A leading mechanical and electrical contractor has started work on a key renewables project that will save more than 34,500kg of CO2 emissions.
Atherton-based Ash Integrated Services is installing more than 500 solar panels on behalf of Stockport Council at Endeavour House, a depot building on Bredbury Park Way, owned and operated by Totally Local Company.
The M+E firm is also installing 24 car ports, three electric vehicle charging points and battery storage, and it will also deliver associated civil engineering works and assist with the installation of a substation.
The project will generate approximately 230kWh and the energy will power Endeavour House directly, with any excess transferred to the battery.
A key challenge for Ash will be completing the scheme safely and on schedule while operating on a live site, with frequent waste vehicle movements as part of MOT, servicing, and repair work.
Stockport Council is seeking to become a carbon-neutral city region by 2038 and appointed Ash to deliver the Endeavour House project following a competitive tender process.
Co-founder and co-director at Ash Integrated Services Antony Grace said: “This complex scheme is ideal for our skillset and builds on our previous renewables projects on live sites.
“We will have a team of six, including an apprentice, working on the electricals side, with another five delivering the civils to lay cables.
“With the installation of the car ports as well as liaising closely with Electricity North West on the substation, there are many layers to this development, and we’re excited to have started on site.”
The scheme is scheduled to complete at the end of May and will be future proofed to allow the council to further its sustainability credentials.
Antony added: “We will be connecting the new substation to the workshop area as well as removing the existing supply and inserting a new panel.
“The latest infrastructure and technology is being used, including the use of larger cables to handle higher usage in the future, such as with the investment of electric waste vehicles.”
Endeavour House is one of two key schemes kick-started by Stockport Council this spring, with the view they will act as the blueprint that will help it and other local authorities to learn how best to retrofit renewables onto existing buildings.
Cllr Mark Roberts, cabinet member for climate change and environment at Stockport Council, said: “In March 2019, Stockport Council declared a climate emergency and pledged support for the Greater Manchester Five Year Environment Plan.
“These two projects are just the start of fulfilling that commitment and this is a fantastic example of one of the many solutions available to organisations and businesses in the borough to decarbonise our society.”
Cllr Grace Baynham, cabinet member for highways, parks and leisure services, said: “This is very welcome news and it is so important that we make provision to decarbonise in order to future proof our services.
“This is another big step forward in our commitment to become a carbon neutral borough.”
David Hughes, CEO at Totally Local Company, which operates out of Endeavour House, said: “The introduction of solar panels at TLC’s site in Bredbury is a great step forward in our target to decarbonise our operations and, by adopting the latest technologies, builds on our current green agenda.
“We’re proud to support Stockport Council’s target to be carbon neutral by 2038.”
Supported by a capital grant from the European Regional Development Funding (ERDF), as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020, this funding has come about by working jointly as a consortium with five Greater Manchester authorities under the Unlocking Clean Energy in Greater Manchester (UCEGM) programme.
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