Shadow minister hails school’s iVolt project “inspirational”

Students from a Kent school welcomed the new Shadow Minister for Energy and Climate Change as they revealed the results of an eco project set to save £1.5 million over the next 20 years.

Baroness Worthington of Cambridge visited Chaucer Technology School with experts from voltage optimisation manufacturer iVolt, whose technology is working alongside biomass boilers to save the school thousands of pounds in unused electricity and helping cut its carbon footprint by nearly 70 per cent.

A leading climate change campaigner and Labour life peer, Lady Worthington marked her first day in office by visiting the Canterbury school. She was shown the sophisticated energy saving equipment in situ and heard from students Chris Murton and Dan Keen, 18, how the iVolt and boilers have helped create a potential finance stream of around £80,000 a year for Chaucer.

As a result of the students’ work – part of the Engineering Education Scheme – the installation and success of the iVolt has led to the 1,200 pupil college rolling out a programme of initiatives to cut its impact on the environment even further. As well as biomass boilers being installed, students are looking at working with a zoo on a possible poo recycling scheme that would generate energy.

After seeing the equipment and meeting students, Lady Worthington said: “Chaucer has slashed its emissions and energy bills thanks to the iVolt and the biomass boilers and everyone is quite rightly delighted with the results. I found what the students have done fascinating and inspiring and Kent County Council has gone from not believing that it was possible to now seeing the project as an exemplar that they would like to follow in 21 other sites.”

Explaining how the project had come about Chaucer’s Director of Technology, Ges Cocker, said: “The students were originally tasked with cutting the school’s emissions by 10% but when they looked into it they saw that they could go much further – and make money whilst doing so. They’ve worked incredibly hard, often in their free time, and I think everyone has been surprised – and certainly impressed – by how far the project has gone.”

Installed a year ago, after students successfully applied for funding, the iVolt voltage optimisation system reduces Chaucer’s incoming power supply from around 242V to a steady 220V – the level at which electrical equipment works best – in order to save money, cut carbon emissions and prolong the life of equipment such as lighting and computer systems. Students opted for the iVolt system as it enables them to monitor how much they are saving at any given time while its higher than average savings meant a short payback period.

iVolt’s founder, Manhal Allos, said: “The impact of these students’ work will not only be a financial one, but we hope it will create an educational legacy as well as helping the wider community and environment.”

Baroness Worthington added: “My day at Chaucer was also my first day as Shadow DECC Minister in the Lords and it was a refreshing and inspiring experience. Whilst I look forward to helping shape Labour policies, I want also to influence the all important Energy Bill – legislation that will have failed if it does not secure more investment in a whole host of projects like the one at Chaucer. This school should and must be used as an example to others.”

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