Exploring low carbon heating in Henley-on-Thames

By danfernbankSep 26, 20190 Comments
Using the River Thames for heat Since 2017, the University has been investigating the potential to provide low carbon heating to its Henley Business School, Greenlands campus. The site has a prime location on the banks of the River Thames on the outskirts of Henley-on-Thames. Heating at the site is currently from oil-fired boilers in each building and investigations have identify a water source heat pump to be a viable low carbon alternative. The large heat body of the River Thames nearby makes this a potentially ideal resource for low-grade heat to be extracted from. In simple terms, a heat…
Awards and Achievements, Energy and Water, , , , ,
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Sustainable university living

By danfernbankSep 19, 20190 Comments
I’ve escaped from my desk to come and sit in Park Eat café/bar to write this article. Immediately I arrive, I’m confronted with an environmental dilemma. I’ve brought my Sustain It mug (of course!) for a cup of tea, but realise I can’t get any milk out of the machine because my cup isn’t chipped. The catering staff offer to put some milk in a paper cup. I insist I don’t want a paper cup and they insist it’s no bother. How should I respond? Back down politely and take the cup, or stick to my green guns and insist…
Behaviour Change, Energy and Water, Travel and Transport, Waste and Recycling, , ,
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Tennis Dome

Use the dashboards below to explore this building's electricity and gas consumption. Any questions? Email us.
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Going green in 2019

By danfernbankJan 02, 20190 Comments
As 2019 begins, we take a look at our plans for delivering environmental sustainability at the University this coming year. Where we are 2018 was our most successful year yet sustainability-wise, with major reductions in waste production and water consumption and increases in sustainable travel levels. For an interactive look back, view our Annual Sustainability Report. Where we’re going Continuous improvement is a key part of strong environmental management, and 2019 promises to be no exception. Energy hack We are developing plans for our first ever ‘Energy Hack’, building on the success of previous Blackout events to reduce energy consumption in…
Energy and Water, Policy, Travel and Transport, Waste and Recycling
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Winter is coming…

The Sustainability Team and University would like you to grant us a small Christmas wish, before leaving your offices - please can you switch off your equipment, lights, and anything consuming power? Help save energy when it is most important During the long, dark, cold afternoons of the winter months, national electricity consumption can be exceptionally high. In order to meet this high demand across the UK it is necessary to use less efficient, dirtier, and more expensive power generation such as coal - sounds unpleasant, but nobody wants a blackout! In the highest half-hourly periods through the winter, electricity…
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Setting up a telephone conference using Skype for Business

By danfernbankJun 25, 20180 Comments
All staff can download and install Skype for Business, but did you know, you can also use Skype to set up a telephone conference, even if your contacts aren't on Skype? Here's how: In your Outlook Calendar, select "New Skype Meeting" from the Home tab (if you can't see this button, this article may help, or contact the IT Helpdesk).   This automatically creates a Conference ID that is unique to your conference call, detailed in the meeting invite:                 It's as simple as that! For more tips on how to use Skype…
Energy and Water
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Philip Lyle

This building is currently rated as highly inefficient - partly because its rating includes the energy used in the large server room. We are looking into installing further sub-metering to better understand how the main building and the server room operate.Use the dashboard below to explore this building's electricity consumption - click on different days on the top chart to show the energy profile for that day.Any questions? Email us.
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Overnight consumption

On average academic buildings on campus use half as much energy in the middle of the night as they do during the day.Help us reduce wasted energy by turning off lights, water boilers and other equipment when you leave for the day. Check your local toilets and cupboard lights are off too.The buildings with savings highlighted in green on this page have beaten their targets for electricity use between midnight and 4am. Congratulations to everyone in these buildings for helping to make our university more sustainable!Those in amber are very close - think about what else could be switched off…
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Renewables come of age at University

By danfernbankApr 17, 20180 Comments
We’re proud to consider ourselves a leader in cutting our carbon footprint, and have always taken an ‘efficiency first’ approach to reducing energy wastage in priority to investing in renewable energy, ensuring that we achieve maximum carbon reductions with the funds available.  Renewable energy technologies have never been far from our minds, but with a few exceptions, have seen a series of setbacks and disappointments.  That situation is now changing and by this summer, we expect to have installed over 300 kW of renewables in just 12 months. Early success Back in 2007, we installed one of the first commercial-scale…
Energy and Water
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Green Gown shortlisting for smashing our 35% carbon target!

By danfernbankOct 04, 20170 Comments
Our achievements in meeting our 35% carbon reduction target have been recognised with a shortlisting in the Carbon Reduction category of the EAUC's Green Gown Awards, which recognise the exceptional sustainability initiatives being undertaken by universities and colleges across the UK. Since 2011, we have reduced our annual carbon emissions from 44,000 tCO2 to just over 28,500 tCO2, making us the leader amongst research-intensive universities for delivering sustained reductions in our emissions.*  Our wide-ranging programme has delivered over £17 million of financial savings for the University, whilst delivering more efficiency buildings, improving building comfort and upgrading science laboratory facilities. Sir…
Awards and Achievements, Energy and Water
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