Founded in 2001, Beverly Athletic Club (BAC) is a family-oriented club with facilities and classes for all ages offered within its expansive 40,000 square foot building. It boasts state-of-the art fitness equipment, Les Mills Group Exercise programs, Private women only fitness area, personal and small group functional training, Pilates, an Aquatic Center with a 65-foot heated indoor/outdoor pool, indoor basketball court, Baby-sitting, a kids play zone, and Solei Salon and spa and Soul Physical Therapy.
Challenge
BAC has been committed to a variety of green initiatives. The club recycles, works to reduce paper waste, and has shifted to all LED lighting to reduce power consumption. It also contributes to green initiatives such as Change is Simple, which educates youth on how to be more green and protect our planet.
Solution
Solect carefully examined BAC’s energy usage patterns and other factors in order to design the optimum solar energy system. Solect then worked to make sure that BAC would achieve maximum ROI through a myriad of solar incentives.
Results
33% reduction of electricity costs
The power generated will cover 33 percent of the BAC’s energy needs, and is equivalent to the annual charging of 7,752 electric vehicles or 31,008,200 smart phones. It is projected that BAC will save approximately $233,000 over the course of 10 years. BAC will use some of the savings from the solar system to continue making efficiency improvements. Additionally, funds will be earmarked for the continual updating of club facilities and equipment.
Old Sturbridge Village, the largest outdoor history museum in the Northeast, depicts a rural New England town of the 1830s. Guests are invited into more than 40 original buildings, including homes, meetinghouses, a district school, country store, bank, a working farm, three water-powered mills, and trade shops – all situated on more than 200 scenic acres. Visitors can meet heritage breed farm animals and interact with authentically costumed staff.
Challenge
OSV’s objectives were threefold: deploy solar energy to reduce energy expenses, provide predictable future costs that can be used in annual budgeting and as a hedge against rising energy prices, and finally to take a leadership role in environmental sustainability.
Solution
OSV was able to install the solar array with no up-front costs thanks to Green Street & Solect’s Solar Program. Under the program, Solect Energy installed, and will service the solar array while Green Street agreed to own and operate the array going forward. OSV receives the power generated at a fixed rate for a period of 20 years under a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).
Results
75% reduction of electricity costs
The system is estimated to produce 2,238,878 kilowatt hours (kWh) annually – enough power to offset roughly 75% of the museum’s annual energy needs. The amount of electricity produced annually by the array is enough to charge 440,640,000 smartphones a year and is equivalent to taking 351 cars off the road each year.
Yeuell Nameplate & Label is a manufacturer of custom nameplates, labels and decals who has been in business since 1913 and supplies product identification systems to companies worldwide.
Challenge
As a manufacturing company, powering the facility is among Yeuell Nameplate’s most costly recurring expenses. In an effort to remain at the cutting edge of their industry they decided to find a way to get them under control.
Solution
Like many manufacturing facilities, their building features a large flat roof, with plenty of room to accommodate a solar array big enough to make a significant impact on their energy costs.
Results
50% reduction of electricity costs
The 261 kW array is big enough to cover half of Yeuell’s energy costs on an annual basis. Additionally, the company is also able to take advantage of state and federal tax incentives, including SRECs which will provide additional revenue for years to come!
For more than eighty years, Malden Catholic High School has maintained a tradition of leading students to achieve academic excellence in a Catholic, familial atmosphere. Annually, 99 percent of Malden Catholic graduates attend college. Recognized for its dedicated faculty, challenging curriculum, spiritual guidance, social outreach, and championship caliber athletic programs, Malden Catholic educates young men from more than 40 communities surrounding Boston. A Xaverian Brothers Sponsored School, Malden Catholic is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.
Challenge
Malden Catholic has always been committed to operating the school responsibly, and in accordance with the values their faith espouses.
Solution
Malden Catholic High School entered into a Power Purchase Agreement (“PPA”) with Solect to build the array. Under the program, Solect owns and operates the solar array, and sells the power generated back to the organization at a reduced, fixed rate for a period of 20 years.
Results
55% reduction of electricity costs
The agreement not only stabilizes the school’s energy costs, but provides the energy at a lower rate through an environmentally responsible source. The solar array has more than halved the school’s energy demand from the grid, insulating them from demand hikes on the majority of their energy over the next 20 years.
The Fairhaven Housing Authority is a public housing provider through the Commonwealth of MA. It owns and manages 284 units of affordable housing in Fairhaven for low income elderly, handicapped, disabled individuals and families.
Challenge
The Fairhaven Housing Authority had to replace an outdated natural gas system with electric heat at its largest complex, and was concerned that the new electric system would negatively impact its utility budget. FHA has been a PowerOptions member for about 10 years, tapping into the buying consortium to help them contract for the lowest electric and natural gas pricing.
Solution
The FHA decided to pursue solar, and selected PowerOptions and Solect’s solar program. Under the program, Solect installs, owns, and operates the solar array on the FHA’s roof. Solect then sells the power generated at a fixed rate for a period of 20 years under a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) negotiated by PowerOptions.
Results
40% reduction of electricity costs
The FHA installation posed an added challenge. The complex’s cement roof and the area’s 140-mph wind zone required an alternative solution from a standard roof-mounted PVC system. Solect elected to install the Mouli Engineering SolarPod Crown racking, because of its no-roof-holes design, high wind capability and simplicity. Not having to penetrate the cement roof saved substantially on the amount of labor, time and ultimately cost required for the project. FHA anticipates the array will provide up to 40 percent of its facility’s annual electricity, and projects a first-year savings of $15,700 and an estimated $467,000 in savings over the life of the 20-year agreement.
JLS Mailing Services is one of New England’s largest presort mailing and printing companies, founded in 1918. Today, JLS Mailing Services carries on the traditions established by its founder and is an industry leader in providing mailing, document management and direct marketing solutions to businesses and marketers.
Challenge
As a company that requires a great deal of electricity to operate their digital copiers, inserters, folders and presort equipment, JLS was looking for a way to reduce their substantial energy costs and wanted to find a solution that was also a smart business decision.
Solution
JLS decided to pursue a solar solution to reduce operating costs and differentiate their business with a green, sustainable initiative. After interviewing three potential solar installers, JLS Mailing chose to partner with Solect Energy.
Results
80% reduction of electricity costs
With a 537 kW array installed on the roof of their Brockton, MA office, JLS Mailing is projected to cover up to 80% of their electricity costs, saving $93,000 per year. The company is also able to take advantage of state and federal tax incentives, and the sale of Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SRECs).
Tempus Unlimited (formerly Cerebral Palsy of Massachusetts), provides a continuum of community based services that support the efforts of children and adults with disabilities to live as independently as possible.
Challenge
Tempus Unlimited is dedicated to reducing their carbon footprint, and recently upgraded their HVAC system and transitioned to LED lighting. Still looking to improve their building’s energy profile, the organization turned to Solect to explore their options with solar. Our development team discovered that the client’s roof needed to be replaced before solar panels could be installed.
Solution
Solect’s design and installation team worked closely with Tempus Unlimited, and the solar array plans came together quickly. Tempus invested in a new roof to ensure it would last and, once the roof repairs were made the installation followed quickly thereafter.
Results
30% reduction of electricity costs
Solar energy made a palpable impact on Tempus Unlimited’s energy profile. Electricity costs have been cut by over 30%, and the resulting savings allow the organization to reinvest in their programs and offer more comprehensive services for their clients.
Rabina Properties is a real estate investment, development, and management firm based in New York. Family-owned and operated for three generations and more than sixty years, Rabina Properties owns more than seven million square feet of apartment houses, office buildings, retail properties, and industrial sites.
Challenge
As a veteran real estate company, Rabina Properties knows how to maximize the value of each of their properties, while creating attractive leasing options benefits for their clients.
Solution
Adding solar to the roof of their Auburn property allowed them to greatly reduce the operating costs for the building, and allowed them to pass some of those savings along to their tenants.
Results
70% reduction of electricity costs
Rabina Properties is projected to see a 70% annual reduction of its electricity bill, and is able to take advantage of state and federal tax and financial incentives, including SRECs (Solar Renewable Energy Certificates), which are financial incentives based on the amount of solar energy the system generates. Electrical utility providers in Massachusetts purchase SRECs to help them meet their state-mandated goals of a percentage of power coming from renewable energy sources.
