COP26 emissions statement, from Oliver Groarke, BGEN head of future markets.
As COP26 commences today, 1st November 2021, Oliver Groarke, Head of Future markets at BGEN comments on his approach and the commitments of the organisation on emission reduction.
Oliver describes the most important element within the race to carbon reduction as a cultural shift at all levels of the business, from top down:
“As we have seen on a macro level, to tackle the climate emergency, everyone must play their part in reducing emissions. As business leaders, it is our responsibility to listen to individuals and provide the support to enact the measures that will have a tangible impact.
I don’t claim that our organisation has all the right answers, in fact the most important step in this journey is understanding our limitations and being open to learning. As engineers, we have always looked for solutions, and this is no different.
Taking this collaborative approach has led to actions which will produce tangible outcomes, We have invested significant funds in understanding what our emissions are, and we are now in the position to set net zero targets for the business.
BGEN recently signed off the largest capital investment in our history in order to make our offices completely Carbon neutral. This project has reflected our approach of first exploratory learning, and then mastery – we have tasked those early in their careers (with support of business leaders) to study and implement the most innovative and efficient technologies to achieve our goal.
We have already installed smart energy monitoring systems, LED lights and have applied solar film to all windows. In the next months we will be completely transforming our HVAC system as well as installing solar, wind technologies and optimising our water usage.
We are also looking outwards: we recognize that our clients will also be on this journey. This is why we are now able to offer a range of services to help them achieve their carbon reduction goals, whether it be the creation of smart buildings, retrofitting existing buildings, utilizing solar technology or installing smart electric vehicle charges.
We know that this is only the start, but all of our models are scalable and we are learning very quickly as well as seeing huge innovations elsewhere in industry! We’re ready for the speed of the change and the size of the challenge!”
