A-Plant invests heavily in hybrid power

A-Plant has invested more than £1 million in hybrid generators over the past year and said some customers had been saving £1000 a week in fuel costs.

The UK rental company has invested heavily in the Power Cube hybrid generators produced by Off Grid Energy. The sets use gel batteries which provide power when demand is low and which are recharged when the diesel generator switches back on.

The Power Cube can be used on its own or in conjunction with a generator or mains supply, and can be supplied as road-towable or static unit.

A-Plant’s Accommodation director Ian Needham said; “Traditionally, where temporary power is concerned a generator is required to be on 24 hours a day, but most of that time, particularly at night it is required to work at a lesser rate than normal, yet it still continually uses up diesel fuel which makes it expensive for the customer.

“With the Power Cube, when demand for power is low, an automatic signal is given for the generator to be turned off, leaving the battery to deliver power to the load. This saves the customer huge amounts on their fuel bill and heavily reduces CO2 emissions. We’ve had examples so far where customers have seen a £1000 plus reduction in their weekly fuel cost, and CO2 emissions reduced by over 3,500kg.”

Mr Needham said the Power Cube was ideal for use in built-up areas overnight, general construction sites, the rail sector, indoor use or on sites with ultra-low emission or low noise targets.

Danny Jones, managing director of Off Grid Energy, said the company had been able use A-Plant’s experience of end-user requirements to help develop the product; “It doesn’t just stop here though, we’re already working on developing the product further with view to offer even greater savings.”