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million tonnes of oil. When you consider that in the UK, the combined efforts of agriculture, commercial, public administration and miscellaneous accounted for 20 million tonnes, you can see the part engineering needs to play in helping the UK realise its net zero ambitions. Of course, this is the nature of the industry, with
What do incremental Net Zero gains look like for the engineering sector?
Net Zero is a bigger priority within the engineering sector than it has ever been. With this in mind, Martin Barnes, chief executive of renewable energy specialist Crossflow Energy, talks about the sustainability challenge facing the industry and discusses how small, incremental gains need to be playing a pivotal role in any successful transition towards clean energy generation
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t’s no secret that the UK’s engineering sector, like many, is looking to shift towards cleaner processes and ‘greener’ technologies. This helps meet the Government’s official Net Zero targets, whilst also offering significant long-term business benefits to companies proactively looking to make smarter, cleaner decisions. Further to this, the engineering sector is witnessing a shift in skills and job requirements, with more weight being placed on sustainability and being able to integrate clean technologies. Indeed, a recent report by Engineering UK reflects this new focus, finding that ‘green’ engineering roles have increased by 55 per cent in the past five years. This is a significant increase.
Left: Martin Barnes, chief executive of Crossflow Energy
high levels of energy needed to power essential processes. And decarbonising these activities is a significant challenge that can’t be done overnight. However, instead of engineering companies implementing one major sustainable change and feeling like their part in the net zero journey is complete, they need to build on any momentum they have through small, incremental gains. Small-scale improvements are more attainable, more affordable and deliver faster ROI, and when grouped together, will end up having a significant influence on their environmental impact. So, what could this look like?
Small scale changes
The role of renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power, is going to be vital in the engineering sector’s battle towards Net Zero. One particular area that engineering decision
makers should be carefully considering when looking for consistent steps towards a greener future is ‘small-scale’ renewables. Currently, when people consider ‘renewables’ they only think of large-scale projects, for example giant offshore wind farms. However, there are a host of small- scale renewable energy systems that can provide companies with an opportunity to make steady progress towards net zero. Small-scale renewables, such as Crossflow
Given this, it is startling to see the 2023 study by Motability showing that engineering firms still trail behind other sectors in their efforts to decarbonise, especially when compared to healthcare and financial services. So why is that and what can be done to bridge the
gap? An energy-intensive sector
Those of us who operate within the engineering space will know that it, as well as other industrial industries, remains one of the most energy- intensive sectors in the UK, and this is despite the scale of innovation taking place and substantial investment being made into ‘green’ technology. In 2022 alone, the industrial sector used the over 22
18 February 2024 To sum up
Of course, there are challenges that the engineering sector will have to be overcome if it wants to change its Net Zero perception and reduce its reliance on fossil fuels and generators. Growing innovations, such as ‘small wind’ technology, offers a move away from traditional renewable solutions and can provide businesses with quicker, more immediate solutions in the race to Net Zero.
Energy’s turbine technology means wind power is now a viable option for embedded renewable generation. The innovation exploits the complementary benefits of wind and solar resources at off-grid sites and harnesses power from smaller sources, as well as offering the ability to be grid connected. This can reduce the use of fossil fuels, or bio-diesel, and their associated carbon emissions significantly, with far less planning and investment required than its large- scale counterpart. The combined generation of solar and wind maximises the overall renewable energy generation, ensuring more consistent power and less dependency on diesel and other fuel dependent generators. As a result, this provides firms with the reassurance of a renewable solution, particularly when providing power to hard-to-reach, off grid sites.
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