The Challenge:

The Jewish Family Service was faced with two challenges:

1. Save money on electricity in order to reduce operating costs and reinvest more money into the community.
2. Become an example of environmental steward-ship.

By moving to solar energy, JFS anticipated redirect-ing the cost savings to extended education and outreach. It would also allow the human services agency to achieve its goal of being an example of environmental stewardship in their community. “As a Jewish agency we are guided by the Jewish value of Tikkun Olam – a concept defined by acts of kindness performed to perfect or repair the world. We are committed to being a responsible steward of our community, environment and planet,” said CFO of Jewish Family Service of San Diego, Guinevere A. Kerstetter, CGMA.

 

The Solution:

Baker Electric Solar designed and installed a 216 kilowatt rooftop solar system consisting of 864 panels on two buildings for Jewish Family Service.

Through daily communication, professionalism, quality of materials and monitored safety measures, Baker was able to set their work apart from the competition. Hughes Marino, Inc. Construction Management provided JFS with three solar companies to interview for the design and installation of its solar system. After a comprehensive review, they chose Baker Electric Solar.

 

The Result:

JFS directly reinvests the financial savings that come from their solar system into programs which serve San Diegans. The agency sees a 70 percent reduction in their annual electricity bills based on past consumption and saves an estimated $76,000 per year. JFS’s solar system will provide them with millions of dollars in savings over the life of their system. When combined with the California Solar Initiative rebate of more than $147K, the solar system will provide more than $2.5M in net savings to the agency over the 25-year warranted life of the solar modules.

In addition, JFS’s system offsets the annual CO2 equivalent of 572,792 miles driven by an average passenger vehicle and emissions from 255,032 pounds of coal per year.

The Jewish Family Service solar project is now in direct alignment with its mission to build a stronger, healthier and more resilient San Diego.

The Challenge:

Vanguard was faced with two challenges:

1. Reduce utility costs enabling more investment in the heart of the business – serving the US armed forces and related organizations.
2. Become more environmentally responsible.

High electric bills month after month were an increasing pain point for Vanguard Industries West. Vanguard’s executives were closely tracking rising utility costs. It was clear they needed a strategy to mitigate escalating energy bills. The perfect solution would allow them to dedicate more of their budget to achieving their business goals and enable even better distribution of their world-class products to the Armed Forces.

In addition to cutting electrical costs, Vanguard had a goal of becoming more environmentally responsible while serving as stewards of sustainability within their community.

 

The Solution:

Baker Electric Solar’s expert team worked closely with Vanguard to address their needs and design a solar system that seamlessly generates power for their 35,000 square foot Carlsbad facility. Baker built a 517-panel solar system that achieves the specific financial and environmental goals of the organization.

“We chose Baker Electric Solar because of its longevity and customer service. It was a pleasurable experience from start to finish with Baker’s on-budget, on-time completion,” said Vanguard Industries West Executive Vice President/COO, Michael Harrison.

Baker specializes in precision-designed solar and installed the optimal system to meet Vanguard’s energy, environmental and cost-cutting objectives.

 

The Result:

Vanguard’s solar system produces roughly 76% of their annual electricity needs and saves them about $51,000 in energy costs per year. This savings allows the company to further invest in its mission of serving all branches of the

U.S. Armed Forces without the worry of the high overhead cost needed to power their Carlsbad facility.

According to the EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator, Vanguard’s new solar system saves the equivalent of annual greenhouse gas emissions from 420,631 miles driven by an average passenger vehicle. It also offsets CO2 emissions from 19,879 gallons of gasoline consumed or 189,758 pounds of coal burned annually.

“We felt switching to solar was the right economically as well as our company’s desire to do our part to become more environmentally responsible", said Harrison. Vanguard’s

custom-designed solar system successfully meets their two renewable energy goals by providing the company with significant financial savings and drastically reducing their carbon footprint.

Baker Commercial Solar installed this 86 kW carport solar system at First United Methodist Church in Chula Vista, CA. The carport structure, comprised of over 260 SunPower panels, was installed in their back parking lot near the Preschool and provides shaded parking to 26 parking spaces. The campus is primarily powered by the system providing them with great utility savings.

Baker Electric continues to grow with the PV industry, and our demonstration of commitment to green solutions grows with us. Our 85 kW rooftop installation was constructed at our Escondido Corporate Headquarters in 2009. Baker is currently involved in projects that range from 3 kW to multi-megawatt in size. Relying on our history and experience, Baker will lead the PV industry and is quickly becoming a best-in-class regional PV integrator.

The San Diego-based Father Joe’s Villages® Village Place is now the home of a solar installation. The project is a 53.4 kW high efficiency SunPower solar panel system with annual production estimated at over 70,000 kW hours. The installation consists of 168 roof-mounted SunPower solar panels with six SMA Sunny Boy inverters. The 22,000 SF Village Place multifamily complex provides 49 units of permanent housing for low-income and formerly homeless members of the community, along with administrative and shared community space.

In addition to the financial benefit of lower electric bills, the residents of Village Place were part of an educational outreach program, focusing on the benefits of renewable energy and the potential opportunities in the renewable energy market.

The funding for this solar project was provided through a competitive grant from the California Solar Initiative (CSI) which is administered by the California Center for Sustainable Energy (CCSE). An important part of the decision to choose Father Joe’s Villages for this grant is the fact that 100% of the solar benefit is passed through to the residents of Village Place. This is in keeping with the goals of the Multifamily Affordable Solar Housing (MASH) program and the goals of Father Joe’s Villages.
A “Father Joe’s Villages Goes Green” celebration marked the completion of a year-long effort to bring solar to Village Place. The ceremony and press conference were held on July 22, 2011 at Jinny Jo’s Playground, adjacent to Village Place.