Mid-Land Blog
Renewable Energy at Mid-Land’s New Facility
Your electric bill is a non-negotiable, ever-present cost that you just can’t eliminate. As long as you are operating a warehouse or a manufacturing facility (or household for that matter), one of your significant expenses is going to be paying for the energy it takes to run lights, HVAC, machinery, appliances and more on site. Right?
These statements sound true and, for decades, they have been, but things are changing. Advancing technology is changing the landscape of fossil fuels, energy production, and electric bills. More than ever before, it is economical for the public to purchase and install equipment to harness solar and wind power.
The cost of converting an entire facility to a new system is definitely considerable. But, it is worth it to do the math and find out how soon that cost will be overturned by the money you’ll save on your electric bill. If you are in the process of designing or building a new facility, installing energy efficient fixtures and infrastructure for renewables is a no-brainer.
Mid-Land recently built an all new facility and are happy to say that our efforts in being energy efficient are yielding terrific results.
Here is what we did with our very own building:
Our system consists of 104 solar panels mounted on the south-facing roof of our new building. The solar panels feed two 15,000 watt Fronius inverters. The inverters convert 440V d.c. solar power into 3 phase, 480V a.c. electricity for connection to Empire District Electric. During sunny day operation, the solar system provides electricity for the new building and exports surplus energy to Empire. In cloudy weather and at night the balance of any needed energy is provided by Empire.
It is estimated that the solar system will produce approximately 42,000 kWh each year for Mid-Land. We expect that to yield an annual savings of about $5,000. The panels were manufactured in Georgia and Michigan by the US solar company SUNIVA. The system was designed and installed by SolSource Greenbuild, a local solar provider based in Neosho, MO.
What are our actual results so far?
Solar production in December, January and February wasn’t as impressive due to shortened daylight hours. It takes much more energy to keep facilities warm when the temperature is below freezing. Even still, our utility bills were reduced by hundreds of dollars thanks to our system’s output.
As winter progressed, our power usage gradually decreased. Solar production increased dramatically as soon as daylight savings time started for 2017. In April, May, June, and July solar power covered more than half of our total consumption.
We are happy to share that our average monthly savings between January and August of 2017 was $403.30. If we maintain that average, we will come in right at our projection of $5,000 in annual savings. System output for that same period was just under 27,000 kWh and is on target to exceed the 42,000kWh projection.
If you aren’t ready to make the full switch yet, there are still some things that you can implement gradually over time that will help you start saving on your utility bills without breaking your budget.
Here is what we recommend:
1. Consider Replacing your Dead Bulbs with LEDs
If you have high-bay lighting, like so many other warehouses and manufacturing facilities, you depend on them to help you maintain productivity. Changing your lighting to LED lamps can cut as much as 80% off the lighting portion of your electric bill when compared to other types of lamps.
Because LED lamps last longer, they don’t need to be changed as often, increasing productivity and slashing costs. Ease into replacing your lamps with LEDs by doing so one at a time as your current light bulbs burn out.
2. Automate Some Functions
Automation through the use of smart sensors can be used to turn equipment off and on at predetermined times so that productivity is maximized while energy costs are reduced. Smart sensors that turn off a room’s lights after a set amount of time without movement being detected can save you money on your utility bills without relying on your employees to turn them off each time they leave the room.
3. Install Renewable Energy Products
Renewable energy products, such as solar panels, provide significant energy savings. Taking the free and constantly renewable source of energy — the sun — and harnessing its power to light your warehouse is an obvious upgrade. Just a few well-placed solar panels can pay for themselves quickly in both energy savings and possible tax incentives from your locality.
Implementing just a few of these changes slowly over time will provide gradual savings that add up and can then be used to continue to increase your business’s efficiency and profitability.
Mid-Land Enterprises is an industry leader in the arena of energy efficiency. Contact us today to learn how we can help you apply these concepts to your own business and begin seeing energy savings for yourself.
More about Mid-Land and the services we offer
Click below to view our PDF flyer of available services. When the job is too complicated or risky for your in-house team to address, call Mid-Land Millwright. Our team stands ready to perform maintenance, repairs or modifications for your equipment or machinery when you need it.
Our millwright team has been trained extensively and is dedicated to the highest standard of workplace safety. These things have earned us a reputation of dependability and trust with our clients.