MEMBER’S PRESS RELEASE: AD performance at the heart of Privilege team expansion

Independent consultant Dr Phil Hobbs has joined the Privilege Finance team with a primary focus on optimising new and under-performing anaerobic digesters in the agricultural and food waste industries.

Experience in the biogas, pharmaceutical, instrumentation and British aerospace industries, as a project manager, has provided Dr Hobbs with an excellent grounding for the effective development of high-performing AD plants.

Dr Hobbs said:

My previous roles include working as head of bioenergy in a research institute, developing new ideas for automated optimisation and monitoring of biogas and fermentation processes. My aim is now to put these findings into practice, bridging the gap between academia and industry.

 

There are a number of plants across the country that aren’t working to their full potential for various reasons. I want to work with the owners and operators of these plants to help them identify and overcome any issues they might be experiencing by integrating microbial information, statistical and biochemical approaches. After all, getting the most from your plant is key to maximising financial return.

In addition to his recent appointment with Privilege Finance, Dr Hobbs is currently the lead consultant and initiator of the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) grant of £4.5 million.

Dr Hobbs said:

The aim of this particularly exciting project is to develop synthetic and evolutionary methanogenic communities to improve biogas production. A key part of my career to date has included giving seminars on optimising biogas plants to practitioners and owners, using my experience with commercial digesters in Europe. 

 

This is why I’m pleased to be collaborating with Privilege Finance, who also promote digester efficiency and performance with their partners' biogas plants.

Phil Gerrard, CEO of Privilege Finance, commented on the latest recruitment:

Phil’s appointment is the first of several new hires, and demonstrates our commitment to the future of AD plants in the agricultural and food industry sectors. It’s a really exciting time for our business, which is growing fast and going from strength to strength.

 

This appointment means that we can help our current client base maximise their financial return and also offer enhanced services and advice to new clients’ projects.

If you are interested in finding out more about how Dr Hobbs can help your AD business, please contact Privilege Finance on 01223 203398 or at privilege@privilege.finance.