NorCal Solar Launching Solar Energy Resource Guide

Posted on July 6, 2012 by QuestPoint

The Northern California Solar Energy Association (NorCal Solar) will be launching its latest Solar Energy Resource Guide (SERG) on the eve of the 2012 Intersolar North American conference in San Francisco next month. The SERG serves as a requisite tool for northern Californians interested in utilizing solar energy at home and in their businesses.The 9th edition SERG features articles covering a breadth of solar applications from photovoltaics and solar hot water to solar cooking, Passive House, zero net energy design, and more. It will also contain an extensive Solar Resources section. NorCal Solar plans to distribute over 7,500 copies of the SERG through 2014.”We are extremely excited about the 9th edition of the SERG,” said NorCal Solar President Elaine Hebert. “The expanded content will be useful to people who are new to solar and to seasoned professionals on the broad range of what solar can be. People have used past editions as something like a bible of solar, and it has helped them immensely on their career path.”

The launch party takes place Monday, July 9, from 7-9:00 pm, at the Intercontinental Hotel, next door to the Moscone Center on Howard Street, San Francisco. Invited guest speakers include Jeff Spies of QuickMount PV and Amy Reardon of the California Public Utilities Commission. The party is free to NorCal Solar members and supporters and $15 for others. RSVPs are requested at www.norcalsolar.org.

Intersolar NA is an annual conference that provides in-depth alternative energy industry insight by bringing together companies from all over the globe to exchange knowledge and ideas and display new products. This year’s conference and exhibition will take place July 9-12 at the Moscone Center and Intercontinental Hotel. More than 22,000 people are expected. NorCal Solar will be at booth L224.”There are many people looking to break into the green job market, and our networking events are a great way to meet those already working in solar,” said Hebert. In step with its goal to enhance solar energy awareness, NorCal Solar is conducting three bus tours of local solar facilities during Intersolar NA.

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US Postal Service Planting Green Roofs

Posted on July 2, 2012 by QuestPoint

The U.S. Postal Service recently celebrated another example of environmental leadership as local officials announced a green roof atop the Colvin-Elmwood Post Office. The 11,300 square foot green roof will be built at no cost to the Postal Service through an innovative sustainability partnership with Onondaga County, NY. “The Postal Service continues to lead the way when it comes to making a positive impact on the environment,” said Chief Sustainability Officer, Thomas G. Day. “We’re pleased to be collaborating with the good people of Onondaga County on our second green roof, which will help the Postal Service conserve water and energy in the Syracuse metropolitan area.”

Working cooperatively with Onondaga County’s Save the Rain initiative, the Colvin-Elmwood Post Office’s roof was deemed structurally sound to support the additional weight of the soil, vegetation and other requirements of a green roof. The green roof will consist of a new membrane, layers of drainage sheet, mat, separation fabric, indigenous vegetation and a wind blanket. The green roof plan fits perfectly into the Postal Service’s commitment to create sustainable spaces and facilities wherever possible. The green roof also addresses practical concerns. The roof’s expected lifespan is up to 50 years, twice as long as the roof it will replace. It also will reduce the amount of contaminants in storm water runoff flowing into Syracuse’s municipal water system.

“At more than 11,000 square feet, the Colvin-Elmwood green roof will be one of the largest in New York,” said Day. “The Colvin-Elmwood green roof will help us meet our goals to reduce energy usage 30 percent by 2015 and greenhouse gas emissions 20 percent by 2020.”The Colvin-Elmwood green roof is part of the Postal Service’s greener facilities strategy, which includes the use of environmentally friendly building components, renewable materials, energy-efficient lighting and HVAC, low volatile organic compound parts, low-water use fixtures and solar photovoltaic systems. In the last 12 months, the Postal Service also has expanded its recycling program in Central New York to include mixed paper and cardboard, resulting in nearly 1,055 tons of materials recycled in the past year. With more than 700 postal locations, including Post Office locations in Syracuse and Central New York, and with a recycling rate of 95 percent, District Manager, Edward F. Phelan, Jr., noted the Albany district is one of the Postal Service’s first Zero Waste districts.

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Intersolar Highlights Innovations In U.S. Solar

Posted on July 1, 2012 by QuestPoint

Intersolar North America, the premier solar industry exhibition and conference in North America for solar professionals to exchange information and develop business opportunities in the U.S. solar market, returns July 9-12, 2012, marking its fifth year in San Francisco. This year’s conference program offers attendees a fresh perspective on the companies and technologies that promise to reduce cost, increase yields and further drive the competitiveness of solar power.Co-located with SEMICON West, Intersolar North America 2012 is expected to draw about 850 exhibitors and more than 22,000 registered visitors from more than 80 countries to provide a true global perspective of the solar industry. This year’s event will highlight the technology innovations that are contributing to the growth of the industry through interactive exhibits on the show floor and technical sessions during the Intersolar North America Conference in the Intercontinental Hotel. A full list of speakers and presentations is available online.

As panel prices have fallen, balance of system (BOS) advancements have emerged as a key way to reduce the overall cost per watt of solar. Mounting systems have been a crucial point of innovation, as their complexity greatly impacts the amount of time spent installing PV arrays. More than 130 companies will have the latest in mounting and tracking systems and BOS innovation on display, including Schletter, SolarBridge, SolarEdge, Shoals Technology Group, SMA America LLC and Unirac. A full list of Intersolar North America exhibitors is available online. The Intersolar smart phone app is available for download here, and includes a full list of exhibitors and an exhibition floor map and route planner.

The Innovation Exchange stage and the Practical Point stage will be home to presentations that highlight the groundbreaking technologies on display throughout the exhibition hall. Intersolar AWARD nominees will discuss their innovations in presentations that offer visitors a compact and informative overview of their latest developments at the Innovation Exchange, where the winner of the first-ever Intersolar AWARD for landmark solar projects will be announced during the Award Ceremony on Tuesday, July 10 at 4 PM. Additionally, stages in the PV Production & Technology Hall and PV Energy World will feature free presentations and practical workshops, bringing the total number of exhibition stages to four.

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Luminalt Solar A San Francisco Workforce Partner

Posted on June 27, 2012 by QuestPoint

Luminalt Energy Corporation‘s CEO Jeanine Cotter is featured in the July issue of Money magazine. The article describes Cotter’s transition from corporate lawyer at Silicon Valley-based Intuit to starting her own solar installation company in 2004. Cotter says, “Just looking at the rising cost of energy and the concern over global warming, I saw an opportunity.” Money photographed Cotter at the Telegraph Hill Neighborhood Center for the article. Non-profit Tel-Hi has been providing services to youth, seniors and families in San Francisco since 1890. Tel-Hi received a free SunPower solar system in 2011 through Luminalt’s collaboration with non-profit One Atmosphere, Ecomedia, SunPower Corporation, and musical band CAKE.

Cotter has made community involvement central to Luminalt’s business model. Luminalt is San Francisco’s only certified woman-owned solar company and hires from local workforce development programs. Luminalt was the first San Francisco solar company to become workforce development certified through GoSolarSF. The innovative solar incentive program has supported over 1,700 solar installations and created targeted full-time jobs for underserved individuals through its local hiring mandate.

CNN Money interviewed Cotter as a tie-in to the article in Money. The web video shows Cotter in the warehouse and views of Luminalt, an Elite SunPower Dealer, installing SunPower solar panels on a home rebuilt after the 2010 PG&E gas line explosion in San Bruno. Luminalt has installed more solar systems in San Francisco than any other company, with 414 systems since the program’s inception per California Solar Initiative data. In a highly fragmented market, Luminalt has installed at least 34% more systems than any competitors within San Francisco. Cotter is glad she made the career transition and started her own business. “I never envisioned myself as someone willing to take huge risks, but I’ve thrown myself into this and completely love it.”

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SunPower Solar Tracker Makes Energy For Bloomberg

Posted on June 18, 2012 by QuestPoint

SunPower Corp. today announced the completion of a 1.8-megawatt solar power system for Bloomberg in New Jersey. The eight-acre, ground-mounted solar tracking system is generating the equivalent of 58 percent of electricity demand at the 100,000-square-foot main building at Bloomberg‘s Skillman, N.J. campus. It is the first completed renewable energy project at a Bloomberg facility. “Renewable energy development is a core part of Bloomberg’s overall commitment to environmental sustainability. This significant solar installation contributes to Bloomberg’s environmental and financial goals, and diversifies New Jersey’s energy supply with reliable, clean and affordable power,” said Curtis Ravenel, global head of sustainability for Bloomberg.

Bloomberg is buying the power generated from the system at prices below retail rates, providing a long-term hedge against rising power prices with no initial capital investment. The system is owned by a subsidiary of Integrys Energy Services, Inc., which is also selling the solar renewable energy credits and environmental attributes associated with the project. The system is being partially financed through PSE&G’s Solar Loan Program, through which PSE&G offers low-interest loans for solar power development. The system uses high-efficiency SunPower solar panels with the SunPower T0 Tracker system. The Tracker follows the sun’s movement during the day, increasing sunlight capture by up to 25 percent over conventional fixed-tilt systems, while significantly reducing land use requirements.

“The T0 Tracker delivers more solar energy per square meter and greater energy savings than conventional systems, reliably maximizing the clean, renewable solar power generated on site for the next 20 years or more,” said Howard Wenger, SunPower president, regions. “With this system, Bloomberg is achieving significant long-term cost savings on electricity and supporting renewable energy development that is critical to environmental health and energy independence.”

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NYC, IBM And CUNY Creating Solar Energy Venture

Posted on June 9, 2012 by QuestPoint

IBM is helping New York City (NYC) become a global leader in urban solar energy market analysis and sustainability through an innovative agreement with CUNY Ventures, a City University of New York (CUNY) Economic Development Corporation entity. The goal of this effort is to nourish solar adoption by developing the capability to analyze and understand key solar market indicators that can make solar system development more cost competitive. Using IBM’s Intelligent Operations Center (IOC) for Smarter Cities as the backbone, this analytics-based approach will help New York City monitor and analyze solar production and capacity through a virtual control room that will provide a dashboard view of key indicators.

The collaboration is part of ‘Solar Market Analytics, Roadmapping, and Tracking NY’ (SMART NY), a groundbreaking project supported in part by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) ‘Rooftop Solar Challenge’, part of the DOE SunShot Initiative which is striving to make solar energy cost-competitive with other forms of energy by the end of the decade.

With IBM’s IOC software, CUNY Ventures will access and analyze data from the NYC Solar Portal, an inter-agency permitting and tracking solution developed by Procemx; data systems in solar empowerment zones; and the NYC Solar Map, putting in place a long-term solution designed to drive down the costs of solar deployment. Initially, five state and city entities will utilize the solar market analytics: the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, the NYC Mayor’s Office of Long Term Planning and Sustainability, Consolidated Edison, the NYC Department of Buildings and the New York City Economic Development Corporation. Full Article: IBM Smarter Cities Technology Helps NYC Envision Solar Energy Leadership through CUNY Ventures