LET THERE BE LIGHT, AND THERE WAS HIGH TECH LIGHT

A new natural light growing centre has been opened at the University of Warwick’s Wellesbourne Campus.

Thanks to funding of £500,000 by Innovate UK, the high-tech greenhouse facility was designed and built by RIPE Building Services in partnership with agritech innovation centre Crop Health and Protection (CHAP).

CHAP is one of four agri centres being funded by £90 million of government investment, in collaboration with industry and academia.

The structure, named the Natural Light Growing (NLG) Centre, is an experimental hub for horticulture to investigate the effect of full spectrum growing conditions on crops in a protected environment.

Rather than being constructed from glass, the centre uses a new type of ETFE film, which transmits the full spectrum of UV light.

Fraser Black, Chief Executive of CHAP, said: “The NLG Centre at Wellesbourne Campus is another vital openaccess facility for UK agriculture. We look forward to welcoming British growers to explore some of their key productivity challenges.”

Phillip Lee, Managing Director of RIPE Building Services, said: “We’re incredibly excited to be officially launching our new prototype greenhouse.

“The location is ideal for the facility, being part of Warwick’s innovation community as well as a major growing area in horticulture.”

Coventry and Warwickshire companies combine to win contract

Two Coventry and Warwickshire businesses have won a major tender for one of the world’s leading museum groups after joining forces to bid for the contract.

Market research companies Protel Fieldwork and XV Insight made a joint submission and won the contract to design and conduct research that would provide National Museums Liverpool with a better understanding of the visitor experience at the Merseyside Maritime Museum.

Expansion at recycling firm with zero waste to landfill ambitions

A South Warwickshire family business is expanding its Long Marston recycling facility to help it meet its ambition to achieve zero waste to landfill.

MRW Waste Recycling provides skip hire and waste collection services across South Warwickshire.

It specialises in separating construction and demolition waste into saleable, reusable aggregates.

The company has now purchased brownfield land alongside its Sharry Lane yard, just outside Long Marston, where it is to build a new facility to wash construction and demolition waste that would have previously been sent to landfill. The material can then be sold as aggregates.

In addition, waste timber is shredded and pulped, to be sold as biomass for the power generation industry.

Alastair Frew, a partner in the real estate practice of Lodders Solicitors, provided MRW’s owner Mick Williamson with legal property advice to secure the land.

Helen Roberts, Director of Leamington-based XV Insight and Tina Lunn, Director of Coventrybased Protel Fieldwork, have since gone on to partner on other UKwide research projects, working together with new clients across different sectors and industries.

Tina said: “By working with XV Insight we have been able to win additional major national tenders that would be otherwise unattainable without the right research partner.”

Alastair said: “MRW is one of the area’s largest and most well-known waste collection and recycling companies and an excellent example of real recycling in operation.

Mick Williamson added: “Our aim is to recycle 100 per cent of all construction and demolition waste, and this new site will allow us to operate even more efficiently, with approximately 99 per cent of all material being sold for re-use. Even the water in our new washing plant will be circulated and used again.”