SKY Renewable Energy is currently completing the construction of 42 SolarWings at the City of Phoenix Burton Barr Library in downtown Phoenix which will be celebrated by a green ribbon cutting ceremony and press conference at 9 a.m., October 13 in the north parking lot of Burton Barr Central Library, 1221 N. Central Ave.

Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, City Councilman Michael Nowakowski and City Councilman Bill Gates will cut a green ribbon to open the solar energy project which includes electric car charging stations also installed by alternative energy company, SKY Renewable Energy.  Once completed, the solar energy system will be capable of providing 148.05 kW DC of power for the library. The $1.3 million project is funded by an Energy Efficiency Conservation Block Grant through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

To cohesively connect with the architectural design, the City of Phoenix chose solar wings to be installed in the parking lot for shade structures. This will be the first solar power project being installed at the library. Each solar wing covers two parking spaces and the project will encompass 84 spaces and include lighting underneath the panels that will illuminate after the sun sets on this library.

Phoenix-based green company SolarWing (solarwing.com) developed the pre-fab canopy system for parking lots, providing covered parking that produces solar energy and provides lighting and shade.

A press conference following the ceremony will take place in the library’s Pulliam Auditorium and include Mayor Phil Gordon, Councilman Michael Nowakowski, Councilman Bill Gates and representatives from SolarWing and SKY Renewable Energy.

SKY Renewable Energy is an alternative energy company specializing in solar construction with over 60 years of experience. Contact SKY Renewable Energy for a free quote on your custom solar system.

“I think these were great projects for SKY Renewable Energy because we built solar mounts for three types of facilities: industrial, commercial and residential,” said SKY Engineering Project Manager Sean Gates of recently finished work on three solar panel system installations in Jamaica: Supreme Laundry Company, Gorgeous Flowers and a residential home.

All three solar mount projects were grid systems and used the same inverters and panels. However some of the solar construction work had to be customized to fit the needs of the facility and the client.

“The racking on the Gorgeous Flowers building was challenging because there were parts in the concrete that were hollow, so we had to modify the installation for adequate pull-up force,” said Gates. SKY Engineering also created a custom solar construction solution for The Supreme Laundry Company install which required custom racking.

Gorgeous Flowers will save approximately 52 percent on their utility bill while the residential install will save an estimated 48 percent and Supreme Laundry will see a savings of 68 percent annually.

“We had to install systems that undersized their usage because they have no meter system to keep track of any power that a larger solar panel system would give back to the grid,” said Gates who also trained local work crews in SKY Renewable Energy solar work practices and install techniques.

“SKY Renewable Energy is definitely looking forward to future work in Jamaica,” said Gates.

SKY Renewable Energy is an international alternative energy company specializing in commercial and residential solar construction. Contact SKY Renewable Energy for a free quote on your custom solar system.

SKY Renewable Energy was recently selected as an APS supplier for the 2011 Schools and Government Solar Program. SKY competed against similar companies to be selected as a special installations supplier for ground mount and canopy solar projects owned and maintained by APS. In the future, SKY Engineering will compete with other companies in the select pool of special installations suppliers for specific projects that will begin to be released in August 2011.

According to the APS website (www.aps.com), APS Solar for Schools and Government program is an innovative cooperative effort to enable publicly funded K-12 school districts, publicly funded charter schools and government entities to enjoy energy savings and receive the financial and tax benefits of going solar with little or no up-front capital investment. There is also an additional option for qualifying K-12 public schools that provides savings to the school district by hosting a PV system owned and maintained by APS. This is where SKY Renewable Energy comes in.

APS qualified SKY Renewable Energy and other solar companies to be a special installations supplier for PV systems owned and maintained by APS, thereby, giving school, publicly funded charter schools and government entities a choice when building their next solar project. According to the APS website, APS is hoping to help customers install more than 75 solar projects at schools and government facilities throughout the APS service territory through this program.

SKY Renewable Energy is honored to be working closely with APS and brings a solid history of experience in solar projects for schools and governmental entities. These projects include a number of high profile facilities for the City of Phoenix and a number of school districts around the state of Arizona: San Fernando Elementary School in Sasabe, Hillside Elementary School in Bagdad, Apache Elementary School in Douglas, Yavapai Elementary School in Scottsdale, Patagonia Elementary School in Patagonia, Kirkland Elementary School in Kirkland, Kiser Elementary School in Gila Bend, Blue Elementary School in Blue and Tonto Basin Elementary in Tonto Basin. These solar canopy projects for schools were funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds and through the Arizona State Energy Program (SEP).

About SKY Renewable Energy
SKY Renewable Energy has over 60 years of combined construction management experience, with a focus most recently in construction management at risk delivery process. SKY is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. For more information, call 602-595-4178 or visit www.skyrenewableenergy.com. Children can also learn lessons about renewable energy on the SKY Renewable Energy website kid’s page (http://www.skyrenewableenergy.com/kids ) with coloring worksheets that introduce Sheriff Green and the energy hogs: Drafty Darlene, Lights on Lewis, Sloppy Sara and Wallis Water.

The first phase of construction began this week on the unique SolarWing installation at the
Burton Barr Library by prime contractor, SKY Renewable Energy. Construction will occur in
two phases to minimize inconvenience to library customers.

SKY Renewable Energy will use SolarWing canopies to cover 84 parking spaces on this
renewable energy project which has recently increased in scope to include electric car charging
stations. “Changes in the job are due to the City of Phoenix putting in eco charging stations,”
said Matt Rees, a project manager on the project that ensures all of the subcontractors are
compliant with the Davis-Bacon Act. “We are going to run a conduit to posts that are shaded.”
Funding for the $1.3 million project was provided by an energy efficiency conservation block
grant in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

“The solar canopies are unlike any other parking structure,” said Rees of the Phoenix-based
green company SolarWing who has developed a pre-fab canopy system for parking lots,
providing covered parking solutions that deliver solar energy.

Each solar canopy holds 15 panels and covers two parking spaces for a total of 84 covered
parking spaces for the Burton Barr Library project. Once completed, the project will be capable
of providing 148.05 kw of power for the library.

“The parking structures will also use LED lighting at night which is more efficient in addition to
the state- of- the-art panels and structure,” said Rees of the solar canopies that will tilt as the sun
travels overhead for maximum efficiency.