Every welfare unit needs power for lights, heating, hot water and the kettle. It comes from one of two places: a mains hook-up, or the unit’s own generator. Which is right depends on one question: does your site have a live, accessible supply on the day the unit lands?
The case for mains
If a supply genuinely exists, mains power is quiet and fuel-free. But the ifs stack up: the supply must be live before the crew arrives (rarely true on day one of a build), safely accessible where the unit sits, adequate for the load, and connected by a competent person. On refurbishments and fit-outs it can work well. On groundworks, it usually does not exist yet, which is rather the point of the job.
The case for the generator
A self-powered unit works the moment it is level: field gateway, day-one groundworks, highway verge, anywhere. No connection wait, no cable runs across a live site, no argument with the landlord. The historic downside was a generator droning all day and drinking fuel, which is what Ecosmart management fixes: the generator runs only when there is demand and shuts down when there is not. Less fuel, less noise, fewer running hours per week.
The honest comparison
- Day-one availability: generator wins on almost every new site
- Running cost: mains wins where it exists; Ecosmart narrows the gap substantially
- Flexibility: generator wins, the unit can sit anywhere and move any time
- Noise: modern super-silenced sets with demand management are a different animal from the site generators of ten years ago
Every BOXD unit is generator-powered with Ecosmart management as standard, because our customers’ sites overwhelmingly do not have mains on day one. If yours does, tell us at enquiry and we will talk it through honestly. See the fleet.
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