Thoughts on Solar

In Part One of this three-part Case Study we learned how Westridge School chose Run on Sun as their solar contractor.  Part Two followed the actual Construction and Installation process from the client’s perspective.  Now we conclude with Part 3 - Advice to the Solar Reluctant.

Advice to the Solar Reluctant

A true and long-tenured operations man, Williams understands not every business has the same confidence in the value of large-scale solar installations and their ability to save real dollars. Sometimes, people on the ground are convinced of the legitimacy of solar but may run up against superiors still reluctant to make a long-term investment. To those people, Williams gives this advice:

“Don’t think short term, think big picture,” he says. “Look at the numbers in a way that you’re truly aware of the value of sustainable energy and how important it is.”

The facilities director advises others in his position to help decision-makers understand having a solar installation is a way to add value to a company and separate a business from competitors in a way that is meaningful to customers. People will likely support that company by continuing to give it business, especially if the cost savings can be passed on to them.

Addressing the upfront costs is one of the biggest challenges, Williams admits, but it’s large-scale projects that offer the best and fastest ROI. When talking to a supervisor, or whoever is responsible for making the decision to invest in a system, speak to the facts. Have your data prepared and on-hand, and be prepared to show concrete evidence that solar would be a worthwhile investment, he says.

Even after a business decides to go solar, there are several more opportunities to remind higher-ups that the decision was a wise one. After installation, data collected from monitoring the system can show the direct benefits to others in the company and create a culture of awareness about the overall benefits of moving toward sustainability. When Williams receives the PWP rebate, he plans to take the paperwork straight to the school’s asset management department.

“Once you estimate the legitimacy of it, don’t let people forget about it. Remind them it’s still working,” he suggests.

‘Surgere Tentamus’

When Westridge School for Girls was first founded in 1913, women were not allowed to vote. Despite that fact, founder Mary Lowther Ranney, a well-known architect and teacher way ahead of her time, envisioned a place where young women could rise to new heights. Today, a full 100 years later, Westridge’s motto, “surgere tentamus,” Latin for “We strive to rise,” says a lot about the legacy of its founder.

The decision to make sustainable improvements to the campus stems from that vision, and in that way, Williams says, the new solar installation is the perfect bridge between the school’s rich founding principles and its desire to bring state-of-the-art green technology to the campus and the classroom.

He acknowledges how fortunate Westridge was to have students and parents who supported bringing solar to campus and were willing to give funds to the school for completion of the project. Now, when students lead group tours, they point to the south-facing roof of the Fran Norris Scoble Performing Arts Center and proudly let visitors know a fully-operational mini-power plant is running, unseen, above their heads.

Williams encourages others in positions like his to research the many potential benefits of solar. Seriously consider the different providers available, and choose the one who can give you the best value for your investment, because quality means more efficiency, more power and more savings.

In his case, he acknowledges his good own good fortune in finding support for solar. “There are a lot of smart people here,” he says. “When you speak intelligently to smart people, good decisions tend to be the result.”

The preceding is an excerpt from Jim Jenal’s upcoming book, Commercial Solar: Step-by-Step, due out this summer.