Pictured: Bluesky  Directors, in foreground Rachel Tidmarsh Managing Director, with back row left to right Oliver Rothschild - Non Executive Director, Simon Tidmarsh - Operations  Director, James Eddy - Technical Director, Ralph Coleman - Sales Director and  David Hodson - Finance Director

Aerial surveying company Bluesky has secured 2.4 million Euros to fund research into the development of a web based renewable energy rating platform.

Working with partners from across Europe Bluesky will investigate the use of geographic data to assess the suitability of individual properties for solar energy generation and create a web based portal to deliver this data online. On completion of the research project Bluesky will retain the rights to the 'engine' that is used to analyse the raw data as well as the web portal and backend systems.

"This is a tremendous achievement for Bluesky and is recognition of the pioneering work we have already undertaken into green energy mapping," commented Rachel Tidmarsh, Managing Director of Leicestershire based Bluesky International. "We are proud to be working with some of the leading organisations in this field from across Europe and we are looking forward to the challenges this research project will present." 

The title of the research project is "Development and demonstration of a dynamic, web based, renewable energy rating platform" and is funded by the Commission of the European Communities under Framework Programme 7. Framework Programmes (for Research and Technological Development) are funding programmes created by the European Union to support and encourage research. The total fund awarded is 2.4 million Euros commencing from the project start which will before the end of 2011.

Bluesky will be working with a number of prestigious organisations from across Europe including the Solar Trade Association in the UK, Svensk Solenergi of Sweden, Solar Macedonia, Alemanys Saludes Asociados from Spain as well as the Universities of Leicester, Karlsruhe in Germany and Selcuk in Turkey. The project will be coordinated by the Chartered Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering (CIPHE) with Bluesky acting as lead for the technical aspect.

The research will initially focus on the exploitation of geographic data, such as aerial photography and LiDAR, for the automatic extraction of information relating to the suitability of a property for renewable energy production. This will in turn look at ways to include a variety of other types of data from across Europe and potentially globally. The second element of the project is to create a web based portal to deliver this information to energy companies, government organisations, installers and even individuals providing unbiased information on every property in the EU. Initially focused on solar generation it is expected the project will also encompass other types of renewable energy such as wind, hydro and ground source heat, making it the primary renewables portal and placing Bluesky firmly at the forefront of this technology.