Green energy will continue to play an important role in defining the telecom industry. Whether behind the scenes or right on utility poles, solar panels are making a difference. For instance in New Jersey, PSE&G has installed 125 megawatts of grid-connected solar projects across rooftops, parking lots, landfills, brownfields, and 174,000 utility poles since 2009. Solar panels have transformed how consumers receive energy. Just one panel offers enough energy to light four 60-watt bulbs around the clock for one year.
At General Machine Products in Trevose, PA, solar panels are making a difference. Since 2011, solar panels have hummed silently on the company roof, accounting for 30% of the energy used at the plant. Therefore, with every tool created, the sun plays a crucial role. Likewise, GMP purchases the remaining 70% of the energy it uses from renewable sources.
The 242 kW grid-tied photovoltaic power system ties directly into PECO’s power grid, not only collecting sunlight from above, but also from the reflection off the roof. Inverters outside the plant convert the solar cell DC power to usable commercial power that’s then sold to PECO, saving GMP thousands of dollars every year, with the most savings in the summer months as seen on the graph below.
Over the past five years, GMP’s solar panels have been a symbol of our commitment to ingenuity and renewable energy. Each year the solar array saves around 270,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide compared to electricity generated in the grid from fossil fuels.
In a single acre, a 50-year-old oak forest sequesters approximately 30,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide, likening GMP’s carbon dioxide reductions to a nine acre hardwood forest. In total 29 tons of carbon dioxide emissions have been avoided. As summer sets in, GMP’s solar panels will ensure a green summer, while continuing to make American tools built to go the distance.
