johng333 Posted July 14, 2007 Report Share Posted July 14, 2007 NJ Already Green! First commercial building to achieve Net Zero Electric Branchburg , NJ , July 12,2007- For the first time a commercial facility in the US produced enough electrical energy from a renewable energy source to meet its entire electric utility demand for a full year. Ferreira Construction headquarters in Branchburg NJ, utilizes renewable energy to produce all of the electricity needed to operate their 42,000 sq ft building, a combination of office and shop space. The 31 Tannery Project exceeded expectations by not only producing all of the electric energy needed to run this facility but generated a surplus of energy. This "green" energy surplus was made available for use by other businesses to reduce their carbon footprint and use of fossil fuels. The project team invented a new proprietary, patent-pending energy efficiency and building system monitoring solution which proved critical to their success . This monitoring system can now be shared nation wide to help other companies significantly reduce their energy consumption The US Dept. of Energy has set a goal that renewable energy buildings will be commercially viable by 2025. The 31 Tannery Project and Ferreira Construction have completed a major step forward to achieving the goal set by the DOE. A key element of this amazing project is 100% return on investment in just 5 to 7 years. The project team is committed to sharing this impressive design with the US DOE and the state of NJ. It is the goal of Ferreira Construction and the 31 Tannery Project to educate and provide other companies with the tools to utilize standard building designs, renewable energy, high efficiency systems, and their new patent-pending monitoring system to spread this energy efficiency strategy across the US . Joseph Grabowski and Ed Brzezowski, the team responsible for the technology implemented, look forward to sharing this success and welcome all inquiries. Contact John Grabowski 908-534-8655 / fg@ferreiragroup.com / website www.ferreiragroup.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johng333 Posted July 14, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 14, 2007 http://www.xantrex.com/web/did/1598/readnews.asp was also mentioned here a while back Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drbubb Posted July 14, 2007 Report Share Posted July 14, 2007 A key element of this amazing project is 100% return oninvestment in just 5 to 7 years. Tell us more. How is that achieved Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johng333 Posted July 14, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 14, 2007 Tell us more. How is that achieved Take the cost of investing in solar power system and high efficiency building systems then take the cost savings received from solar energy compared to same amount of usage of grid electric and add in any rebates or Renewable Energy Credits (REC). Currently this project will have saved enough money and gotten enough RECs that it will have 100% payback in 5 - 7 years. After that, it will actually generate a "profit". The important part is that it has been a full year already operating beyond Net Zero, actually producing a surplus of green energy. in 12 months a full extra month of energy was generated above the building demands. And this is for a good sized commercial building that is in full use every day, not some science experiment or government "special" project. This project proved it is not only possible, but cost effective. how_green.bmp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johng333 Posted July 14, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 14, 2007 check out some of the monitoring of the site at greenbuildingmonitoring.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drbubb Posted July 15, 2007 Report Share Posted July 15, 2007 add in any rebates or Renewable Energy Credits (REC).Currently this project will have saved enough money and gotten enough RECs that it will have 100% payback in 5 - 7 years. The key seems to be the balance between the cost of the solar generators, and the size of REC payments. This will work in areas with high REC payments Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johng333 Posted July 16, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2007 The key seems to be the balance between the cost of the solar generators,and the size of REC payments. This will work in areas with high REC payments It will work anywhere, doesnt require high REC payments. REC just shortens the payback period. Without the REC, payback would be 10 - 15 years, which in the life span of a building, is a blink of an eye. The key is planning and monitoring. You have to plan your buidling or use monitoring to know exactly how much energy you use and how you use it. A big part of the project mentioned was utilization of a pat. pending monitoring system they invented. Can also be used on "brown" buidlings to help them become more green. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johng333 Posted July 20, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 20, 2007 www.greenbuildingmonitoring.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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