Qualiturn Products Ltd can now offer customers green turned parts produced using sustainable energy thanks to the installation of solar photovoltaic panels at its new factory in Hertford.
The company has installed 381 panels on its roof with the capacity to produce max 135kW.
Managing Director Nick Groom says that typical demand in the factory is around 120 to 140kW, so in ideal conditions, with the sun in the right position and no cloud cover, it could meet all the factory’s power needs in peak sun hours.
Nick says he was looking for green initiatives for his customers, and identified electricity consumption as being his major source of CO2 emissions and expenditure.
“Every kilowatt I generate is a saving and it is also good for the environment. If I am producing my own energy it means there is less need to burn fuel in power stations. That means greener turned parts with a lower carbon footprint and a greener supplier for customers to buy from.”
He says that in the first two weeks of installation the panels saved the 1,221kg of CO2, the equivalent of planting 56 trees.
The money savings also allow Qualiturn to be a more efficient and cost effective supplier.
“We are obviously approaching winter now and on a cloudy day I may only be producing 23 kW, but that is enough to keep one machine going. And if you consume the electricity you produce yourself it is far more viable than selling it back to the grid. I have saved £860 in the two weeks that the system was installed.
“Qualiturn Customers can now purchase greener, low carbon subcontract turned and milled components. Helping them to purchase responsibly and helping towards their own company environmental goals.