California Manufacturing Plant Adds Solar Panels
Because you can never save too much, McElroy Metal has added solar panels to a second manufacturing facility that will more than offset the plant’s electrical usage and show a return on investment in approximately three years.
Almost five years ago, McElroy re-roofed its manufacturing facility in Peachtree City, Ga., and topped the standing seam roofing with 1,960 solar panels. The 238T symmetrical standing seam roofing system with the half megawatt solar system was installed on top of a 34-year-old galvanized R-panel roofing system. The energy generated on the Peachtree City facility surpasses the plant’s energy consumption, saving McElroy Metal thousands of dollars.
McElroy Metal’s manufacturing facility in Adelanto, Calif., (less than 100 miles from Los Angeles) didn’t need a new roof, but is now benefitting from 646 solar modules, attached with the RibBracket IV clamp from S-5!. Each RibBracket comes with a factory-applied EPDM rubber gasket on the base. A structural aluminum attachment bracket, RibBracket is compatible with most common metal roofing materials and many North American trapezoidal profiles. The solar system harvests enough energy to offset the plant’s entire usage.
“We had the roof inspected because it’s 25 years old,” says Marc Scammerhorn, manufacturing manager for McElroy Metal. “It’s in the desert, so there’s no rust or corrosion. It will definitely hold up and last as long as the solar panels.”
The projected annual net electrical bill savings for the Adelanto plant resulted in a favorable return on investment and made the decision a wise financial investment.
“McElroy Metal is committed to being a leader in the growing use of solar power,” says Ken Gieseke, vice president of marketing at McElroy Metal. “It’s one thing to promote the use of metal roofing in conjunction with solar panels, but it’s another thing to invest in a project of this magnitude on your own facility. This project serves as a showcase for those interested in the use of solar panels with metal roofing.”
Gieseke says McElroy Metal will continue to explore solar opportunities for its manufacturing and service center facilities.
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