UK Grid is moving from turbo-charged to re-charged as its directors swap Porsches for electric cars.
The Carbon Neutral colocation provider, run from headquarters based at Synergy House on Manchester Science Park, is using energy-reducing technology to cut its carbon footprint.
Directors Rob Garbutt, Patrick Doyle and John Sweeney have handed in the keys to their existing company vehicles – two Porsches and a Mercedes – and have switched to three state-of-the-art Peugeot iOn electric cars.
The four-door, battery powered iOn has a range of 93 miles and a top speed of 80mph. It costs just £1 to charge, working out at almost 1p per mile to run.
UK Grid will install three charging points at Manchester Science Parks which will allow any users of electric cars to roll up, charge their vehicles and get back on the road.
The technology remains in the early stages, but with more major car companies committing greater resources to the research and development of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, there is expected to be a greater roll-out of charging points over the coming years.
Mr Garbutt, chief executive at UK Grid, said: "We will not only be the first business in Manchester, but one of the first in the UK to switch to electric cars for company use, but we will also provide the first charging point in Manchester.
"We have always had a strong company ethos on renewable energy and carbon footprint reduction.
"This is a natural next step for us. By making the decision to switch to alternative technologies as our mode of transport, our carbon footprint is further reduced and hopefully we can demonstrate to other businesses across Manchester the great strides forward that are being made in electric car technology and capability."
Peugeot’s fleet director Phil Robson said: "As soon as we announced the commercial details for iOn, we received enormous interest from both private and public sector organisations who like its environmental credentials, simple finance and low running costs.
"But perhaps more gratifying is the positive response in terms of driveability, safety and flexibility; all areas where it has to compete with traditional vehicles."
In their bid to become carbon neutral, UK Grid has planted trees in 200 acres of woodland on its farm in Scotland three years ago – which is now maturing, and is in the first stages of building a windfarm in Kircudbright in Dumfries and Galloway, which will provide 16 mega watts of electricity to the National Grid.
Mr Garbutt added: "The company has made a commitment to invest in wind technology to reduce its energy usage burden as well as generate power for the National Grid.
"It’s early days but it’s an innovative way to bring green renewable energy to the regions.
"As a company which uses electricity at an industrial level, we want to be as environmentally-friendly as possible."
About UK Grid
UK Grid are the largest independent provider of Carrier Neutral Colocation solutions in Northern England. With a network of business class data centre facilities UK Grid provide solutions to organisations looking to outsource their data centre in order to secure and protect critical server, data, applications and telecommunications equipment. All UK Grid colocation facilities provide power protection, high capacity cooling systems, fire protection, high levels of security and a wide range of network and communications options. All UK Grid’s facilities are 100% carbon neutral.
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