Case Study: The largest Voltage Optimisation rollout in UK history
A voltage optimisation programme, which is one of the largest of its kind in the UK to date, has enabled one of the largest operators of restaurants, pubs and bars in the UK to significantly cut its costs and improve its carbon footprint nationwide.
VO specialist Powerdown220 carried out the work for Mitchells & Butlers, whose headquarters are in Birmingham, and whose brands include All Bar One, O’Neills, Harvester, Toby Carvery and many more. Voltage optimisers were installed at more than 1,100 sites across the country.
Mitchells & Butlers is one of the largest operators of restaurants, pubs and bars in the UK, providing a wide choice of eating and drinking out experiences and has a vast estate with more than 1,600 sites.
Voltage optimisation is one technology Mitchell & Butlers had previously considered, to cut both costs and carbon. In the UK, average voltage is 242v but CE marked equipment is designed to operate at 220v. Often without realising it, UK businesses are paying higher bills for excess voltage, which is also contributing to premature equipment failure.
Voltage optimisation is a transformer-based technology that lowers the voltage supplied from the National Grid to match the needs of a site and its equipment. Mitchells & Butlers had previously experimented with the technology on a smaller scale, but by 2021 a range of factors, in particular the energy crisis, had made the case for VO increasingly compelling. VO had the double benefit of cutting both costs and carbon.
Energy Manager at Mitchells & Butlers, Dale Fenton, said: “I didn’t realise beforehand that this would be the biggest project of its kind in the UK, but that fact puts it all into perspective.”
The project had to be delivered with minimal disruption to operations and, although a formal timeframe was not established, Mitchells & Butlers wanted as many machines installed in as short a time as possible.
It was a tough challenge to provide the resources or expertise necessary to carry out a rollout on this scale in less than a year, still less put together a convincing plan to demonstrate feasibility, Dale said, adding that Powerdown had a “really robust plan”.
From survey to installation
The first step in the project was a survey of each individual site across the UK, to identify which ones required optimisers. On-site inspections were also necessary to identify potential problems, challenges or opportunities and develop a bespoke installation plan for each individual site. This was especially important as in addition to the size of the estate, there were huge variations in building type.
The survey itself was a colossal undertaking, but the process helped rule out sites where installation was not feasible from a practical or logistics point of view, or where the voltage supply was already lower than average. Following the survey, approximately 1,125 sites were identified as suitable beneficiaries for VO. Combined with a small trial of VO that was funded by Powerdown220, the survey gave Mitchells & Butlers the confidence to proceed.
When the survey was complete, work began in September 2022. Powerdown220 had designed each installation plan to try and ensure a uniform process across the vast estate.
Project manager, Poweredown220’s Director James Goodby, said: “Ideally, you wanted to try and make sure someone in Plymouth was getting the exact process as someone in Newcastle.”
Beginning with just five machines per week, at the height of the rollout 60 machines were being installed every week. Powerdown220 worked close with its own preferred installer, Ashcrofts, to carry out the installations, which were often carried out at night or early mornings.
Unique challenges
Owing to the unprecedented scale of this project, challenges were inevitable. One potential challenge both sides were aware of heading into the project was the scale of resources that would be demanded, particularly in terms of materials. Vast quantities of steel and copper had to be ringfenced because of the cabling required.
The extra capacity required to manufacture new optimisers on this scale also needed forward planning. GWE, the Sheffield-based manufacturer who pioneered the introduction of voltage optimisers for the UK market, provided a 15-person team who were solely dedicated to this project for several months.
A large number of trained and available technicians also helped to carry out the installations.
Effective communication between Powerdown220 and Mitchells & Butlers was also essential to ensuring that when issues did arise, they could be resolved quickly, and processes put in place to prevent recurrences.
“We may as well have lived together at the peak of the project,” said Dale. “Where did have issues, we were able to jump on it very quickly.”
James Goodby added: ‘‘We are enormously proud to have completed a project of this scale and delighted that M&Bs placed their trust in us. The experience of successfully completing this rollout in such a short period of time has also provided unique opportunities for learning, which we can now carry forward.’’
