Case Studies
VTOL Technologies
The electricity industry is not only legally obliged to inspect power-lines and towers regularly, it is also an essential operational requirement as part of their overall asset management and maintenance programme. Currently, the most efficient and effective method for these inspections is a helicopter survey, flying the length of the line to gather detailed photographic evidence. It is estimated that this process costs between £500 and £1,200 per hour, depending upon the type of helicopter used and the operating location.
VTOL Technologies have developed a unique, high-performance flying wing Vertical Take Off and Landing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (VTOL-UAV) for inspecting power lines, which offers significant cost savings, improved performance and greater safety.
Read the attached PDF for the full case study.
 VTOL Technologies Case Study | [PDF] | 1013 Kb |
Mulberry Deployment Vehicle (MDV)
With thousands of miles of coastline around Britain and Europe, it is clear that with the right technology, tidal power could play a significant role in our quest for renewable energy and reductions in carbon emissions.
The Mulberry Deployment Vehicle (MDV) is an innovation designed to make the deployment and servicing of sea bed based tidal turbines both easier and more cost effective. The vehicle consists of a reinforced concrete caisson with built in buoyancy, with the tidal stream turbine mounted on top.
Read the attached PDF for the full case study.
| Mulberry Case Study | [PDF] | 1008 Kb |
Live Alert
In many areas of operation across the electricity network, workers are at risk when machinery makes contact with overhead power lines. This applies not only to power industry staff, but also to construction workers, farmers and anyone else working in close proximity to overhead power lines.
To protect operators in this situation, Live Alert has created a product called The Energised Alert.
Read the attached PDF for the full case study.
| Live Alert Case Study | [PDF] | 1009 Kb |
Furlong Innovations
Many homes across the UK have modern combi-boilers, which come with the promise of instant hot water on demand. Unfortunately, they often fail to live up to this ‘instant’ promise. This results in a great deal of waste water, as taps are run down the drain until the water is hot. Energy is also wasted in heating this waste water up to the point where the flow reaches the desired temperature for use.
Furlong Innovations have addressed this problem by creating the CombiSave, a small, thermostatic valve device that measures the temperature of water leaving the boiler, and controls the flow to optimise the warm-up period.
Hat trick of Awards for CombiSave!
Recognition for the brilliantly simple device CombiSave, has been growing. The multi-saving ‘green’ device developed on the Wirral has just won the WiN Business Award for Innovation and Creativity, making this CombiSave’s third triumph.
The trio of awards are:
“Consumer Benefit Award” at the Energy Innovation Awards 2010;
“Innovation and Technology Award” at Merseyside Environmental Awards 2011;
“Innovation and Creativity Award” at WiN Business Awards 2011.
An impressive roll call of judges recognised the appeal and logic behind a product that does not require change of behaviour in the end user yet installed in large numbers can slow the depletion of natural resources.
CombiSave speeds the delivery of hot water and is fitted to the outlet pipe of a domestic combination boiler. The domestic savings following a CombiSave fit are a significant reduction in water wasted, around 50,000 litres for a family of four, and lower gas bills: pay back is generally less than 12 months. Environmental benefits of having the device installed include carbon emission reduction of around 0.5 tonne a year per household, and the considerable water and gas savings are attracting interest from energy companies, water authorities, housing associations, holiday companies and organisations tasked with carbon reduction.
David Furlong, director of Mole Group and Furlong Innovations, said, “To win an award brings a fantastic opportunity to promote CombiSave, but a hat trick is something else! Myself and Lisa, the Project Manager, have been working so hard, and winning on our home turf is particularly special to us.” Mole Group has grown from Mole Engineering set up by David 20 years ago and he is delighted to be able to develop his energy-saving ideas through the innovation division. CombiSave is a low-cost retrofit item, boiler manufacturers are also looking at integral fit via manufacturers Teddington Group. Teddington were delighted to be at Hillbark Hotel to support CombiSave’s latest win.
Read the attached PDF for the full case study.
| Furlong Innovations Case Study | [PDF] | 1003 Kb |
FMC Technology- Enabling the New Smart Electricity Grid
FMC-Tech, an Irish technology company founded in 2002, has developed a new, low cost, technically advanced and patented technology to monitor electricity distribution and transmission networks. The technology increases the capacity of transmission circuits and delivers the real-time information required to enable the ‘smart grid’ scheme, supporting the introduction of the new renewable electricity generation.
