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“We’ve got a history here ? Stephenson, the Tyne, the coal industry ? and a workforce with the will and passion to turn a black industry into the energy of the future.?: Terry Skee talks

Terry Skee has followed a varied career path, but his current role as commercial director of Cleaner Air Solutions, which he is particularly passionate about.

Cleaner Air Solutions was established in 2004 as a small start up of eight people, after Terry and his business partner Gary Bowden recognised the potential of promoting renewables and solar power.

“We decided to set up a company to bring in new and innovative green technologies to the general public,” he recounts. “Lots of companies at the time we’re delivering their promises, resulting in low numbers of homes investing in solar power.”

The pair were right and since then business has grown exponentially, and last year the company earned had revenues of £60 million.

The company has recently invested in a new £1.5 million site in Country Durham, which Terry hopes will help grow the business even further.

“We’re working on a detailed business plan, and have targeted to achieve a turnover of £100 million next year,” says Terry. “Ultimately we’re hoping that in the next 2-3 years we are hoping that CAS will be the UK’s number one renewables provider.

As well as providing customers with renewable sources, Terry is also committed to training people up in new installation techniques.

“We saw that a lack of training was disbarring lots of people from installing the products. Because each bit of equipment is just a very big, expensive kite, there are high risk factors involved in installation so we needed to ensure the right training procedures were in place.

CAS now offers training through the Renewable Energy Academy, and is pound to uphold standards within the industry.

“By providing the training needed to support a successful, sustainable renewables industry, we’ve safeguarded expertise in the industry, and we’re incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved.

Indeed, Terry is incredibly passionate about job creation within the wider region, and is proud to support the local economy.

“We want to grow and sustain local jobs in the region – we’ve got the tools, the technological expertise and the manufacturing capabilities to make the North East the renewables hub of the UK,” he says.

“We’ve got a history here – Stephenson, the Tyne, the coal industry – and a workforce with the will and passion to turn a black industry into the energy of the future.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .