Businesses given support to make the most of Green Deal

UK: Tens of thousands of businesses are being helped to make the most of the Government’s new Green Deal scheme.

Green Deal Manager will enable general contractors, plumbers, heating engineers, door and window installers, electricians and renewable energy installers to comply with a vast array of requirements needed to take part in the scheme and help them become ‘PAS2030 accredited’.

The Green Deal will allow homeowners and businesses to take out long term loans in order to implement energy efficiency measures. The installations will be funded by a charge on energy bills with the guarantee – the so- called ‘Golden Rule’ – that the savings on those bills will be greater than the loan repayments.

According to industry experts, Green Deal installers are expected to increase their turnover by as much as 20 per cent. The Government says the Green Deal will help to insulate 14 million homes by 2020 with 65,000 jobs being created as a result of the drive to make homes and businesses more energy efficient.

The Green Deal Manager website has been developed by Eco-Architect Graham Jack in conjunction with Green Deal industry expert Phyllis Boardman.

Graham said: “In order to become an installer of Green Deal energy efficiency measures, companies must provide a string of policy and procedure documents. Our online project management portal brings all of these together in one place, cutting through the red tape and streamlining the entire process.

“For a small investment, installers can both prepare for the launch of the Green Deal in October and continue to remain fully accredited going forward.

“All of the documents required are kept in one place on a secure and encrypted server which also enables collaboration across organisations. Our unique system is the first of its kind and the feedback we have had already from small installers through to PLCs has been phenomenal.”

Graham has previously developed an online management site for Code for Sustainable Homes developments, which allows clients to see precisely what evidence is required for a Code assessment. The site was developed with the support of the computer department at Liverpool John Moores University.

Graham added: “That knowledge and technology has now been adapted and refined to create Green Deal Manager. Given the vast number of installers within the industry now and in the future, we are expecting the site to be of huge interest in the run up to October this year.”