04/04/2011 :: Woodwise plan relocation to Blaise Nurseries
Woodwise have outgrown their current site, within the premises of Harvey Shopfitters in Hanham, and are now intending to relocate part of their facilities to the new Woodfuel Station which is planned to open alongside Blaise Nurseries in the grounds of Blaise Castle, Bristol in June 2011.


Woodchip storage facilities at Bristol's Blaise Nursery

Bristol City Council has obtained a South West Regional Infrastructure and Expansion Grant to develop the current woodfuel supply depot at Blaise into an exemplar woodfuel station in the South West. It is hoped that Blaise will produce varying grades of woodchip, the drier and smallest of which can be used in smaller boilers, while the wetter, larger woodchip will be suitable for the step grate boilers installed in many of the Bristol City Council sites.

The Blaise site has its own 400kW biomass boiler which produces heat for the plant nursery. There is currently storage there for arboricultural trimmings. Woodchip can be stored in covered barns with concrete floors to keep it clean and dry.

The move to Blaise will allow Woodwise to expand operations and to supply more local schools and community centres with free woodfuel. The facilities include a scissor-lift trailer, mobile chipper and screening equipment, plus the test centre which will ensure woodchip is produced to the correct standards for moisture content and particle size. Woodfuel moisture content is an important consideration, as a boiler is commissioned on fuel at a particular moisture content; if the moisture content of the fuel varies the efficiency of the boiler is reduced and can even lead to boiler failure.

02/05/2008 :: Woodwise to supply free fuel to local school
A proposal is being drawn up for Woodwise to supply a local school with FREE wood fuel to use in their Biomass Boiler. If the proposal is accepted it will mean a saving of around £8000 per year for the school to spend on educational facilities and resources to directly benefit the education of the children in the school. It will also be the beginning of a partnership between local schools and the Woodwise project.

Andrew Harvey, Director of Harvey Shopfitters, says "Recycling the offcuts from the sustainably-sourced timber that we use into free wood fuel for schools is our way of providing a carbon-neutral benefit to both the environment, the local community its and school children. It creates a circle of sustainability that can be widened as the project reaches out to local businesses and the local community."

29/04/2008 :: South Gloucestershire Council welcomes Woodwise initiative
The Woodwise project was recently visited by officers from South Gloucester Council. They were shown the shredding facilities and the high quality wood fuel produced. The scheme was warmly welcomed, with a South Gloucestershire Council spokesperson saying “Woodwise is a very exciting project – making use of resources in a truly sustainable way to benefit the local community, and providing a very real and positive impact on our environment. We wish the project every success”.