We’re delighted to give you an update and more Good Growth news regarding our net zero development project. Secure Innovation was awarded a £600,000 investment from the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Good Growth programme to improve facilities and be part of the drive towards making Cornwal carbon neutral by 2030.
We were honoured to have been selected for this investment and are pleased to see this green power project take shape. This investment has provided us with a golden opportunity to improve our workspace, and we’re already seeing our ambitious plans take shape from above.
Phase One – Solar Panel Installation
The first phase has begun and we are upgrading our factory with solar panels. CleanEarth, a Cornwall-based company specialising in wind and solar panel installation, was ready to realise our plan and it was hard to miss the flurry of activity that followed. The tell-tale signs of work above our heads was part of life in the Saltash office for a while, but our new panels are almost complete. Including the installation of a gantry-type Man Safe System to access the roof safely at any time.
Comprised of 374 individual panels, this renewable energy addition to our factory will provide us with around 160,000 kWh annually. This electricity will provide an impressive 43% of our approximate annual demand. Alternatively, for the world’s tea enthusiasts, that’s enough power to boil the kettle 960,000 times.
These solar panels will help us to reduce our own consumption and offset some of our energy costs. With the installation continuing smoothly, we can look forward to completion soon and tangible benefits in the years and decades to come. This ongoing development project still has many more milestones and we will see the factory transformed both inside and out.
Phase Two – Towards Net Zero
The next stage of our development will be a set of electric vehicle (or ‘EV’) chargers for the car park, with the inverters and cables being laid later in January to be connected to our new solar panels. There are more improvements to the factory’s interior ahead, such as upgrades to the manufacturing department’s ceilings to improve airflow, installing AC units, and refits of the canteen and toilets. We will keep you updated with these as the project progresses. As our part in Cornwall’s carbon-neutral journey continues, we look forward to sharing more news on this wide-ranging project, as well as seeing and feeling the benefits day-to-day.
UK Shared Prosperity Fund
The UK Shared Prosperity Fund is a central pillar of the UK Government’s Levelling Up agenda and provides £2.6 billion of funding for local investment by March 2025. The Fund aims to improve pride in place and increase life chances across the UK by investing in communities and place, supporting local business, and people and skills. For more information, visit UK Shared Prosperity Fund: prospectus – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Good Growth programme
Cornwall and Isles of Scilly have been allocated £132million for local investment through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. With a focus on green and inclusive growth, we’ll use our portion to achieve Good Growth for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, providing opportunities for communities and businesses and giving residents access to new jobs and training. For more information, visit https://ciosgoodgrowth.com
This project is part-funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. Cornwall Council has been chosen by Government as a Lead Authority for the fund and is responsible for monitoring the progress of projects funded through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.
The UK Shared Prosperity Fund is a central pillar of the UK Government’s Levelling Up agenda and provides £2.6 billion of funding for local investment by March 2025. The Fund aims to improve pride in place and increase life chances across the UK by investing in communities and place, supporting local business, and people and skills. For more information, visit https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-shared-prosperity-fund-prospectus
