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Green Stance Continues To Receive Recognition
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Mitsubishi Electric’s bold and ambitious programme to help the country reduce carbon emissions has been recognised again with nationwide acclaim at the prestigious Regenerate Awards 2007, held on 3 December 2007.
Jointly organised by leading magazines Building, Building Design and Property Week, the Awards celebrate schemes, organisations and individuals that have delivered successful projects to help regenerate society.
In their summing up the judges explained that: “Mitsubishi pipped the other innovations to the post here for its clever carbon reduction system. At a time when sustainability is paramount its heat pump boilers cut CO2 emissions by up to half. In addition the company’s radical 10 point sustainability plan sets out a framework to reduce CO2 by more than 3 million tonnes a year – the equivalent of removing 830,000 cars from the UK’s roads.”
The company secured the ‘Innovation of the Year’ Award with its Green Gateway Initiative™ which Mitsubishi Electric is using to call for a fundamental rethink in the way people heat and cool both residential and commercial properties.
The plan includes technological developments and new thinking combined with simple behavioural changes such as better maintenance regimes or not using the thermostat as an on/off button. All of the initiatives are focused on creating a significant impact on CO2 reduction in the UK’s buildings by reducing energy consumption and the energy bills of both consumers and businesses.
The gala evening at London’s Grovesnor House Hotel was attended by around 1,200 people from the industry including developers, funders, public sector development agencies, contractors, house builders, housing associations, local authorities, politicians, architects and planners.
The Green Gateway Initiative, which was launched by the company at the House of Commons in June, has already secured the RAC Cooling Industry ‘Environmental Pioneer’ Award 2007, the EDIE ‘Carbon Reduction’ Award and been short listed in the Defra and Independent sponsored CEED Awards in the Education category.
The programme highlights the significant savings can be made in both commercial properties and our homes if advanced heat pump technology is used to provide space heating and hot water instead of traditional gas-fired boilers. The latest heat pump boilers harvest free energy from the surrounding air and are three times more efficient than gas boilers at heating buildings whilst emitting up to 40% less CO2.
“We have to control and minimise the energy that we all use in our buildings if we are to combate CO2 emissions,” explained Donald Daw, Divisional Commercial Director for Mitsubishi Electric, who collected the Award on the night. “We undertook this initiative because we felt that we could use our position in the market to influence the way we heat and cool our buildings in the UK and we are delighted that the judges have recognised this with this award,” he added.
Further details on the 10-point initiative can be found on the dedicated website www.greengatewayinitiative.co.uk.
