AUTOMATIC gates powered by the sun have been a great success with people who live “in the middle of nowhere”, according to Mike Yeats.

He has sold more than 200 solar-powered gates in the first year of business for his company, Gatecare, based in Alvescot.

He said: “One of our main sources of work is with farms and at places like equestrian holdings where there is a lot of coming and going and people need security.

“These gates are also suitable for country houses with very long drives. Another market is general domestic properties, where people like to ‘go green’.”

The idea came from the US — partly devised by one of the team which also developed the first solar-powered pocket calculators.

Adaptations for the British market are carried out at workshops in Northamptonshire.

Gatecare is the only UK supplier of commercial-scale systems, as opposed to those for smaller garden gates.

First a solar panel is installed, no more than the size of an A3 sheet of paper.

“The doubters said that in a climate like ours it can’t work — but it does, whatever the amount of sunshine,” said Mr Yeats.

“The solar power charges a low-voltage battery. Even with eight weeks of dull weather and the gate having as many as 20 openings a day, there would still be enough power stored in the battery to operate it.

“If there ever should be a problem, the gate can be unlocked manually. But if you compare the system with an electrically-powered one, there is more likelihood of a power cut than a lack of sunshine for more than eight weeks.

“The system is applied to the existing gates at a property. They can be metal, board, post and rail or barred and of any size. We have not yet come across any type where it cannot be used.”

The solar panel is positioned to face south, up to 10m from the gate, using standard cabling, but can be up to 50m away if necessary. The gates are opened and closed by a push-button keypad.

“A householder can take it with him in his car when he is out and about, or a farmer can keep it in the tractor cab,” said Mr Yeats.

“At a larger establishment you can have as many as 55 individual keypads coded to individuals with permitted access. If somebody leaves and does not hand in their keypad, their code can be deactivated,” Mr Yeats said.

The gates can also be controlled remotely. If a delivery driver arrives at a farm gate, the driver can call the farmer, who will open the gate using a button on a mobile phone.

The gates usually close automatically after one minute but a safety feature ensures that if a vehicle breaks down, the gate will start to open again immediately. Any contact with the vehicle is registered, so preventing damage. The length of opening time can also be adjusted.

“The automatic closure is particularly helpful for somebody going through a gate on a tractor,” said Mr Yeats. “Not having to get out of the cab to close it is a great advantage.”

At installation, the gate can be set to open either inwards or outwards. There are many locations too remote to have a power supply.

“Solar systems are literally a means of providing power in the middle of nowhere,” said Mr Yeats.

An example of where it can be particularly valuable is for gates along railway tracks, and he says the infrastructure company Network Rail is planning to adopt the system.

Mr Yeats, 56, understands rural situations well, having a background in agriculture-related businesses.

He added: “I’m able to understand the problems farmers face over security and how sometimes drivers are unwilling to get on and off a tractor to open and close a gate.

“Crime is a problem on farms. An open gate is an open invitation. If somebody drives through an open gate on to a property, it’s not deemed to be trespassing, but if a gate is forced open, that’s breaking and entering.

“I cannot abide theft and having an automatically-closing gate is solving a problem. A gate fastened with a padlock and chain cannot be 100 per cent secure all the time. This provides total security with ease of opening.”

Gatecare has clients all over the UK, including Scotland and Wales. Mr Yeats deals with all the marketing and an employee carries out the installations.

“We carry out installation at 95 per cent of the locations,” he said. “We do have a kit available for self-installation by clients but most prefer us to carry it out for them.

“Often customers may come in little clusters. I frequently find that when I have sold one gate in an area, the client’s neighbours hear about it and I’m likely to receive more calls from the same part of the country.”

As with many businesses, word of mouth is a particularly powerful marketing tool.