State-of-the-art battery technology that is helping to cut carbon emissions and improve air quality has secured a prestigious accolade for leading gas distribution company Cadent, mobile power solutions provider Clayton Power UK and vehicle conversion specialists Bri-Stor Systems Ltd.
The trio scooped the Innovation Award at this year’s Gas Industry Awards, run by the Institute of Gas Engineers and Managers (IGEM).
They impressed judges with the pioneering Sustainable Vehicle Auxiliary Power System – a state-of-the-art lithium battery power system installed in some 80 Cadent vehicles, which is enabling the company’s gas engineers to run power tools without using the vehicle’s diesel engine or a separate diesel generator.
Cadent is the first utility to adopt this technology for widescale use, with the batteries installed in some 80 vehicles in the company’s ‘Operate and Maintain’ fleet. The award was the culmination of over two years’ work to tailor the technology to Cadent’s needs, test it and install it in company vehicles for real-life use.
Cadent has already seen a 15% reduction in standing fuel consumption and a 30% reduction in CO2 emissions.
Cadent’s ‘Operate and Maintain’ engineers keep gas installations and apparatus in good working order on the company’s 132,000-kilometre pipe network, which delivers gas to 11 million customers.
The battery charges while the van is being driven, harnessing otherwise wasted power generated by the vehicle’s alternator, and is ready to be deployed when the engineer arrives at their destination. Adopting the technology is part of Cadent’s long-term strategy to make its fleet cleaner and greener, by cutting carbon emissions and fuel usage.
Cadent Fleet Officer Dominic Stephens said: “As a company we are aiming to significantly reduce our carbon emissions and help improve air quality.
“The beauty of this technology is that it provides the mobile source of electricity our engineers need to run their power tools but without the noise, vehicle fumes and carbon emissions that come from generating power the traditional way from our vans’ diesel engines or a diesel generator.”
Karl Jones, Business Development Engineer at Clayton Power UK, said: “To see our partnership with Cadent recognised at a national industry award is testament to our commitment to using innovative technology to tackle avoidable carbon emissions.
“We have a great relationship with Cadent and their forward-thinking approach to making their fleets more fuel efficient and environmentally cleaner is setting a new standard in the energy industry.”
Simon Webb, Bri-Stor Systems Managing Director, said: “This award is a testament to the 2 years of engineering development work that has been undertaken in partnership with Cadent and Clayton Power UK.’
“Collectively we saw the environmental and operational benefits of generating an Auxiliary Power System and have taken that idea and turned it in to reality. To be recognised at a National Level for that work is something that we are very proud of.”
The award judges were impressed by Cadent’s results, with CO2 emissions and fuel usage significantly reduced. Noise pollution has also been lowered, as the batteries are effectively silent when compared to the sound of a van engine or diesel generator.
