Active win sustainability award
Active Sustainable Energy Systems has been awarded a commendation in the Scottish heats of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) awards 2010, in the Sustainability category. Active won the award for its headquarters, the Active Renewable Energy Centre (AREC), which is one of the most energy efficient buildings in the UK and the only A-rated building in Aberdeen.
Speaking about the award Mr. Ian Nicol, managing director of Active, said that: "We were delighted to receive this commendation and it is a great boost for everyone involved. We learnt a lot from the AREC project and I hope that by collecting and sharing the data on the energy consumed and generated by the building the project will benefit the wider commercial property industry also."
The AREC was designed from the ground up to be self-sufficient in terms of energy use, making the most of natural light and ventilation wherever possible. The small amount of energy which the building needs to operate as a comfortable working environment is generated on-site from a combination of micro-renewable technologies including air and ground source heat pumps, thermal and PV solar panels, a road energy system and rainwater harvesting.
The typical energy consumption for a commercial building of this style is approximately 190,000kWs/hr with an estimated fuel cost of £28,500 per annum. The AREC is expected to significantly reduce these figures, consuming an estimated 37,410kWs/hr of energy per annum. A conservative estimate would give an anticipated fuel cost of just £5,611.50 per annum, based on the current tariff of 15p/kWhr.
This is the 20th year of the annual RICS series of awards which were created to celebrate outstanding built and natural environment projects. RICS is an independent professional body which is committed to setting and upholding the highest standards of excellence and integrity - providing impartial, authoritative advice on key issues affecting businesses and society.
Active is a leading provider of sustainable energy systems, specialising in micro-renewables and efficient air-conditioning and ventilation solutions. The company is one of the only dedicated heat pump installers in Scotland able to design, install and maintain every element of the heating system including the heat pump, solar panels and under-floor heating.
The company has offices in Aberdeen and Inverness. For more information visit http://www.active24-7.com/
