18 May 2026
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Laura Bishop, Director at HI Group, shares with us her transition into heat pumps and her dedication, passion, and determination to improve low-carbon heating design.
When I left university with an Mech Eng degree and started my design engineering career in manufacturing. My first ‘proper job’ was as a graduate trainee at Bombardier, designing trains, and I went on to work for several other large engineering companies.
In those environments, I learned that design has to be right and there isn’t really any room for getting it wrong. Engineering decisions are tested, challenged and owned, and you’re expected to think through how something will actually be made and used. That mindset has stayed with me.
At that stage, I had no exposure to building services. E.ON was my first experience of working on buildings and deploying renewable technologies in real-world situations. The contrast with manufacturing was huge. Buildings are messy, every site is different, and what works on paper doesn’t always translate neatly into practice. That really reinforced for me how important good design and system thinking are.
How did you get into the heat pump industry?
I got into heat pumps because I’ve always cared about the environment and wanted to use my engineering skills in renewable energy, not because I had any particular interest in heating at the start. Like a lot of engineers, my early understanding of renewables was focused on electricity, solar and wind power, rather than heat. Gas and heating systems weren’t something I’d really thought about.
That changed when I joined E.ON. At the time, I didn’t really know what a heat pump was, but I quickly realised how much of the UK’s carbon problem sits in heat. I think that’s probably true for a lot of people - heat isn’t something you think about until you’re in it. Once I started working in that space, it became obvious how important, and challenging, it is to decarbonise it properly.
Alongside my technical work, I became increasingly involved in industry leadership. I chaired the Ground Source Heat Pump Association (GSHPA) from late 2019 until December 2025 and am now co-chair of the newly merged Heat Pump Association UK, which brought together the Heat Pump Federation, the Heat Pump Association and the GSHPA. It took about 18 months and wasn’t always easy, bringing different organisations and views together never is, but it was worth it in the end to give the sector a stronger, more unified voice.
What does your current role involve?
In 2023, I set up a new business partnership, Hillside Infinitas, having previously set up Infinitas Design in 2014. It was really about expanding what I do beyond pure design into making projects actually work as a whole.
A big part of our focus is the economics of low-carbon heat. One of the biggest barriers to heat pump adoption is running cost. Even when systems are technically sound, people can end up with higher energy bills, particularly given the current electricity prices. If that happens, it puts people off using their systems properly and undermines confidence in the technology.
We spend a lot of time looking at how to offset that — using on-site generation, energy storage, and smarter system design to bring running costs down and make systems work better in practice. It’s about looking at the whole picture rather than just the heat pump in isolation.
Alongside that, I continue to be involved in industry leadership and advisory work, helping to shape standards and thinking as the sector develops.
How did setting up your own consultancy shape your career?
I left E.ON when the engineering department was removed, at a point where it was clear there was a real gap in the market. Clients wanted renewable energy projects, but there were few independent organisations that could fully design them.
I set up Infinitas Design, which I ran for nine years. We worked on a wide range of projects, including large heat pump schemes and heat networks, as well as other interesting low-carbon infrastructure work. Having never run a business before, it was also an eye-opener into everything else that goes on behind the scenes to make a business fly.
The aim was always to bring a higher level of engineering discipline into the sector. The standards I’d been used to in manufacturing — being accountable for design, thinking things through properly, and making sure systems actually work — weren’t always there in building services and renewables at the time. That’s what I wanted to change.
What do you see as the challenges facing the industry?
There are a few big challenges that come up again and again, and we’re still not really solving them.
One of the biggest is the price of electricity in the UK, which is among the highest in Europe, compared to relatively low gas prices. That “spark gap” makes it much harder for heat pumps to compete on running costs, even when they’re well designed.
Quality is another major issue. Poor design, installation and aftercare are still too common, and that directly affects how systems perform. When things go wrong, it’s often the technology that gets blamed, rather than the way it’s been implemented.
There’s also a big gap in understanding from customers. Many people don’t really know how heat pumps work, what’s needed in their homes or businesses, or what good looks like. That makes it much harder for them to make confident decisions.
Upfront cost is still a barrier as well, especially when heat pumps are compared directly to gas or oil boilers without looking at the bigger picture.
And then there’s the policy side. There’s been a lack of long-term certainty from government, with changes to policy and grant support making it difficult for businesses to plan and invest. At the same time, there is private green investment available, but we don’t yet have clear, consistent ways of connecting that funding to the clients who actually need to deliver projects. The money is there, it’s just not f lowing in the right way.
Did you have any mentors or people who inspired you?
I haven’t really had formal mentors, but I’ve worked with people who have had a big influence on how I approach things.
In particular, people who were prepared to challenge decisions, hold the line on quality, and insist on doing things properly, even when that wasn’t the easiest option. That kind of mindset sticks with you.
More generally, I’ve been inspired by women who lead through their expertise rather than trying to fit a particular mould. There isn’t one way to lead, and seeing different approaches work has definitely shaped how I do things.
What would you say to other women considering coming into the heat pump industry?
It’s an industry that’s still evolving, which means there’s a real opportunity to shape it.
You don’t need to know everything at the start. Being curious, asking questions, and thinking things through properly goes a long way. Confidence builds over time.
The industry genuinely needs more women, not just for balance, but because you get better outcomes when you have different perspectives in the room and we generally just need more people to get the job done.
What do you like to do outside of work?
Honestly, I still enjoy talking about heat pumps outside of work. Some of the most interesting conversations happen in pubs or more informal settings, where people are more open about what’s really working and what isn’t.
Outside of that, I like getting out and about. I enjoy going to the pub, visiting different towns and cities, and spending time in our campervan, Ruby. I spend a lot of time walking my dogs and pottering in the garden, which is a good balance to a largely desk-based job that can be quite full-on. Being outdoors and doing practical things helps me reset and switch off, although the conversation does usually come back to heat pumps at some point.
