Three generations
One enquiring spirit

From waste wool to a useful resource

Born in Aberdeen, Sherwood Hunter’s working life took him into the wool textile industry in the North West of England.

As Alex recounts the family story, Sherwood was paid to take away scraps of waste wool. He imported a German industrial washing machine, cleaned and refined the material, then sold it back to the mills.

What others needed to dispose of became a resource that could be used again.

Taking the thinking into another industry

As textile work moved overseas and demand declined, Sherwood took his knowledge of washing processes to the North East of England.

His work developed into mining engineering and coal washing, applying separation and cleaning techniques to the industrial needs of the time.

The industry was different, but the approach was recognisable: understand the material, improve the process and find a practical use for the result.

From product thinking to remote monitoring

Born in Chester-le-Street, Alex studied at Central Saint Martins in London and worked at PSI Global before developing businesses of his own.

In 2002, he established a remote telematics business, with Aggreko among its key clients. That work brought together equipment, operating information and the ability to understand what was happening at a distance.

Making better use of energy

Alex later acquired a heating business in the North East, integrating solar electricity, solar thermal technology and heat pumps to help customers reduce their use of kerosene.

Today, as founder and CEO of Sherwood Power, his focus is the opportunity energy storage creates: helping renewable electricity serve business needs beyond the moment it is generated.