Mixergy launches smart water heating project on Isle of Wight
Mixergy and Wight Community Energy will use smart water heating technology to help hotels save energy.
Oxfordshire-based hot water tank and heat pump specialists Mixergy use technology to help customers find solutions for living more sustainably.
Wight Community Energy (WCE) is a society that helps deliver community-owned renewable energy projects on the Isle of Wight.
Mixergy and WCE have already completed the first phase of the project by installing monitoring equipment in the hot water tanks of four hotels on the Island.
The data collected from the monitoring equipment has been utilised to help identify what specific improvements the Mixergy tanks will need to carry out to make the heating process more environmentally-friendly.
The director of WCE, Colin Palmer, commented: “This project is a great opportunity for the Island. The machine-learning capabilities of the Mixergy tanks will reduce energy consumption in the hospitality sector, helping the selected hotels to reduce their energy use and still provide an excellent experience for their visitors.
“Longer term, WCE will support and promote the wider scale adoption of these smart hot water tanks to spread their energy saving benefits. There is also the potential to build an internet-connected smart electrical network of these tanks to expand the demand for renewable energy capacity on the Island, a vital contribution to achieving the Island’s net zero ambitions.”
The Seaview Hotel is one of the four hotels on the island who will eventually use Mixergy’s smart hot water tank technology.
The hotel’s owner, Robin Gardener, said: “At the Seaview Hotel we are keen to pursue new technologies to lower our carbon impact both for our guests’ and our own consciences.
“We’re very happy with the work the Hot Water Project has done already and look forward to seeing the savings in our energy use and on our bills.”
Nick and Hayley Clark, from The Chestnuts hotel chain, emphasised the usefulness of the hot water level gauge and other Mixergy equipment.
After securing the funding from the charitable trust Power to Change, three Mixergy hot water tanks will be installed at the selected hotels.
Mixergy’s director of business development, David White, commented about the project: “Working with the Wight Community Energy team has been a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate the value of data insights in making effective energy saving decisions, there is huge potential for carbon saving across the Island’s hotels and B&Bs as well as in domestic settings, and the hot water project has really helped to demonstrate this.’’