Low Carbon Business Support: Beam Ltd

The challenge

Beam’s main priorities were to reduce carbon emissions to lessen the business’s impact on climate change, as well as explore ways to save money on energy bills - “we want to do our bit in the climate emergency by reducing our carbon footprint.”

Terry Barnaby, Technical Director also said that being able to achieve a comfortable office temperature throughout the year was a big motivation. They had previously relied on old, poorly controlled night storage heaters and electric oil-filled radiators in colder months, and experienced frequent overheating in the summer.

Taking action

Beam were awarded a £6,100 Green Business Grant to make several energy saving improvements to their building and business operations.

The installation of false ceiling insulation has significantly improved the building’s ability to retain heat, reducing the demand for energy intensive heating appliances. The air-to-air heat pumps have also provided an efficient alternative to the storage heaters, keeping staff warm in the winter while using less electricity.

By replacing their old fluorescent lights with longer-lasting LED lighting, Beam are also likely see a reduction in maintenance and replacement costs. This is on top of them being more efficient and using far less energy.

Solar panels were also installed to generate free electricity on site, likely to pay itself back in two to three years, reducing carbon emissions of electricity consumption. “It’s a no brainer to install solar PV panels on business units. Businesses have large roof spaces and use the electricity during the day when the solar PV is generating.”

Together, these projects are estimated to have resulted in:

Additional benefits

Having had heat pumps and ceiling insulation installed for over a year, staff have noticed a more stable working temperature. The ceiling insulation has minimised heat loss, retaining heat when it is cold outside, whilst also keeping heat out during the summer. When heat is needed, the heat pumps have been much easier to control than the storage heaters. Once turned on, they can warm the entire office space in just an hour or two, but only using a quarter of the energy previously used.

Aside from the temperature, the installation of LED lighting has also contributed to more pleasant working conditions, making the office much brighter.

Another change to Beam’s business operations, recommended in their Carbon Survey, has been the measuring and monitoring of energy use. By using a monitoring program, they can track their energy usage closely, helping them identify carbon hotspots and control their heating distribution. They can inform and educate staff on the things that are using the most electricity, whilst becoming a good talking point with clients.