A world first in construction and infrastructure, EcoSense is the collaborative effort of Balfour Beatty and Sunbelt Rentals and offers a sustainable site cabin design that incorporates disability and neurodiverse components
The cabin features a range of sustainable features such as occupier-activated extractor fan sensors and lower kilowatt heaters with built-in, self-regulating digital thermostats – reducing carbon emissions on site by up to 30%.
Environmental savings
The EcoSense model epitomises the company’s updated sustainability strategy “Building New Futures” and will become the standard new site set-up come January 2022.
It is expected that Balfour Beatty will save at least 1,400 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions across its site cabin portfolio each year. If we take into account the company’s EcoNet technology, there are additional annual savings of 4,000 to 5,000 tonnes of CO2.
Employee-led ideas on neurodivergent components
A number of EcoSense’s features are the result of suggestions made on the employee-engagement programme My Contribution. They include wider wheelchair-friendly corridors, coloured plug sockets and switches to aid visually impaired, and tri-coloured LED lighting for individuals who suffer from hypersensitivity to bright lights. The aim, of course, is to make site cabins more inclusive for neurodivergent people.
Heather Bryant, Balfour Beatty’s health, safety, environment & sustainability director, said: “At Balfour Beatty, sustainability is at the heart of what we do, whether we’re attracting, training, and retaining the diverse workforce of the future, or developing innovative new solutions for the construction and infrastructure industry.
“But we know that to truly move the dial, we must work together. EcoSense is yet another example of how, alongside our partners such as Sunbelt Rentals, we are actively becoming smarter and greener, faster, as we move towards an inclusive, Net Zero world.”
Ian Needham, director of accommodation at Sunbelt Rentals said: “Sunbelt Rentals is committed to advancing technology for a lower carbon future and to making our industry as inclusive as possible.
“Working with our partner Balfour Beatty we have developed an industry-changing solution with EcoSense. Not only is the cabin design more energy efficient, but it can be powered by low or zero carbon power sources as the norm. In addition, the disability and neurodiverse elements will help to give everyone equal opportunities when working on site.”
