Green Guardians 2022: Sunbelt, Tait, Power Logistics
The Green Guardians is spearheaded by IQ and an expert panel of sustainability experts to recognise suppliers who are improving the live music business when it comes to being more environmentally friendly.
Our international panel of judges this year includes representatives from A Greener Festival, Green Events & Innovations Conference, Greener Events, Green Operations Europe (Go-Group), Julie’s Bicycle, Le Réseau des Femmes en Environnement, Sustainable Event Alliance, Sustainable Event Solutions, Tour Production Group, and Vision:2025.
The 2022 list of Green Guardians includes 20 entries across a wide range of event suppliers and solutions providers, all of whom are working tirelessly to reduce the carbon footprint of the live entertainment business.
IQ will publish entries across all categories over the coming weeks. Catch up on the previous instalment profiling My Cause, Reverb and Smart Power here.
Sunbelt Rentals
Sunbelt – one of the UK’s largest rental equipment providers are big on all things that matter, from equipment and service to sustainability and trust.
Whatever the sector, project, or challenge, Sunbelt Rentals have the solution, offering the expertise, the equipment, and
the team to make it happen.
The company boasts a nationwide portfolio of plant products, specialising in site storage and welfare facilities, plus a comprehensive range of tools available for buy or hire.
Alongside day-to-day equipment supplies, they can also provide a full range of market-leading, environmentally friendly temporary infrastructure solutions to help bring events to life.
Whether clients need complete event management or have a very specific requirement, Sunbelt can help. From planning, plant, and power, to access, safety, and welfare.
As existing energy contracts expire, TAIT intends to replace them with new green contracts
Tait
At TAIT, staff are committed to championing a sustainable future for the entertainment industry.
In 2022, the company rolled out a global training programme for all TAIT employees in Europe and North America. The initiative includes seminars and practical workshops introducing the concepts of working toward the linear economy; waste and energy hierarchies; embedded carbon; lifecycle analysis; material choices; and whole systems thinking.
From 1 January 2022, all travel for employees based in North America and the UK was booked and managed through one travel company. This initiative gives TAIT clear visibility of its travel emissions from a project and internal perspective. It says that it is continuing to collate emissions data on Scope 1 & 2 and will include travel in its Scope 3 data collection in 2022. This data will be used to create the company’s carbon reduction policy.
TAIT’s new UK premises at Haverhill, due to open later this year, will incorporate solar panels above the office space and a rainwater harvesting system for the building. EV charging points have been installed with the infrastructure to increase capacity as more people make the switch to using electric cars.
As existing energy contracts expire, TAIT intends to replace them with new green contracts, switching its gas and electricity suppliers to those who specialise in renewable sources. By 2025, all of the company’s UK locations will run on green energy.
The Power Logistics team has been involved with Radio 1’s Big Weekend, BST Hyde Park, Extreme E and Boomtown
Power Logistics
Continually investigating new and alternative methods to make the events it supports and the day-to-day activities of the company as carbon efficient as possible, Power Logistics offers sustainable power and lighting solutions.
The team has been involved with numerous high-profile events in 2022, such as Radio 1’s Big Weekend, BST Hyde Park, Extreme E, Boomtown, and the Platinum Jubilee celebratory events in London. Delivering green-power solutions was paramount at all of them.
Power Logistics’ award-winning green credentials include the use of Green D+ HVO, utilising the smallest generators possible on a load-demand system, power monitoring, LED tower lights, and site lighting as standard practice at the events it serves.
Whilst implementing battery energy storage systems is commonplace at projects that benefit from the technology. The team is currently exploring innovative solutions, including hydrogen power, solar, and the incorporation of second-life batteries to optimise energy usage for event utilities reducing fuel and carbon emissions.
Devising and implementing an advanced energy management strategy, Power Logistics reduced fuel consumption at this year’s Radio 1 Big Weekend by 34% from 2019, even though its overall capacity was 25% bigger. It also reduced the number of generators onsite from 30 to 17 compared to 2019, contributing not only to fuel savings but also to a huge reduction in transport.
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Green Guardians: Power
The Green Guardians Guide, spearheaded by the Green Events and Innovations Conference and IQ Magazine, is a new yearly iniative highlighting some of the work being done around the world to reduce the carbon footprint of the live entertainment business.
The inaugural list features 60 entries across ten categories, selected by the Green Guardians committes, which includes representatives from some of the sector’s most respected bodies, such as A Greener Festival, Go Group, Green Music Initiative, Julie’s Bicycle and Vision:2025.
Following on from last week’s feature on those providing environmentally friendly food and beverage options at events, this edition of Green Guardians looks at those ensuring events are powered in a sustainable way.
Power
Midas
Midas recognised during the early stages of its development, that in order to respond to client demands and requirements, it should own the machinery itself.
Investment in plant is one of the company’s main annual expenditures, and to complement its fleet, Midas stocks large quantities of mains cable and distribution products, and can cater to both the UK’s smallest events and to its most prestigious festivals.
As part of its services, Midas offers full site design, often working to very tight timescales and budgetary demands, sometimes in the most challenging and sensitive locations around the UK.
Midas sees all contracts as bespoke by nature and therefore treats them accordingly in order to deliver efficient, reliable and, above all, safe electrical systems.
Operations range from optimised generator sizing, to avoid plant running inefficiently, to road haulage and logistics. The Midas aim is to deliver cost-effective solutions to festival power hire clients, whilst at all times minimising the impact on the environment.
Midas sees all contracts as bespoke by nature and therefore treats them accordingly in order to deliver efficient, reliable and safe electrical systems
MHM
MHM was incorporated in early 2010 as a supplier of power generation, solar-hybrid generators, fluid storage, lighting towers, engine drive welders and product-related accessories to the UK and Irish rental markets for both purchase and rehire. The company has been awarded the prestigious SafeHire certification quality mark, which is governed by Hire Association Europe.
All MHM products are manufactured in a purpose-built facility based near Milan, Italy, that has individually designed production lines that produce the MHM range of equipment swiftly and efficiently, without compromising on quality or safety.
In keeping with modern-day requirements, MHM places particular emphasis on environmental considerations as it develops its product range. Examples for this progression include the increasing use of hybrid technology, LED lighting, solar power, clean fluid storage and emission-efficient diesel engines.
MHM undertakes to pursue the use of renewables to power their equipment wherever and whenever possible.
MHM undertakes to pursue the use of renewables to power their equipment wherever and whenever possible
Immersa Off Grid
Immersa Off Grid is a sister company to Immersa Ltd, which provides energy consumers, large and small, with bespoke energy solutions, utilising renewable energy generation and storage.
Immersa Off Grid focuses on the deployment of renewable energy and storage to festivals and events, principally on a rental/leasing basis, with the goal of replacing existing dirty/expensive equipment and infrastructure, such as diesel generators with clean alternatives, including temporary solar arrays with battery storage.
The use of solar and battery storage in concession-stand vehicles has a direct positive impact, as there is no diesel generator running to power the vehicle, meaning no noise and no exhaust fumes. This has an easily definable impact on people working in the vehicle, and everybody who visits it.
If all such concession stands at an event were powered in the same way this would have a huge effect on the localised environment and would be of great benefit to all those attending.
The use of solar and battery storage in concession-stand vehicles has a direct positive impact
Greener
Greener was founded in January 2018, in order to make an impact on the carbon dioxide footprint of on- and off-grid energy markets, using mobile batteries and smart energy planning.
The idea emerged in 2014, after a backstage visit to one of the biggest festivals in The Netherlands. Greener’s founders were shocked to discover how little thought had gone into accurately and efficiently planning the power supply of equipment such as lights, audio and food trucks.
As they investigated further, they saw the same lack of planning for energy efficiency in other areas, like construction sites and grid maintenance. Instead, all they could see was unnecessarily massive equipment running on very low efficiency rates – a situation they felt compelled to change.
The people behind Greener are convinced that there are many opportunities to make practices in the energy sector less of a burden on the environment. The company sees solutions in technological innovation and it is bringing these to the market to make our world greener.
The people behind Greener are convinced that there are many opportunities to make practices in the energy sector less of a burden on the environment
Wattsun
In the event, construction and film sector, more than 100 million litres of fuel are burned per year. This is associated with pollution, noise, odour and high costs. With the threat of climate change that we, as individuals, can no longer close our eyes to, organisations are being held increasingly responsible for pollution. Wattsun pop-up Power was established to help address this.
In 2015, Wattsun began the development of its portable battery systems and several prototypes were built that ultimately led to the current Wattsun products for which it has obtained a worldwide patent.
The Wattsun is extremely user-friendly. Thanks to the intuitive design and simplicity of operation, anyone, even without technical knowledge, can operate the system. The design immediately gives the user the idea that the modules are stackable and no matter how the module is stacked, clockwise or counter-clockwise, it always works, while the loading and unloading programme is automated in such a way that the user does not have to think about charging and discharging.
In the event, construction and film sector, more than 100 million litres of fuel are burned per year
We Love Green Festival
Having decided to create a music festival with a prominent focus on environmental issues, We Love Green organisers really had to start from scratch.
The festival site, located in Bois de Vincennes forest in Paris, is not supplied with electricity, so organisers had to find innovative energy solutions. Solar panels were installed onsite and despite the technology only being available in the UK at the time, they have since managed to source French, local providers willing to bring solar energy to temporary events.
We Love Green now uses 100% renewable energy powered by biofuel generators that use 100% French-produced rapeseed biofuel; and green hydrogen, which is produced in Paris with electricity from a wind farm.
“Rethinking” is We Love Green’s key strategy, according to co-founder Marie Sabot. “You have to rethink your way of doing things: you have to rethink design, rethink organisation, rethink implementation. We have to readjust ourselves to prioritise the health of our planet and its ecosystems.”
“We have to readjust ourselves to prioritise the health of our planet and its ecosystems”
Power Logistics
Power Logistics is a global leader in the provision of temporary events power, with a customer-focused service and respected track record that spans two decades.
The company’s logistical and electrical safety records are exemplary, and they also provide services within permanent venues as well as temporary, green-field events. It maintains a whole host of equipment and services in-house, from a fleet of dedicated event generators suitable for use with biodiesel, to an extensive stock of mains cabling, distribution and lighting equipment. In addition, it also has the facilities and expertise to fabricate new products, as well as adapting existing equipment to meet a client’s specific requirements.
Being energy efficient is at the forefront of everything the company does. It continually investigates new and alternative methods to make events as carbon efficient as possible. Sustainable solutions and reducing impact on the environment are key to ensuring Power Logistics’ business is both efficient and cost effective for its clients.
Power Logistics is a global leader in the provision of temporary events power
ZAP Concepts
ZAP Concepts offer consultancy in energy and sustainability; specialising in energy assessment, measurement and logging, together with the design of optimal power supplies for live events, through the use of its unique and internationally awarded Smart Power Plan.
The company not only accurately manages power at festivals and events, it is also active in the field of energy consultancy for both indoor and outdoor venues and public and private land-owners. The organisation designs and specifies permanent grid power connections for sites, based on the power needs of the different events that take place there, reducing or removing the need for temporary generators.
ZAP also works with developers of innovative energy systems by offering coaching and executive support. In addition to providing practical advice, it can also form the bridge between the technical developers of these systems and producers of festivals and events to achieve successful pilot schemes.
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