Npower contracted to work on new Oxford Brookes student accommodation

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 12:28:17 GMT

Leading energy supplier, npower, has been appointed to complete the mechanical and electrical installations for two new accommodation blocks at Oxford Brookes University.

Consisting of 318 bedrooms, the new residences will be home to some of the 18,000 students currently enrolled at Oxford Brookes, which is one of the highest-rated modern universities in the UK. The new accommodation is part of wider redevelopment project to provide high-quality living and learning facilities to students.

The new residences will contain modern building systems for safety and security, as well as technology to aid energy efficiency and maintain optimum living conditions. Using specifications from Oxford Brookes’ M&E consultants, Couch Perry & Wilkes, npower has been tasked with designing, building and installing all the mechanical and electrical systems, including heating, lighting, power, water, data, plumbing, sanitary, fire and security systems and access control.

Work began on site in August, with 18 members of the npower team delivering the work. The project is scheduled for completion in March 2012.

As a new building, maximising energy efficiency and keeping energy costs down will be key to the project and so npower will begin by installing a CHP plant within the Energy Centre in the building. This on-site self generation technology will help to meet industry-wide green credentials while also reducing energy usage by providing usable heat as a by-product of electricity generation.

Other innovative energy-saving technology to be implemented includes passive infrared (PIR) radiators, which are motion-activated and so can be automatically switched on and off when a room is occupied or vacated. The accommodation blocks will also be home to a 'green roof' made of grass and small plants. These roofs can provide both thermal and sound insulation, and also have an extended lifespan compared to traditional roofs due to the vegetation absorbing water and protecting the waterproofing membranes below.

David Molde, senior contracts manager at npower, commented: "After completing a successful refurbishment project at Aston University in 2010, npower has the necessary expertise and experience to deliver the mechanical and electrical installations for the project here at Oxford Brookes. Fundamental to the development is improved access, security, safety, and facilities for the students so working with the University and its consultants allows us to work with the end users' needs front of mind."

The 318 bedrooms across the two accommodation blocks are en-suite, with students able to choose between studio apartments or cluster flats with communal kitchens. The new accommodation blocks will be home to students from July 2012.

For more information, please visit www.npower.com/corporate.

About npower:
npower is one of Britain's largest energy suppliers; a gas and electricity supplier to 6.6 million customers across the UK.

npower has been awarded platinum status in Business in the Community's CR Index and is one of twenty-nine companies to have achieved the CommunityMark since its launch. All CommunityMark achievers have been recognised for demonstrating excellence in their holistic and strategic approach to community investment.

npower survey indicates World Cup in 2018 would boost UK businesses

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 14:52:41 GMT

Businesses would benefit from a £3.2 billion cash bonanza and morale would be boosted with a World Cup in England in 2018, according to a major survey of bosses.

The findings were revealed in new research undertaken by energy firm npower, which the England 2018 Bid team announced today as an Official Sponsor of England's World Cup Bid.

More than 82% of bosses polled believe a World Cup would be great for business, with 55% saying it will deliver major financial benefit, while 63% say it would boost morale.

England 2018 states that the tournament could bring a £3.2 billion cash injection to England, with much of this likely to benefit small businesses such as pubs, hotels, restaurants and retailers. FIFA will make the decision on which county hosts the 2018 World Cup in December 2010.

npower is now calling on its customers to get behind the bid and pledge their support for a World Cup in England in 2018. It also plans to combine football with footprint by helping businesses in the bid's 12 host cities cut their energy use and carbon footprint..

Giuseppe Di Vita, managing director of npower retail markets, said: "We're absolutely delighted to be supporting the bid to stage the World Cup in England and excited by what a successful bid would mean for the country. We work with all of our customers to help them improve energy efficiency and many of our business customers have realised savings of thousands of pounds off their bills. Bringing the 2018 World Cup to England is another way of boosting businesses' bottom lines.

"There's sure to be huge excitement around England's chances in South Africa this year, but even that would be eclipsed by the excitement of supporting the team on home soil. As official 2018 bid sponsors, we’ll be doing everything we can to help this happen and make sure businesses get the most out of a successful bid."

The npower survey also showed that Wayne Rooney is the favourite of England's young players to captain the 2018 squad - 67% believe he will be captain, with Theo Walcott backed by 17%, James Milner 10% and Aaron Lennon 6%.

England 2018 Chief Executive Andy Anson said: "The support of npower is extremely important in our bid to host the 2018 World Cup and we're delighted that they've joined the team. With hundreds of thousands of business customers across the country npower is sure to play a vital role in marketing the bid and building home support. Businesses small and large are essential in staging a successful event and we hope the business community will get behind us and back the bid to host the FIFA World Cup in 2018."

ENDS

About npower:
-npower is one of the top energy suppliers to the UK business market, serving over 238,000 small to medium sized enterprise sites and around 17,000 industrial and commercial customers, with over 100,000 sites
-npower is dedicated to helping UK businesses use energy more efficiently and therefore spend less money on their bills. We aim to have a positive impact on the communities we serve and reduce our customers’ carbon footprint whilst always improving our service to our customers.
-npower supplies green energy to Wembley Stadium and the Liberty Stadium in Swansea.
-npower specialises in risk management solutions, including market-leading flexible energy purchasing, energy efficiency, and broader energy management functions, tailored to every size of business.
-For major energy users, npower offers multi-utility management consultancy to enable organisations to improve efficiencies right across the procurement/consumption chain.
-npower customers include BT, Wembley Stadium plc, AstraZe

npower helps provide solar panels for two Stockton-on-Tees schools

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 10:45:07 GMT

npower has helped Bader Primary School and Ingleby Mill Primary School in Stockton-on-Tees to feel the warmth of the sun and lower energy bills this year thanks to its grant of £46,500 and the support of the Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council.

Bader Primary School, is home to 267 children aged between 4-11 years old and since being built in 1971 has not seen many modifications. npower has provided £10,000 of funding for a Photovoltaic (PV) system and display panel, heating control upgrade and pipe work insulation.

Ingleby Mill Primary School is a modern school with 658 pupils, npower has pledged £7,000 to the school to implement a photovoltaic (PV) system with display unit. The remaining £25,000 will fund other PV systems in local primary schools next year.

Stuart Marrow from Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council, "We have been working with npower for over a year and are seeing some really exciting projects taking off. The Solar panels at Bader and Ingleby Mill Primary Schools will go a long way to reducing Carbon Dioxide production and cutting energy costs as well as raising pupil awareness of the potential of renewable energy."

npowers Climate Cops programme runs green-themed activities for schools right across the UK - and pupils from both Bader Primary School and Ingleby Mill Primary School have already taken part in a 'Climate Cops Academy' - a highly interactive day about saving energy and the planet. npower undertook an energy audit in 2008, which showed that both schools were energy efficient and would benefit from alternative methods of energy production. Both schools were prime candidates to benefit from one of npower's Climate Cops grants.

Clare McDougall, head of the Climate Cops programme, commented, "Both schools in Stockton-on-Tees enjoyed the Climate Cops Academy day and were already very good on energy efficiency. We have worked with Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council to look at other green energy measures, the PV systems will generate a substantial amount of hot water and electricity, making both schools amongst the greenest in the area."

npower's Climate Cops programme has committed £500,000 in energy efficiency measures for schools, 15 projects have been completed so far and - if all the measures are implemented - the participating schools would annually save a total of around £100,000 and 650 tonnes of CO2.

About npower
npower has 6.6 million residential gas and electricity accounts throughout the UK. npower is a market leader in renewable energy. npower juice matches green energy primarily from off-shore wind farms for juice customers at no extra cost. Consumers can join the energy industry discussion on npower's interactive debating website - the brighter energy debate, where they can post their questions, views and comments

Top Articles Tagged with energy-efficiency

Npower contracted to work on new Oxford Brookes student accommodation

npower survey indicates World Cup in 2018 would boost UK businesses

npower helps provide solar panels for two Stockton-on-Tees schools