Clearing the way for Eden

The BRE National Solar Centre will relocate its office and create its first solar test site at the Eden Project in St Austell.

With support from the European Regional Development Fund, BRE established the National Solar Centre in April last year to drive innovation, cost reduction and increased confidence in the photovoltaic (PV) marketplace through knowledge generation.

In preparation for the forthcoming move to the Eden Project, Teagle Machinery, based close to Truro, offered to clear the area of rhododendrons, grass, reeds and brambles.

Teagle cleared the site using a Heavy Duty Flail Mulcher fitted to the front linkage of a Claas tractor. The combination quickly knocked down the standing trees to offer easy access to the area, and mulched fallen material to prevent fast regrowth.

Teagle were happy to help out at the Eden Project and have an interest in the outcome of the trials with the pending installation of a 50kW array of solar panels on a newly constructed manufacturing hall, taking total production from Wind and Solar energy on their production site to 220kW.

Don Murray, Eden's head of horticulture, said: "Plants are at the core of the Eden Project's work. Like any other garden, there is never quite enough time in the week to get every single job done. Therefore it was a treat to work in partnership with such a well-respected local family firm and a continuing delight to have such expertise just down the road from our garden. Teagle has made a massive difference to an area that would have taken us a lot longer to prepare by hand. Their machinery, which included a number of different flails, did a brilliant job in helping us clear the land for the solar centre. It is partnership work like this that makes such a positive impact to the horticultural team here at the Eden Project. We look forward to working with Teagle in the future."