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Baily Garner Feature - Why we're founding partners of Unlock Net Zero

We have all been living through some very challenging times recently, but one thing the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us is that rapid change in how we act as a society and what we choose to do to protect ourselves, both individually and communally, is possible.

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We have all been living through some very challenging times recently, but one thing the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us is that rapid change in how we act as a society and what we choose to do to protect ourselves, both individually and communally, is possible. 
However, the COVID-19 pandemic is dwarfed in scale by the unfolding climate and ecological emergency, which is currently estimated to cause the same mortality worldwide every year as COVID-19 has done so far. The damage being done to biodiversity and the natural capital we rely on is not sustainable and change must happen. 

Solving big problems requires shared understanding, good communication and collaborative effort all wrapped in an effective adaptive plan. This is how we think and solve problems at Baily Garner. 
We are proud of our history of delivering environmental and sustainable projects in the sectors in which we operate and of our award-winning projects to reduce carbon emissions and improve people’s lives. These projects addressed one of the biggest challenges we now face, with the built environment responsible for some 45% of the UK’s carbon emissions, to achieve net zero carbon as soon as possible.
Our project managers, building surveyors, environmental assessors, building services engineers and quantity surveyors provide all the services you would expect. We are currently involved in sector leading projects in Net Zero Residential New Build, Social Housing Decarbonisation and Energiesprong but Unlock Net Zero is an opportunity to scale up our involvement and work collaboratively with our partners to accelerate towards the net zero carbon future which is so urgently needed.
I am always struck by the idea that you must be the change that you wish to see in the world and also that some questions must be asked. If not now, when? If not you, who?
So the time is most definitely now and we are proud and delighted to be founding partners of Unlock Net Zero. We look forward to applying our practical and pragmatic approach working with the other founding partners, Ocean Media, and the wider sector in the coming year and beyond to increase understanding and action addressing the climate and ecological emergency.  

HomeLINK worked closely with NPS and Wolverhampton Homes to understand the
end user requirements of integration into their property management system. The
end result was the integration of alerts and insights generated by the HomeLINK
platform, enabling Wolverhampton Homes users to see the following alerts in their
Northgate property management system:

  • Smoke and CO alerts and maintenance events.
  • Fuel poverty risk.
  • Condensation, damp and mould risk

HomeLINK also worked closely with resident pilot participants and held a series of
workshops over the 5-month period as well as providing detailed breakdowns of
their data and insights via monthly reports customised for each individual. During
the group workshops, residents were presented with information on the current 
health of their home alongside recommendations and actions they could carry out
to make improvements.

The results of this project were striking. The following are some highlighted results
from the 6 properties over a 5-month period:

  • 8% average reduction in electricity usage despite one third of participants
    being very energy saving conscious from the outset. This translated to:
    • £23 total savings in electricity usage per resident
    • Reduction of 70kg CO2 per resident
  • 19% improvement in ventilation leading to better respiratory health and
    maintenance outcomes.
  • Reduced behavioural mould risk across all homes including one previously
    reported “high risk” home reducing to a “low risk” by the end of the project.
    All homes were considered low risk by the end of the project.
  • Homes were evaluated by how energy efficient they were, and optimal homes
    were identified to target energy efficiency investment.
  • A high priority maintenance alert for a smoke alarm in one property was triggered in NPS Task Manager as the resident had disconnected the alarm.
  • The mould risk and air quality data helped identify a structural cause of mould. As the data suggested it was not behavioural further investigation was carried
    out and highlighted leaking guttering causing water ingress.

By installing the devices, integrating alerts into Northgate Task Manager, and
providing residents with insights and recommendations, the goals of this project
were met. The most encouraging finding of the project was how empowering
residents with their IoT data can have a significant impact on health and
maintenance outcomes and ultimately return on investment.