Business Breakfast: Harrogate robots help reduce UK’s greenhouse gas emissions

The Stray Ferret Business Club’s next meeting will take place on Thursday, November 30. 

The Business Club provides monthly opportunities to network, make new connections and hear local success stories.

A Harrogate advanced engineering company is working with gas networks to detect and repair leaks with the aid of state-of-the-art robots.

Synovate‘s LeakVISION robot crawls along pipelines and uses heat sensors to detect leaks, which are often caused by shrinkage, a phenomenon that accounts for more than 1% of the UK’s greenhouse emissions.

The issue is a significant one for the gas companies. Earlier this year, a major methane leak in the UK was detected from space. The amount of methane – a potent greenhouse gas – that was lost over three months would have been enough to power 7,500 houses for a year.

Synovate’s new robot technology was trialled by Cadent, the UK’s largest gas distribution network, ahead of the King’s Coronation festivities in London. The use of robots minimised the need for roadworks at a time when the capital was extremely busy with hundreds of thousands of visitors.

The technology earned Synovate the award for Innovation of the Year at last year’s Gas Industry Awards.

Simon Langdale, engineering director at Synovate, said:

“We continue to develop and invest in a large fleet of robots and operator training to support the utility companies fight against leaks. Addressing shrinkage in a low-impact manner is crucial to reducing road disruptions for councils and road users. It will also help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and support the nation’s climate goals.

“We believe this scalable rapid-response technology is essential to maintaining services for homeowners and businesses across the UK. Synovate’s technology ensures the faster and more efficient detection and repair of gas leaks, contributing positively to households, communities, and the environment.”

The design and development of the robots took two years and an investment of £1.2 million. Synovate collaborated with engineering experts from Sheffield, Birmingham, Bristol, and Leeds Universities.

LeakVISION’s development was backed by the Strategic Innovation Fund, a collaboration between UK energy regulator Ofgem and Innovate UK under UK Research and Innovation.

Free leadership seminar

Harrogate-based business consultancy Quarterdeck will be holding a free leadership seminar next month.

The event will examine ‘Why most leadership training is a waste of time and money’, ‘The difference between management and leadership’, ‘Why most people fail to become a good leader’, ‘How to motivate others to greater performance’, ‘Why most people don’t bother’, and ‘The one area that most people neglect but is essential’, which deals with work-life balance.

Advertising the event, Quarterdeck’s website says:

“We’ve worked with thousands of people across hundreds of businesses and we find common threads that people encounter when trying to manage people.”

It adds:

“We’ve found that leaders are not born, they are made, and we can show you how.”

Quarterdeck’s leadership seminar will be held from 9am to 12 noon on Tuesday, November 21 at the Rudding Park Hotel in Harrogate. Bookings can be made online.

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North Yorkshire £176,000 robotics contract will not lead to job losses, says council

North Yorkshire Council managers have said a £176,000 robotics contract will not lead to job losses.

The authority has commissioned Reading-based company T-Impact Limited to come up with automative robotic processes to free up work for staff. 

The company has been contracted to carry out the work at a cost of £176,116.

This would include tasks such as changing an address, which would be done through automation rather than manually.

Council officials say the contract, which will run to May 2026, would be “better value for money”.

Madeline Hoskin, assistant director technology at North Yorkshire Council, said the move would also help the new council with its financial challenges.

She said:

“It is anticipated the use of this technology will bring about efficiencies to help counter the financial challenges we are facing, and it will be used for some of repetitive work to free up staff to do other more rewarding aspects of their job.

“The system also enables us to deliver services more efficiently, achieving better value for money.

“There are no projected job losses as a result of this project.”

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Robotic cats to provide comfort for North Yorkshire dementia patients

Knaresborough Rotary Club has delivered a ‘litter’ of 27 robotic cats to the charity Dementia Forward.

The charity, which is funded by North Yorkshire County Council, provides dementia support across the county.

During lockdown, it launched a ‘cafe in a box’ scheme in which dementia patients receive special boxes tailored to their individual interests.

Robotic cats have been included in the boxes to patients who have been clinically assessed to obtain maximum benefit from robot cat therapy.

Research has found the therapeutic value of robotic cats can be more beneficial than drugs for certain conditions.

The latest delivery takes the number of robotic cats donated by Knaresborough Rotary Club to 50.

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Each robot weighs about the same as a cat and interacts in a lifelike way, creating a calming effect.

They miaow, purr, lick their paws and can become long-term companions to dementia patients.

Jill Quinn, chief executive of Dementia Forward, said people became attached to the cats after the charity trialled them.

Jill Quinn, chief executive of Dementia Forward.

Ms Quinn said:

“They are very lifelike and purr and react when they are stroked.

“They can provide comfort for a person with dementia who is anxious or unable to settle by providing a calming effect.

“One example we witnessed was a woman who was very into arts and crafts, but her dementia meant that she would get anxious and wasn’t able to stay involved in any activity.

“But once we placed the cat on her knee she sat and stroked it – it created a calming distraction which enabled her to stay focussed and enjoy the activity.”