Keith O'Nions, director general of science & innovation at the DTI, Professor Jim Skea, research director at UK Energy Research and Chris Mottershead, distinguished advisor at BP.
The finalists are:
Individual and small business
Dwell-Vent London
Dwell-Vent is an innovative Whole-House ventilation system that achieves both healthy indoor air quality while lowering household energy consumption. It works by the combination of ‘supply air’ windows, which act as a heat exchanger, with passive stacks that provide the air pressure to pull air through rooms, whilst extracting humid air from kitchens and bathrooms.
Nujira Cambridge
Nujira’s innovative High Accuracy Tracking (HAT™) technology has the potential to make a significant reduction in the power consumption of radio networks. New systems such as digital have compromised power efficiency in order to deliver high bandwidth applications to the consumer. Nujira’s smaller, lighter radio transmitters reduce power consumption and improve energy efficiency.
Oxsensis Didcot, Oxfordshire
Oxsensis has developed simultaneous temperature and pressure sensors to help control combustion and therefore improve the efficiency of cars, planes and power stations. This could respresent significant carbon savings.
WallTransform Stokesley, Teesside
There are seven million un-insulated solid wall properties in the UK. Walltransform has brought a series of thermally efficient plaster/render insulation materials to market since 2003 which save one tonne of CO2 per square metre over the lifetime of a building.
Energy Efficiency: Private sector
Adnams Southwold, Suffolk
Adnams brewery has embraced energy efficiency across its operations, from the building of a low carbon distribution centre to the development of a new energy efficient manufacturing process. The new process has helped create the lightest beer bottle on the market.
British Land plc London
British Land is responsible for the energy used in the common areas of its tenanted properties. The company has developed an in-house energy efficiency benchmarking tool that allows it to identify poor performing areas in its buildings giving it the ability to mitigate and ensure that they are operating at optimum efficiency. The system has been in operation for three years and CO2 emissions have been reduced by 3,000 tonnes as a result.
Marks & Spencer plc London
Since winning a Carbon Trust Innovation Award in 2005 , M&S has introduced a new major energy efficiency programme across the majority of its 450 stores. M&S estimates that these schemes will save a total of 22,000 tonnes of CO2 in each full 12 month period.
Energy Efficiency: Public sector award
Aberdeen City Council
Aberdeen City Council was the first council in Scotland to develop a Climate Change Action Plan and committed to reducing its CO2 emissions by 15per cent by 2015 against the 2002/3 baseline.
The Council is already ahead of this emissions reduction plan with the implementation of a range of measures including the use of more energy efficient technologies and measures in procurement, design and construction.
Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council Barnsley
In June 2004 Barnsley Council adopted a ‘Biomass Heating Policy’ for all new-build and major refurbishment projects and the Council is now producing its own wood chips from arboreal waste. It is now poised to surpass the government’s 60 per cent carbon reduction target an impressive 40 years ahead of deadline.
University of York York
The Computer Science Department at York University makes 50-70 per cent electrical energy savings in teaching labs by using automatic control systems. This switches non-active computers off hourly, until re-booted by a new user. It covers 1,500 computers in student classrooms and throughout all departments and student residential accommodation with annual carbon savings in excess of 430 tonnes of CO2.
Larger business
CA Group Evenwood, Co Durham
In March 2006, CA Group installed a new solar air heating system (CA Solarwall ™) at one of its production facilities and reduced reliance on natural gas. As a result, the company is saving over 137,000 kWh of energy and 26 tonnes of CO2. A number of CA clients have expessed interest in the system.
DuPont London
DuPont™ Energain™ is a new concept in thermal mass materials, which could revolutionise construction. DuPont™ Energain™ thermal mass panels absorb and release heat, regulating room temperature lessening the need for air conditioning and heating systems.
Wright Group Ballymena, Northern Ireland
Wright Group has developed and sold the first six single deck hybrid buses, which have been operating in central London since January 2006. Wright Group has now developed the world’s first Hybrid Electric Double Decker bus which uses innovative battery technology and a 2-litre diesel car engine reducing carbon emissions by 31 per cent.
Academic Institutions
Leeds Metropolitan University Leeds
A research project based at Leeds Metropolitan University, and supported by DCLG, has identified a hidden heat loss path via the party walls of semidetached and terraced houses. This hidden path can increase heat loss, and carbon emissions, by between 40per cent and 100per cent. A simple cost effective solution can stop the heat loss path and save money and carbon.
London South Bank University London
Academics at London South Bank University have worked with London Underground to develop a revolutionary cooling system at Victoria station using one of the capital’s natural resources - rising underground water. . Using this system reduces the need for energy intensive cooling systems.
London Underground is now planning to install similar installations at up to 30 stations.
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