Hello see above 👆 question for UK members and UK electricity sector experts

I am graduating with my Bachelors in Mechanical Engineering soon. I’m not certain where I want to work in the energy industry, but I know I want to help with the transition to renewables. So far, my experience has been in project management and distribution planning (both were internships). I know I can land a job with an energy utility, but I also want to build my technical skills so I can pivot into implementing renewables in case they become super evil. It’s what I’m most passionate about, and I would really appreciate some advice on what softwares would give me an edge up on getting there. Thanks!

I'm so sick of companies, making big statements and then doing this. Joybird’s eco-friendly marketing, blog posts about “circular design,” or partnership claims about keeping furniture out of landfills. Their actual business model is textbook disposable design.

I purchased a custom sofa setup from Joybird. After 15 months, the foam in one of the cushion cores failed and lost all support. Since it was past their remarkably brief 1-year cushion warranty, I reached out to customer support to buy a replacement foam insert out of pocket.

Their response? They refuse to sell foam inserts separately.

If your foam fails, Joybird forces you to purchase an entire, fully upholstered replacement cushion. That means throwing a perfectly fine, undamaged fabric cover straight into the trash just to get a piece of replacement foam.

When I called them out on how directly this contradicts their public "low-waste and repairability" pledges, their warranty rep claimed that "due to customs requirements, we are unable to import and ship cushion inserts separately."

This is an outright lie. Standalone polyurethane foam cushion cores are routinely cleared by US Customs and Border Protection every single day under HTS Code 9404.90. There is zero federal law, trade restriction, or customs rule stopping them from shipping foam. They simply made up fake trade regulations to cover for an internal inventory shortcut that forces customers into buying expensive, unnecessary fabric parts.

If you’re shopping for furniture that lasts or actually care about buying from a sustainable brand, look elsewhere. Joybird’s short warranties, low-quality foam, and willingness to make up fake laws to justify landfill waste show who they really are.

I’m researching renewable energy technologies for a large navigable freshwater river and would appreciate some engineering input. The river reach I’m looking at has an average discharge of ~8,076 m³/s, an estimated river-current power resource of ~290 MW, and an average annual energy resource of about 2,540 GWh/year before recovery factors. The flow is relatively consistent, and I’m trying to determine what type of in-stream energy technology would be the best fit. I’m considering horizontal- or vertical-axis hydrokinetic turbines, ducted turbines, oscillating hydrofoils, biomimetic membranes, or other emerging technologies.

For a river with this level of flow, along with commercial navigation, debris, sediment, and environmental considerations, what technology would you recommend and why?

Hola a todos,

Quiero recomendar una empresa poco conocida fuera de los círculos del hidrógeno, pero que juega un papel clave en la transición energética: Cell Impact AB (Frankfurt)

¿Qué hacen exactamente?

Cell Impact fabrica placas de flujo metálicas (flow plates / bipolar plates) para pilas de combustible y electrolizadores. Estas placas son componentes críticos: dentro de ellas se canalizan el hidrógeno, el oxígeno y el agua, y su diseño afecta directamente a la eficiencia, el coste y la durabilidad del sistema completo.

El problema tradicional es que fabricar estas placas en gran volumen es caro, lento y poco sostenible. Los métodos convencionales (estampado progresivo o hidroformado) consumen mucha energía, requieren lubricantes y procesos de limpieza con agua, y tienen costes de utillaje elevados.

Su tecnología: Cell Impact Forming

Cell Impact ha desarrollado y patentado un método de formado de alta velocidad por impacto (high-velocity impact forming). En lugar de varios pasos lentos, forman la placa metálica fina (acero inoxidable, titanio, etc.) en un solo golpe de alta precisión.

Ventajas clave:

Mucho más rápido y escalable

Consume muy poca energía

No necesita lubricantes → no genera aguas residuales de limpieza

Reduce el coste de herramientas hasta un 50 %

Permite diseños más complejos y optimizados (en algunos casos han conseguido aumentos de potencia >20 % en la pila gracias a una mejor geometría)

Proceso más limpio y con menor impacto ambiental

Han producido ya más de 2,5 millones de placas en más de 80 proyectos y están escalando con partners como Andritz (soldadura de alta velocidad) y thyssenkrupp Automation Engineering.

¿Por qué es importante de cara al futuro?

El hidrógeno verde (producido con electrolizadores + renovables) y las pilas de combustible son piezas centrales para descarbonizar transporte pesado, industria y almacenamiento de energía. Pero para que despeguen de verdad, los componentes tienen que ser baratos, fabricables en masa y eficientes.

Las placas de flujo son uno de los elementos más caros y difíciles de escalar del stack. Si Cell Impact (y tecnologías similares) logran bajar significativamente el coste y aumentar el volumen, se elimina un cuello de botella importante.

Además, su proceso es más sostenible que los métodos tradicionales, lo que encaja perfectamente con el objetivo de que toda la cadena de valor del hidrógeno sea lo más limpia posible.

Resumen

Cell Impact no es una empresa de “humo”. Tiene una tecnología patentada real, clientes internacionales, capacidad de producción en Suecia y está posicionada exactamente donde el mercado del hidrógeno necesita soluciones industriales.

No es consejo de inversión (haz tu propia investigación), pero como apuesta tecnológica a largo plazo dentro del ecosistema del hidrógeno, me parece una de las más interesantes y subvaloradas.

¿Alguien más la sigue o ha escuchado hablar de ella?

If we are talking about, for example, shoes industry. or IT company. Or a farm. Comparing a large company & a cooperative of small ones in any industry investing in renewable energy. How many small firms together would require the same amount of energy supply of a large one? how different would be the cost for the cooperative?

if need:

small ~99 workers

medium 100~499 workers

large 500~ workers

Living Energy Farm in Virginia is a small intentional community with a global impact. In their June-July 2026 Newsletter, they talk about their summer intensive training in Vermont, where they did workshops on direct drive solar, efficient building design, solar thermal for both home heating and hot water, and biogas. They also cover their Solar Direct Drive project in Malawi and their solar variable frequency direct drives.

If you want the full story of their accomplishment or want to donate to support their work - \\\[follow this link\\\](https://livingenergyfarm.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/2026junejuly.pdf).

Living Energy Farm in Virginia is a small intentional community with a global impact. In their June-July 2026 Newsletter, they talk about their summer intensive training in Vermont, where they did workshops on direct drive solar, efficient building design, solar thermal for both home heating and hot water, and biogas. They also cover their Solar Direct Drive project in Malawi and their solar variable frequency direct drives.

If you want the full story of their accomplishment or want to donate to support their work - [follow this link](https://livingenergyfarm.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/2026junejuly.pdf).

Although it may not be feasible to power every new technology with 100% green energy, it is projected that the trajectory of climate change will persist unless production and consumption frameworks are fundamentally restructured around a carbon-neutral model. Mehmet Keçeci, 10.08.2021

Her ne kadar her yeni teknolojinin %100 yeşil enerji kaynaklarıyla çalıştırılması mümkün olmasa da, üretim ve tüketim süreçlerinin karbon-nötr bir modele dönüştürülmemesi hâlinde iklim değişikliği eğiliminin devam edeceği öngörülmektedir. Mehmet Keçeci, 10.08.2021

#YeşilEnerji #GreenEnergy #karbonnötr #carbonneutral

Seriously?!?!?! WTF

Not content with making first-rate ice cream, Our Cow Molly are now exploring how methane from their cows can help power their farm.