Putting solar-energy potential on the map
Aerial-surveying company Bluesky has secured Eu2.4 million to help fund research into the development of a web-based renewable-energy rating platform. Working with partners from across Europe, Bluesky will investigate the use of geographic data to asses the suitability of individual properties for solar-energy generation and create a web-based portal to deliver the data online for every property in the UK.
The project will be co-ordinated by the Chartered Institute of Plumbing & Heating. Bluesky will work with a number of organisations. They include the Solar Trade Association in the UK, Svensk Solenergi of Sweden, Solar Madedonia and Alemanys Saludes Asociados from Spain, Also involved are the Universities of Leicester, Karlsruhe in Germany and Selcuk in Turkey.
Rachel Tidmarsh, managing director of Bluesky, says, ‘This is a tremendous achievement for Bluesky and is recognition of the pioneering work we have already taking into green-energy mapping. We are proud to be working with some of the leading organisations in this field from across Europe, and we are looking forward to the challenges this research project will present’
On completion of the project, Bluesky will retain the rights to the ‘engine’ that is used to analyse the raw data, as well as the web portal and backend systems.
