Team
We are a small yet highly skilled team, with advanced qualifications and the ability to deliver at scale. We think this is the perfect balance. Based at Skyline Park in Bristol, we primarily focus on installation projects in the South West, but can also help with design and consultancy on a global scale.
Johnny Palmer
Founder & Group Chair
Johnny has had a passion for electronics and engineering since his early childhood growing up in rural Tasmania. He has always been fascinated by how energy moves and powers things; this drove him to audio, live event engineering, power distribution, commercial property development and renewable power.
Frustrated by both the limitations of hydrocarbon off-grid systems and the economic challenges of the UK power grid, Johnny worked with Alex from 2017 to develop solar and battery systems, which led to them deploying large-scale solar and battery systems across the Autonomous property portfolio. Johnny is a committed environmentalist and campaigns for access to clean waterways for swimming.
Ben Hart
CEO
Ben joined Autonomous Developments as CEO in 2022 and has since professionalised the operation, including achieving key compliance certifications and implementing efficient business processes.
He started his career as a fully qualified plumber and went on to become an HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) and M&E (mechanical and electrical) engineer. Ben is an ultra-runner and brings the same focused energy, teamwork and can-do approach to development and technical projects.
Alex Thompson
Engineering Director
Alex understands the first principles of all the systems he works on and blends that foundational knowledge with the highest compliance and professional standards. This balance has enabled him both to refine established work methods and to innovate on our novel in-house projects.
While flexible and pragmatic, Alex has an unwavering commitment to quality of work and safety. His background is in audio engineering, and he has found the move to renewable power systems a natural progression.
Harvey Briggs
Electrical Technician
Like most of the team, Harvey has an original passion for audio and systems engineering. He joined the team in 2023 as a trainee electrician and has progressed swiftly, achieving key qualifications and developing a level of technical integrity that fits our ethos.