An exciting opportunity for an enthusiastic Energy Graduate to join our London team. This role will see you consulting on energy use in individual buildings, developments and campuses, through to international masterplanning projects and studies that directly influence national decarbonisation policies.
Our Buro Happold Energy team specialise in design and techno-economic analysis for supply, distribution and demand. In fact we are one of the few consultancies who can fully design energy systems and also accurately model their commercial performance.
- Spatial analytics using innovative techniques in mapping and big data
- Low carbon district energy feasibility studies, re-configuring the way we generate, distribute and use energy
- Campus and major site masterplanning studies systems; modelling, designing and helping our clients transition to net zero carbon.
- Building retrofit; trading off the potential to cost effectively reuse our existing building versus new build.
- Town and city-wide heat network assessments and studies directly influencing the future of heat network policy in the UK
We work on projects throughout the lifecycle from research to concept to design to detailed design and implementation, including optimising and decarbonising legacy systems. Example UK projects include:
Communiheat
How one rural community’s commitment to transition from oil to low carbon heating is fuelling the UK’s intention to reach net zero by 2050. CommuniHeat seeks to develop a roadmap and ‘write the book’ that will enable rural communities to switch from expensive and carbon intensive fossil fuels to low carbon heating over the next 10 years. With fossil fuel based domestic heating accounting for 18% of the UK’s carbon emissions, this would be a considerable victory in the struggle to save our planet. Our Energy team are working on a range of innovative first of a kind projects which will impact directly on not just the immediate client but also influence policy and thinking throughout the industry.
Port of Tyne Decarbonisation Strategy
To help the Port of Tyne meet it’s decarbonisation targets, reduce reliance on grid imported power and meet projected increases in electrified operations, the Buro Happold energy team were commissioned to develop a sitewide energy masterplan and implementation roadmap for the rollout of major onsite renewable infrastructure including solar PV and wind turbines.
The study involved spatial planning, phasing and complex energy modelling around the existing and future demands of the site including the introduction of shore power for vessels, low carbon building heating systems (i.e. heat pumps) and electrified vehicle fleets. Planning and cost specialist were appointed and a cost benefit and carbon saving analysis was performed to give confidence to the long term benefits of on site renewable deployment against a “business as usual scenario”. Our continued work with the port is now taking these concepts to more detailed levels of design.
Heat Network Zoning (HNZ)
As part of the UK governments strategy to decarbonise the built environment, Buro Happold is working across cities alongside the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) on a pilot study to develop a nationwide methodology for identifying and designating areas as heat network zones. The project involves city wide stakeholder engagement, big scale data collection, identification of heat sources, mapping and modelling as well as techno-economic analysis of opportunities for heat networks on a scale not yet seen in the UK. Outputs of our work will directly influence policies around the future mandation of buildings, both existing and future, to connect to low carbon heat networks.
London Energy Accelerator (LEA) – Greater London Authority
Our current role on the GLA Local Energy Accelerator programme as the Programme Delivery Unit consultant has meant that we have developed an oversight of energy projects across London as well as developing relationships with stakeholders across the housing, education and health sectors and DESNZ. Our role includes identifying energy projects for development funding and supporting them through delivery - providing technical support to the beneficiary and acting as a ‘critical friend’ to accelerate projects.
We have supported over 20 projects including London’s first Local Area Energy Plan, heat network projects utilising waste heat from data centres and solar PV across NHS Trust sites. In addition, our role has included providing strategic support to GLA including, most recently, mapping waste heat potential across London.
Shawfair District Heating Network Design
In 2020 Midlothian Energy Ltd. was formed as a joint venture between Midlothian Council and Vattenfall Heat UK, aimed at delivering low carbon heat to households across Midlothian and south Edinburgh. The Shawfair Energy Centre project represents a first key step towards achieving this, through the supply of heat to the new Shawfair development from the Millerhill Energy Recycling and Recovery Centre. The project will enable the provision of low carbon heat via a low temperature district heating network to more than 3,000 homes, capturing heat from the nearby Millerhill Energy Recycling and Recovery Centre.
Buro Happold carried out the multi-disciplinary Stage 3 design of the new energy centre and district heat network serving the new development. with our energy team delivering the specialist district energy system design covering energy modelling, hydraulic modelling, mechanical and process engineering, HV/LV electrical design and process safety (HAZID) reviews.
Key engineering systems included the 20MWth energy centre low temperature hot water system, 12MWth of back-up renewable heat generation, 400m3 of thermal energy storage, 8km district heating network and nine customer heat stations.
The multi-disciplinary design of the new energy centre building included civil engineering and infrastructure design (covering drainage and utilities coordination), ground engineering, energy centre structural design and energy centre building services and system-wide controls design.
What would I do?
Please see our Early Careers Candidate Pack for further guidance and information
Buro Happold Energy - Eliott's Story from Buro Happold on Vimeo.
The recruitment timeline can vary depending on the role and team you are applying to. Successful applications are progressed to interview stage within 1 month from the closing date of the advert, but it is good to know that the whole process can take up to 4 months. Interviews would preferably be conducted in person in our London office, however remote interviews can also be arranged.
We will endeavour to keep you informed throughout the time that your application is being considered, however, due to the volume of applications received and the size of our team, we are not able to respond to individual requests for status updates.
Interested? Intrigued? Inspired?
Buro Happold is proud to be a practice of a diverse range of professionals. We actively promote inclusivity to enable every individual to reach their full potential, the more inclusive we are the better our work will be.
We are working to change the lack of representation of minority groups in the built environment, and are particularly keen to hear from anyone who feels they are underrepresented in the industry. We have much to learn from one another. Embracing difference allows us to develop the most innovative and elegant solutions.