Genquip-Groundhog operates from a modern, state-of-the-art manufacturing facility based in South Wales. The production lines and offices are powered partially by recently installed solar panels. In addition, Genquip-Groundhog has engaged a consultant to draw up a carbon reduction plan, which will be fully implemented when completed. Genquip-Groundhog placed carbon emission reduction, lower fuel costs, empowering the use of renewables, and introducing safe female welfare facilities at the heart of the SolarLoo.

Genquip-Groundhog is a five-star Considerate Construction supplier which serves to improve the image of the construction industry whilst simultaneously encouraging young people, and especially more women, into the industry. Having safe, sustainable, comfortable welfare facilities helps with this aim. The company is also a member of which is a membership organisation that promotes sustainable forestry and wood-using businesses.

Genquip-Groundhog places a huge emphasis on client training. These training sessions ensure that all of their units are safely installed and used in accordance with all health and safety considerations. Training courses are held in the dedicated training room at the Groundhog manufacturing plant, or if necessary, on a client’s premises or on-site. The partnership has also developed a 'Virtual Showroom'

A viewer can access the showroom with just one click. The viewer is greeted by an actual Genquip-Groundhog employee who explains how to navigate the many showroom sectors and what they can expect to discover. There are display boards of each of the Genquip-Groundhog products which are ‘clickable’ and will instantly display all the features and benefits of the product. Genquip-Groundhog believes that their ‘Virtual Showroom’ will give a potential purchaser the freedom to navigate their products from their office desk, without having to make a physical, expensive journey to the Genquip-Groundhog physical showroom.

A workshop manager can also view the parts that make up the units and correctly order new parts as and when required. The SolarLoo The HSE ‘provision of welfare facilities during construction work’ information sheet states that men and women may use the same toilet if it is in a lockable room, and partitioned from any urinals. However, Genquip-Groundhog went further than these guidelines and included male and female separate toilet facilities incorporated into one building.

The SolarLoo is a combined male and female toilet system that is designed for use on construction sites. This brand new product follows the original Genquip-Groundhog Unisex Solar Hybrid Toilet, which featured a small fuel-efficient diesel generator as a backup should extra power be needed. However, Genquip-Groundhog engineers soon discovered that the generator was being started very infrequently, and with the advances in battery power, a decision was made to dispense with the use of a generator completely.

The SolarLoo now operates solely from renewable power. The SolarLoo female area features a low flush eco-toilet with a 400 litre waste tank. The male compartment also has a low flush eco-toilet and two 1200mm waterless urinals. Also included is a 1200mm stainless steel washbasin with two warm water taps. Both female and male users of the SolarLoo benefit from warm water supplied by an onboard heating system administered by the latest Webasto Thermo top system that is designed to protect the engine and save fuel.

The compact Thermo Top water heater preheats the engine to the starting temperature. This considerably reduces the load on the engine caused by a cold start and thus increases the life span and operational readiness of the engine. The Thermo Top heater will operate from Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) fuel. HVO fuel is a renewable diesel alternative based on vegetable oils, grease, and similar residue.

The SolarLoo also features 12V LED lighting fitted with a PIR motion sensor (PIR stands for passive infrared) which is a device that detects movement, and therefore the lights are only switched on when a person is in the vicinity. There is a convenient and hygienic liquid soap and paper towel dispenser. The HSE information sheet confirms that men and women can share sinks used for washing hands, face, and arms.

During the design stage of the SolarLoo, all Genquip-Groundhog employees were encouraged to offer up their input in order that this new product was fully embraced by the complete Genquip-Groundhog team.

Non-Road Mobile Machinery (NRMM) One of the construction’s largest contributions to air pollution is emissions from NRMM. NRMM is defined as; any mobile machine, vehicle, or transportable equipment that does not carry passengers or goods on the road and is installed with a combustion engine. Examples of NRMM include dumpers, excavators, compressors, telehandlers, and (importantly) generators. In Greater London, there are strict emissions standards for NRMM.

Registering plant on the NRMM register is a mandatory requirement in London. Elsewhere, sites may still choose to have an inventory of on-site plant. For projects outside London, meeting with lowemission standards is always considered to be best practice Sites are seeking alternative fuels to reduce the presence of diesel plant.

Contractors are being encouraged to explore more sustainable methods of powering equipment on site, such as battery and/or solar power. In addition, the use of ‘red’ diesel will, in April 2022, be strictly limited to vehicles and machinery used in agriculture, horticulture, fish farming, and forestry. Construction firms will have to pay full pump prices for their diesel, which means there will be a significant increase in fuel costs. However, site welfare facilities need power, and this power is usually in the form of a diesel generator.

HSE law requires that these facilities are always available, which usually means that the generator will be constantly running throughout the day and if night security is needed, throughout the night. This incurs burgeoning fuel costs, increased servicing intervals, and unacceptable carbon emissions. In addition, water conservation is becoming an important issue when running welfare facilities on site.

Uniquely, the Genquip-Groundhog SolarLoo is powered by a combination of a highly efficient 130amp power Absorbent Glass Mat (AGM) battery, which is charged via a 2-panel solar system with a built-in controller. It emits zero emissions, zero noise, and therefore provides clean power throughout the day - no harmful carbon emissions and no noise pollution.

The SolarLoo is fitted with a rainwater harvester that collects rainwater and utilises it for WC flushing, saving on the amount of fresh water needed to operate the toilet systems. It has steel profiled panels to sidewalls and roof, plus steel personnel doors to three separate areas (Toilet areas and generator/service area).

The SolarLoo was immediately taken up by a major hire firm supplying a rail contractor. Rail contracting regulations have made it mandatory that toilet facilities have to be sited at regular intervals. A mix of male and female workers was engaged in this project, so the SolarLoo alleviated the requirement to have separate units (at additional costs and space). As the project progressed, the SolarLoo needed to be re-sited.

The contractor commented that units were easily moved by utilising their trailer systems, which were safely and easily attached via conveniently placed forklift pockets. Although the SolarLoo is designed to provide quality welfare facilities for all types of construction assignments, Genquip-Groundhog was delighted that the SolarLoo was delivering what was needed to this highly regulated trackside project.

SolarLoo is just one product in a complete range of temporary accommodation units manufactured by Genquip-Groundhog, that utilise modern technology that champions the use of hybrid, battery, and solar power as a primary source.

Where, in some instances, a combustion engine is the only source of power, Genquip- Groundhog endorses the use of Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) fuel. HVO fuel is a renewable diesel alternative based on vegetable oils, grease, and similar residue. Using HVO fuel can reduce CO2 emissions by up to 90% when likened with fossil-fuel diesel. HVO is compatible with the Groundhog 6kVA and 9.8kVA generators.