October 5, 2009

Energy-efficient building incorporates LEED guidelines and includes 160 kW Mitsubishi Electric solar power system installed by HelioPower and owned by San Diego Gas & Electric

Sony Electronics Inc. will bring employees, government officials, community members, building partners and representatives of San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E), Mitsubishi Electric & Electronics, Inc. and HelioPower together today to celebrate the opening of their new 455,000 square foot “green” headquarters in San Diego. 

The building, constructed in a two years, was built with an emphasis on employee comfort and energy

Sony Electronics headquarters with Mitsubishi solar panel system installed on parking structure by HelioPower

efficiency.  A 160-kilowatt (kW) DC Mitsubishi Electric panel solar power system was collaborated under the SDG&E Sustainable Communities Program was installed by California-based solar integration company, HelioPower.  The solar power system was installed on the employee parking structure, utilizing an innovative and attractive design which averted the need for space allocation for a large central inverter.

The Sony Electronics building will house 1,400 of the company’s 2,000 area employees.  It was designed to exemplify the best in energy conservation technologies.  Energy saving strategies include the solar power system on the parking structure, energy-efficient air conditioning and heating and the use of recycled materials in the carpeting and furniture.  Drought-resistant landscaping was also used and all the construction debris was recycled.  The building’s design and construction process incorporated many environmental features according to the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification requirements.

“Sony is committed to reducing our impact on the environment,” said Greg Aveni, facilities director for Sony Electronics. “We are doing this by implementing methods to reduce energy-use, such as installing solar panels for our new San Diego building and waste from our day-to-day operations, while at the same time finding ways to develop more energy-efficient products.”

The Sony Electronics project is one of many San Diego-based energy-efficient projects on which SDG&E has collaborated.  The utility supports energy- efficient and sustainable programs for commercial construction, and provides cash incentives and technical assistance to builders wanting to build energy-efficient buildings. In addition, SDG&E works with these builders to develop utility-owned solar panels for their projects that provide this renewable, solar energy back to the local community. 
 
“Sony Electronics’ forward-thinking approach to energy efficiency and renewable energy in their daily business practices is something their employees and our community can be proud of,” said Alex Kim, director of customer innovations for SDG&E. 

The 160kW DC installation consists of 867 Mitsubishi Electric 185-watt photovoltaic (PV) modules and is expected to produce 230,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity annually.  In addition to the clean energy created by the solar panels, Mitsubishi Electric’s eco-friendly modules use 100-percent lead-free solder and are manufactured according to strict environmental standards. 

“We're proud to be a part of Sony Electronics’ new headquarters building and commend them for designing an innovative and low-impact facility for their employees.  This is an excellent example of a building that can gain immediate benefits from solar power,” said Gina Heng, general manager of Mitsubishi Electric’s photovoltaic division. 

Designing and building the PV system on the Sony Electronics’ structure was a yearlong engineering project that involved electrical, structural and utility engineers. By working closely with all relevant parties, solar power system installer, HelioPower, was able to design a system that met Sony Electronics’ needs and SDG&E's requirements for an aesthetic, highly productive and safe PV system.  One of the innovations was to meet the requirements for a covered parking structure with the solar power system installation.  HelioPower was also able to integrate the 160 kW DC array with 21 field-distributed SMA inverters; eliminating the need for a large central unit for which space was not available.

“Connecting the output of a PV power plant to the utility side of the meter is a complex process.  Rigorous utility interconnection standards must be followed as a separately derived service entrance is our point of connection to the SDG&E electrical grid,” explained Jonah Liebes, vice president of operations for HelioPower.  “Unlike many installations, this is not a 'Net Metered' solar system. As such, the energy from the solar system by-passes the Sony Electronic meter and is funneled directly into the utility grid and distributed locally. Sony and their neighbors will certainly use the renewable energy collected by the system, but indirectly via the SDG&E grid.”

The Sony Electronics building is located at 16530 Via Esprillo, San Diego, CA 92127.

HelioPower client, James Price, made local news in Lompoc this weekend.  His ground mount solar power system was on display in the city's first ever, "Central Coast Solar Tour."  The tour, part of the national effort to showcase solar power systems, featured four solar power systems in the Lompoc and Santa Maria

area.

Covering the event, Lompoc News writer Glenn Wallace, posted this article, "Residents look to solar energy for savings" featuring Price's solar experience and savings record.

In August 2008 something funny began happening to Jim Price’s electric meter — it started going backward.

“There it goes — tic, tic, tic,” Price said watching the digital display flash an arrow to the left instead of the right.

Occasionally the display flashes all zeroes, indicating he is using less energy than the backyard solar panel system is actually pumping into the electrical grid, to be used by his neighbors and local businesses. His energy bills — they used to be more than $120 a month — sport more zeros.

Price’s house was just one of five around Lompoc partaking in the National Solar Tour on Saturday.

Jim Riggens, an Air Force retiree and self-described environmentalist, helped bring the tour to Lompoc, and to five other sites in Santa Maria, as part of the nonprofit American Solar Energy Society (ASES) national education and publicity campaign.

Riggens is trying to get his neighbors to consider solar energy.

“What struck me was why, in a place where you have so much sunshine, how few roofs have solar panels?” Riggens asked.

One of the biggest misconceptions most home owners seem to have is that a solar panel system is too exotic or prohibitively expensive, Riggens said.

“It’s very common for builders. It’s off the shelf. It’s not in a laboratory, and it’s not experimental,” Riggens said.

And as for the money? Riggens just points to Price.

Installing the 4,400-watt, solar panel system in his back yard cost $34,531, Price said. However, after last year’s city and state rebates, and a $2,000 tax credit from the federal government, his final cost became $19,250.

“Yes, there is an investment, but in the long term, he’s flattened down his energy costs,” Riggens said.

On average, Riggens and two of the solar panel installation experts on the tour all said current rebates and tax credits have improved, and the panels now cost less. Within seven to 10 years most systems finish paying for themselves. Since the systems have no moveable parts, they are expected to easily function without major repair for 25 years, meaning quite a few years of profit for people such as Price.

According to Riggens, there is also a property tax exemption for home value increases based on improvements such as a solar panel system.

“So it’s a better return on your investment than redoing that kitchen with granite countertops.”

On top of the money saved, Riggens said there was also the thousands of pounds of carbon emissions home owners could be saving the environment as well.

“There’s two types of people who put in a system,” said Mary Kammer, Lompoc’s utility conservation coordinator. “Those who want to be green, and those who want to beat the system.”

Whichever their motives, so far there are 15 residential solar panel systems installed in the city, with another two in the process.

Lompoc is one of the few cities in California to actually buy electricity back, so Price and anyone else with a bigger system and smaller usage will be receiving a check at the end of the year for generating more than he uses, according to Kammer.

Lompoc Councilwoman Cecilia Martner was on hand at the Price house to learn more about solar power herself. She praised him for “having the vision to move ahead with something like this.”

“The sun is right there, and it’s free,” said Martner.

“Nature provides us with all these things, and all we need to do is make use of them,” Price added.

A home on Moonglow Avenue in Vandenberg Village represents what Riggens called a holistic approach to green design.

The owner, who asked that his name be withheld, said he and his wife had designed the home to include many energy-efficient features, including 100 percent energy generation from his panels, as well as a solar-powered hot water heater and heating system. The couple also had the house plumbed to use shower and sink “greywater” for irrigation.

“We decided to go ‘green’ now because of what might be coming up with energy prices,” said Keith, the Moonglow owner.

Riggens said he plans on having the solar tour become an annual event, and eventually hopes to extend it to include from Santa Barbara to San Luis Obispo.

For more information about solar power, or to find solar installation firms in the area, visit www.ases.org.

For more information and additional photos of the Price solar install, click here.