The Business Exchange Swindon & Wiltshire Edition 58: December/January 2021 | Page 40

IN PROFILE
Adam Woodley
Founder and CEO , Sinewave
How did Sinewave start out ? We were founded in 2015 from an emerging market within the renewables sector . We were offering high and low voltage [ HV and LV ] services within the solar market and the company has naturally grown into the four main channels within which we operate ; renewables , the vehicle market , the industrial commercial space and the residential space .
Swindon-based Sinewave is an independent electrical engineering company that offers solutions for any electrical projects up to 132kV .
With an in-house team of highly skilled and qualified engineers , the firm provides an ‘ end to end ’ service , from connection to the DNOs ( distribution network operator ) network to the electric vehicle charger , distribution centre or solar farm depending on the application .
While acknowledging the company ’ s rapid growth since being founded six years ago , Adam Woodley , Sinewave ’ s Founder and CEO , explains that its future goals will be focused on social impact and sustainability . He tells us more …
What ’ s your background ? I started out as an electrical engineer at Scottish and Southern Energy ( SSE ) which is one of the distribution network operators in the UK ( a ‘ big six ’ energy company ).
How has the business grown and developed in the last six years ?
We ’ ve grown from very much a start-up operating from a garage and front room to what is now a multi-million-pound organisation with almost 70 people in # TeamSinewave in quite a short period of time . We have grown our offering from just working as an operations and maintenance provider to now installing infrastructure for some of the biggest names in the country . This includes some of the best known housing developers , commercial building constructors , and of course the growing electric vehicle charging market .
For this , we ' re working with petrol forecourt operators , large retail groups and bus depots for the electrification of vehicles nationally . Some of the biggest and best known names in the country . With the petrol and diesel bans , COP26 and net zero targets in place by 2050 , a huge amount of our work now comes from that sector .
But we also work within the renewable space which includes large-scale solar , wind battery storage and also the residential space , essentially connecting electricity suppliers with the cables or the sub-stations that get the homes connected with the grid . Additionally , we work on large scale projects within the industrial , commercial space , so large sheds , stores , data centres – anything that requires power directly from the grid .
What have been your successes of 2021 ?
Without doubt achieving the growth we ’ ve seen which has been almost 300 per cent both in terms of revenue and staff . Bouncing back in the manner we have from Covid has been a simply awesome experience and it ’ s our intention to continue that growth , and where possible accelerate it .
" We ' ve seen significant growth this year , almost 300 per cent "
How has Covid impacted your business ?
We were originally hit quite hard by Covid , but we planned well in advance so we weren ’ t caught too much by surprise , but it was an emotional time for all of us as in the early stages our revenue dipped almost 70 per cent for a short time . We had to really look at how the business operated and adapt to the short term impact .
But from a business perspective , it ’ s actually been quite positive as a whole . We were already doing remote and flexible working so this was a positive and were operating a paperless system for a lot of our engineering workforce who were able to work on tablets anyway which minimised much of the impact operationally of reducing office time . It ’ s funny looking now at organisations that are shouting about remote working , we were doing it way before it was cool .
What are your plans for 2022 ? We ’ ve recently been certified by Planet Mark which is all about our social impact and reducing our carbon footprint and emissions . One of our main goals is to make sure that we are reducing our carbon footprint by at least 10 per cent a year . Further down the line , we are also looking at B-corp [ Certified B Corporation ], which would mean becoming a certified ‘ business as a power for good .’ For us , a business isn ’ t just about making money , it ’ s also about looking after the people we work with and having a good social impact .
With regards to growth , we ’ re looking at continuing to expand at the same rate we have been . We ’ ve got some really good clients and some really good projects that we ' re working on within the renewable and the electric vehicle spaces . Driving that sustainable energy transition is really at the core of what we are trying to do at the moment .
We are also looking to grow our team . We are currently recruiting for a number of roles across our commercial , design and operations teams . We have created a strong employee benefits package which we believe recognises the hard work of
our staff . It includes enhanced pension contributions , private healthcare and a new bespoke perks platform for internal comms which includes hundreds of retailer discounts and cashback schemes . We are proud of the culture we ’ ve created and have a real team spirit . Fridays we ’ re often having a few beers and a get together , sometimes getting competitive over a game of table football . Our other social events are something that are building a reputation in the industry ! If you like the sound of what we do and have skills that complement our offering , please get in touch .
And beyond next year ? Growth for the business , keeping and adding to an awesome team , keep moving towards carbon reduction then eventually to become carbon negative with a goal of net zero by 2030 . Increasing how we ‘ give back ’ as a power for good is front and centre of our plans longer term overall as well .
What ’ s on your business Christmas list ?
Some time off would be nice ! But seriously keeping a great team and clients that enjoy working with us would be on my list each year .
" For us , a business isn ' t just about making money , it ' s also about looking after the people we work with and having a good social impact ."
hello @ sinewave . co . uk
For more info : www . sinewave . co . uk
THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2021 21