Wonga Future 50: Treegreen

Proprietary UK technology that turns off electrical devices when they're not being used: a very smart idea with sizeable potential

The energyEGG is a smart energy saver that will automatically turn off unused appliances in an empty room.

The inventor Brian O’Reilly is father to three daughters who would continually leave electrical devices on after use. After many fruitless attempts to change their habits, Brian decided that it would be easier to invent a device that would take the problem out of his hands. He began dreaming up a system that would automatically turn off appliances in an empty room.

HIs energyEGG, made by his start-up Treegreen, is a remarkably simple piece of kit. It consists of two components – an occupancy sensor (the “egg”) and a control adaptor. When the egg detects that the room is empty, it sends a signal to the control adaptor, turning it off. Anything connected to the control adaptor is therefore also turned off, at the mains. Very simple idea, very effective energy saver.

How big is this market? Multiply the number of homes in the UK by the number of devices that consumer electricity needlessly and you’ll come up with a large number. Factor in export potential… and you’ll see there’s plenty of ground for this 18-month-old firm to run with.

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