EWB Imperial College students visiting the woods

It's become traditional for a group of students from Imperial College involved with the charity Engineers Without Borders to come for a camping trip in the woods each year, but this time they couldn't come in March so it ended up happening in June instead - which was probably a good thing, as it was snowing in March!

I didn't have any major building projects for them to get involved with this year, but that left time for various other activities, such as making wooden mallets and learning to use a chainsaw for logging - under careful supervision! They did give me a hand moving some logs though, which was a huge help!

There was of course plenty of time for camp fires and cooking...

Hope to see some of them again next year!

Mike

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EWB Imperial - building a log bridge in the woods

Last weekend members of EWB UK from Imperial College London came down for what's become an annual camping trip to our woodland. As always, there was a project to get involved with - this time building a bridge over a stream that can support a vehicle! During previous visits they built a firewood shelter and a foot bridge, so this year was a step up in scale.

I made a timelapse video of most of the bridge building, it's about 7 mins long (it's in 1080p HD, so put it full-screen). Take a look, and then read the rest of the post to see the pictures and description.

Here's the full team that came down this year:

The bridge is needed to allow access to a new ride that I cut last winter. I saved some of the stems I'd cut to make parts of the bridge, and we felled a few others as required to complete it. The first steps were digging some foundations, which took quite a while:

and peeling the long logs that were going to be used as the main supports:

We put some chunky logs into ditches that had been dug on each side of the stream:

and then got the main supports in place, bolting them down later on:

In the centre of the stream we also drove in some stakes (see the timelapse video above), and I used the chainsaw to cut a notch in the top of them for the main supports to rest in:

On top of the main supports went some crossbeams (all of this was Sweet Chestnut, by the way), and again I cut some notches for them to sit in:

Then there was a lot of drilling and nailing...

Some of it by hand:

though we did have a solar panel and inverter on hand to recharge the electric drill:

Once that was finished, it was time to start making the ramps to lead on and off the bridge and also lay down some planks (the only bit of wood that was bought in for this):

The planks were also nailed down, and it was starting to look like it might be OK to drive on...

Of course, there's a signature on the side of the bridge:

We posed for a photo or two:

and then it was time to put it to the test...

There were some creaking noises, but it was rock solid!

A job well done - thanks to everyone who came from EWB Imperial to help with this!

Mike

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Ashden Awards Imperial College conference - 10 June 2009

There are still a few spaces available at this event (which I'm in charge of), so if you'd like to come, please send your name, organisation and email address to me at: conference@ashdenawards.org

Local solutions to climate change
The Ashden Awards Imperial College Conference
10 June 2009

The conference will bring the achievements of the 2009 International and UK Ashden Awards finalists to a specialist audience of practitioners, academics and students with a practical interest in sustainable energy. We will show short films about each finalist’s work, and then you will hear from them in person, talking about what has made their work so successful. With Q&As built into each session, and time during breaks to meet the finalists, there are ample opportunities to find out what you really want to know.

The Ashden Awards promote the widespread use of local, sustainable energy which can address climate change, alleviate poverty and improve quality of life. Find out more about us and our work at www.ashdenawards.org

We are delighted to be running this conference in partnership with Imperial College, London, and we are most grateful for significant support from the Faculty of Natural Sciences.

There is no charge for the conference or lunch, but numbers are limited, so please confirm names, positions and email addresses of people attending, by email to conference@ashdenawards.org. If you subsequently find that you are unable to attend, please let us know so that your place can be offered to someone else. The lunch provided will cater for vegetarians; if you have any other dietary requirements, please mention them when you confirm attendance.

Programme

09:30 Registration and refreshments

10:00 Welcome and introduction to the day
Professor Sir Brian Hoskins, Director of the Grantham Institute for Climate Change, Imperial College

10:10 Session 1: Buildings for the future

• Jonathan Hines (Architype, UK) Reducing energy demand through people-focused building design
• Vincent Stauffer (GERES, India) Solar greenhouses producing fresh vegetables in the Himalayan winter
• Questions

10:50 Session 2: Green energy businesses

• Max Lacayo Cortes (ECAMI, Nicaragua) Supporting rural development with photovoltaic power systems
• Abasi Kazibwe Musisi (Kampala Jellitone Suppliers, Uganda) Agricultural residues fuelling industries and institutions
• Patrick Sherriff (Geothermal International, UK) Design and installation of ground source heating and cooling systems for the commercial sector
• Questions
• Refreshments

12:15 Session 3: Mobilising communities

• Samson Tsegeye (Solar Energy Foundation, Ethiopia) Bringing affordable photovoltaic lighting to communities
• Melanie Sealey (Devon County Council, UK) Renewable Energy 4 Devon: generating employment by supporting renewable energy businesses and customers
• Richard Davies (MEA, UK) Motivating communities to reduce carbon emissions
• Questions
• Lunch

14:00 Session 4: Radical carbon cuts

• John Doggart (Sustainable Energy Academy, UK) Old Home Superhome: Inspiring people to retrofit through practical exemplars
• Vivek Gupta (Saran Renewable Energy, India) Replacing diesel generators with biomass gasification systems
• Richard Dunne (Ashley C of E Primary School, UK) Antarctic expedition inspires carbon saving at a primary school
• Questions
• Refreshments

15:30 Session 5: Scaling up

• Phil Webber (Kirklees Council, UK) Rolling out insulation across a large metropolitan borough
• Dean Still (Aprovecho Research Center and Shengzhou Stove Manufacturer, USA/China) Mass production of efficient fuelwood stoves
• Amitabha Sadangi (IDEI, India) Treadle pumps increasing income and quality of life for poor farmers
• Questions
• Closing presentation and networking time

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