Dulas Recruit Industry Veteran As New MD
One of the UK's most experienced renewable energy companies has announced the appointment of Phil Horton as its new Managing Director.
Dulas, which has been offering professional expertise in renewable energy since 1982, has said the announcement is an important step in its plan to grow its share of the key solar PV, wind and hydro markets while improving their offer to clients.
Phil's career in environmental and sustainable practices spans over two decades and he brings four years of experience in the role of Head of Team for Dulas' Renewable Energy Development Services team. His background in engineering and project management will enable Phil to understand the key issues that arise for Dulas when delivering projects, ensuring delivery exceeds expectations.
After starting his career in broadcasting at the BBC, Phil became involved in environmentalism through volunteering with Friends of the Earth. Prior to joining Dulas Phil spent 12 years in the sustainability sector with roles at the Centre for Alternative Technology.
Phil said of his appointment: "Dulas, as one of the UK's biggest worker-owned co-operatives, has incredibly dedicated and hardworking staff and I am proud to have been appointed to the role. The business is commercially driven and I look forward to continuing to enable our staff to achieve commercial success both for Dulas and for our customers."
The firm has offices in Machynlleth and Stirling and employs 85 people. Its first product was a solar powered fridge used to store life-saving vaccines in the developing world. Three decades later, Dulas' fridges have saved lives everywhere from Tibet to North Korea and are now being used in the fight against Ebola in Africa.
The first off-grid solar PV systems in the UK were installed by Dulas, and the company is currently working with the farming industry to deliver innovative battery storage technology, delivering projects to help Dwr Cymru Welsh Water and Heathrow Airport to meet their renewables objectives and working on challenging installations in hostile environments. The company has been recognised numerous times with awards including the Queen's Award for Enterprise, the Ashden Award for Sustainable Energy and Renewable Energy Association's Energy Company and Installer of the Year.
Phil continued: "Dulas has a rich history and it is my aim to be as successful over the next 30 years as we were for the first 30. My strategy is one of sustainability with a focus on organic growth. We'll look to improve our share of key markets by broadening and improving our offering to clients. We'll achieve this by applying our core engineering and project management skills and by more thoroughly understanding our clients' commercial drivers.
"Over the next five years, I strongly believe that we will see continued growth in all areas of the renewables industry alongside engineering innovations to assist with their deployment. The key areas for new investment will be in energy storage and conversion technologies allied to smart grid management techniques. This will mitigate any concerns around the intermittency of grid-connected renewables.
"Dulas has remained at the forefront of our industry through challenging conditions in both the renewables environment and political landscape by planning well for the future while remaining agile in our response to short-term changes. I'll look to continue this through my leadership by building further upon our strong, sustainable business."