Tuesday 13 February 2007

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Energy saving ace in the hole unveiled

The business manager of Hazel Grove High in Stockport, England has shaved £16,000 off his schools' £100,000 per year energy and water bill and slashed its 530 tonne carbon payload in the process.

How was this possible? You'd expect some fairly imaginative and dramatic compromises to be implicated wouldn't you. If you guessed that they've revised the dinnertime menu so as to feature nothing but salad and sandwiches, or ditched the traditional boiler-powered heating system in favour of an exercise-while-you-learn personal heat-generating programme you'd be way off the mark.

The solution - as proposed by an eco-friendly 'hit squad' - was to switch off their 500 computers when they weren't in use i.e. after the kids' home time, at the weekends and during school holidays when not a soul would be on the premises to even consider making a single key press.

Pure genius! If you're in the market for a cushy career change you could do much worse than becoming an energy consultant.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Imgenious.

I would love to be a simian consultant too.

dreamkatcha said...

Aren't they known as zoo keepers? You have to, you know, learn about animals and stuff to make it as one of those, and that seems like a lot of hard work to me.

Anonymous said...

I wonder what kind of ed. you would need to pursue a career like that? I am currently contemplating a move-I am a greeny and would love to do something that I am passionate about. It's also an interesting post because I work in a school district building that is about to be closed due to costs. I frequently think of the waste that accrues around me.

dreamkatcha said...

An example job specifications snippet I found after Googling "energy efficiency consultant" careers...

Description: Our client is looking for consultants to support their energy efficiency technical teams.

Key Skills: The successful candidates would hold a degree in Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Process Engineering or a similar discipline.

Ideally you will have energy efficiency and / or energy management experience gained in a process industry environment. You will require self-starter capabilities, be able to work under your own initiative and have strong client interfacing skills. Good communication skills, a team player and the ability to work to deadlines are all important aspects of the role. Overseas travel is possible but initially most of the work will be UK based.

This is an excellent opportunity to join a growth market sector and help towards delivery of climate change issues and actions.

.......

Strangely enough they don't specify an aptitude for pointing out the blindingly obvious.