Solar power and robots keep Sussex pharmacies afloat

Sussex-based and family-owned Kamsons Pharmacy, has seen an increased demand for everything from flu vaccinations to dispensed medicines in its 80 pharmacies this winter. In contrast to the traditional walk-in service, their free, local prescription home delivery service has grown significantly from pre-Covid times.

This increase in demand has required an investment in an updated pharmaceutical warehouse to safely and economically supply pharmacies with daily deliveries of medicines. Innovative technologies mean Kamsons are the only pharmacy in the UK to use robots to dispense medicines in a warehouse that is now powered by green energy.

Her Majesty The Queen Consort, then HRH The Duchess of Cornwall, officially opened the warehouse during the pandemic and thanked some of the 1,000 staff who work in the pharmacies, office, and warehouse. Her Majesty was very impressed with the use of both solar energy and robots.

With the help of local renewable company OHM Energy, Kamsons installed 892 solar PV panels in the Uckfield office and warehouse to slash rising energy bills and reduce their carbon footprint.

Simon Armstrong-Barnes, Project Manager at Kamsons Pharmacy said: “The main barrier to innovation is often the initial cost. Like all businesses, we are concerned about the price of energy. Kamsons opted to install solar panels so our ongoing costs are reduced and we can finance the initial investment over time. We are currently exploring battery storage for our solar energy so we can charge the warehouse robot batteries overnight using free electricity from the sun.

“Pharmaceutical warehouses have exceptionally high energy costs compared to many other industries because of the energy required to keep medicines cool or refrigerated. By installing 892 solar panels with a system size of 250kW, Kamsons can now work off-grid from April to October and they pay much lower energy bills in the winter months too. With the current energy prices, the business should recover the investment within five years plus save an estimated 2,544 tonnes of carbon dioxide over the next twenty years,” says Jason Lindfield, MD of OHM Energy.

“In difficult economic times, thanks to cost-saving innovations like robots and solar power, Kamsons Pharmacy is still able to provide high quality service to patients while other pharmacies are closing.”