Sustainability has always been at the heart of Boss Cabins’ approach, which has been reflected in its generator-free GenFree welfare range that boasts a number of sustainable features. It is little wonder then that the product has been named as a finalist at the Plantworx 2023 Innovation Awards within the Environmental Initiative category.
“It’s really exciting to get nominated for these types of award and to receive such prestigious industry recognition,” explains James Kearsey, Managing Director. “The team here have really helped to make a step-change in what we can offer our customer base and our sustainable welfare units are much cheaper to run than anything else available within the marketplace. By cutting diesel usage we’re not only able to save customers money but are also able to do our bit for the environment. It’s a complete game changer and has been the result of huge amounts of effort and devotion from everyone here.”
The quality of the GenFree product has been the accumulation of a significant amount of hard work based on an extensive research and development process. “It’s been something that we’ve been working on for the past four years in response to what was available elsewhere in the market,” outlines Mr Kearsey. “It had become apparent to us that there was a high degree of greenwashing taking place within the sector, with companies slapping solar panels on their mobile units that were only useful for phone charging and little else. We wanted to offer so much more, so we initially developed a product that had a generator to support it during the dark winter months when there wasn’t enough solar to keep it going. That performed phenomenally well and we learnt a great deal from it, having generated a wealth of data that we were able to utilise. We now have in excess of 600 units out in the field all reporting through to us. The data provided us with an insight that we never had before in terms of how the units were being used, which gave us the opportunity to develop and hone the product further.
“The challenge was generating power in the winter months, particularly in December and January, and the unit has surpassed expectations massively. I’m a naturally optimistic person and even I was surprised with how well they performed. It has well and truly delivered.”
As companies look to improve their sustainable approach to tie-in with their corporate social responsibilities, as well as save money due to the rising price of fuel – a situation that has been worsened now that red diesel is no longer an option – the need for Boss Cabins’ GenFree product is clearer now than ever before. It is little wonder then that the company is seeing rising demand and has attracted award recognition too
“We took the approach that we had to convince the large Tier 1 contractors that this product could work and could deliver carbon savings and cost savings,” says Mr Kearsey. “This is why we approached the likes of the Balfour Beattys, Kiers, Skanskas and Costains of the world to offer them a product we felt would meet all their needs. Thankfully they’ve all been really receptive and are keen to find out more.
“Convincing customers that the units would have enough power to get through the winter months was always going to be a challenge. We used a company called Carbon Footprint, which is well known within the construction sector, to audit our claims and support their veracity. If anything we had underplayed the benefits that the unit could offer!”
While the cost saving that the GenFree product can provide is a major attraction for prospective users, there’s much more that it can offer too, helping set it further apart from other units within the marketplace. “It has a variety of different add-ons and we offer a patented rainwater harvesting system and a freshwater toilet flushing system. This system saves water and reduces waste meaning toilets do not fill so quickly or have to be pumped out so often,” highlights Mr Kearsey. “We even have telemetry in place that records and reports back to whoever’s responsible for servicing the cabin telling them whether it should be serviced or not. This is much preferable to a chemical toilet that gets flushed out once a week whether anyone’s used it or not. This reduction in servicing again reduces both costs and carbon, particularly if someone is having to travel a significant distance to pump the toilet out.
“Not having a generator has also made the unit a much quieter and more peaceful space to enjoy your break. Historically if you wanted to have a cup of tea and a sandwich while reading the newspaper, you’d have a generator rumbling away in the background but now it’s much more peaceful. We hadn’t even envisaged this as a benefit prior to our onsite tests but it has been something that users have really appreciated.
“Having invested so much time and effort into GenFree’s development, we’ve taken a number of steps to protect that position to make sure what we’re doing is fully patented. We now believe that we’re the only player in the UK market that can offer these solutions. Our competitors are doing their best to emulate what we’re doing, which is always nice to see, as it unequivocally demonstrates that we’re on the right track. We’re three years ahead of the competition and the patents will prevent others from copying our example.
“Of course, a number of businesses will continue to have less concern about the environment and will solely concentrate on the ticket price of the units rather than taking the full-term costs into consideration. The technology and equipment embedded in our GenFree and Deep Green products is more costly than conventional cabins in terms of initial outlay, but the payback period is around 18-24 months so the annual operational savings will counter the premium relatively quickly. Given that these products have a life of over ten years, particularly the stainless-steel cabins that don’t rust, they are a real long-term and highly sustainable option. Thankfully this aligns with what the Tier 1 contractors are trying to achieve.”
There’s no doubt that GenFree is ticking all the boxes that sustainably minded and cost-conscious companies are looking for in their welfare units. Boss Cabins therefore looks well set to capitalise further on all the hard work it has put into its development. What’s more, further aware recognition is surely only a matter of time too.