CEG’s Own Powerful Solar Energy Solution
Consulting Engineers Group (CEG) just launched their own rooftop power plant! CEG’s newly commissioned solar electricity system is powered with three-hundred and twelve (312) – 335 watt solar panels which create a 104.52 kW system that is capable of producing a whopping 130,000 kWh in its first year. This impressive solar array sits atop their 23,000 square foot white roofed CEG corporate office building in Lakeville, Minnesota.
CEG Lakeville is part of the national CEG that is itself well known for engineering large power and energy solutions for corporations, cities and municipalities. Formed in 1996, CEG provides planning, design, project management and construction services related to the transmission and distribution of energy which include solar and wind interconnections. Most of CEGs focus is on the distribution and transmission systems that bring clean energy to our homes and businesses.
And in the spirit of maximizing potential energy production, CEG Lakeville President Stephen Peichel and Team, in collaboration with TruNorth Solar, engineered and installed their own energy power system as an example and educational tool, showcasing what the team at CEG does every day for their Clients. From solar racking, panels, transformers, monitoring and SCADA equipment, CEG and TruNorth Solar utilized their full arsenal. CEG is truly practicing what they preach.
To dive in a little further, one part of the environmental monitoring employed by CEG and TruNorth Solar with this installation is SolarEdge, a monitoring system that connects environmental sensors to the solar array and calculates site performance, irradiance, temperature and wind measurements. And so in real time, Steve can see what any one solar panel is producing at any given time, as well as the full output of the entire system and can view this on his phone or laptop. Most TruNorth Solar installations utilize SolarEdge inverters, optimizers and monitoring making use of the latest technology to track production and assist with energy efficiency.
Additionally, CEG’s new solar energy production will provide significant benefits to the environment. The PV array will produce enough clean energy kWh’s to offset the greenhouse gas emissions from driving 50,529 passenger vehicles per year ! And will offset the C02 emissions from 22,498 pounds of coal in a year, or sequestering 20 forested acres per year. These numbers make a huuuuge statement as to the meaningful difference CEG’s new solar energy system has for the planet.
When the CEG solar energy system was switched on, Stephen Peichel responded to TruNorth Solar “I don’t know what you drink for water over there, but each person we got to work with was knowledgeable and had a happy/helpful approach to their part of the process. That’s not the norm. I can whole-heartedly praise your work from the customer experience now, and I look forward to bragging about our array for decades to come.”
And brag he should. As a company that does such vital important work creating the designs and connecting the lines, CEG is engineering a cleaner, healthier and more sustainable future with energy efficient power generation, for the generations ahead. Thank you CEG for your decision to go solar!
