Over the years, we have helped thousands of business owners reduce fixed costs and improve bottom lines through energy efficiency upgrades by working with major utility companies in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. We would like to share just a few energy efficiency success stories of businesses we have helped.
Smith’s Country Cheese, Inc.
Smith’s Country Cheese, based in Winchendon, MA, is known for its award-winning gouda, cheddar, and havarti cheeses. Owner Dave Smith relies on old-fashioned family traditions and hard work to produce his award-winning cheeses.
“We depend on natural resources for our livelihood,” says Smith, “so we were excited to reduce our carbon footprint. And the new brighter lighting in our cold storage room—where we brine and age the cheese—makes our work easier.” Smith found a solution with the National Grid Small Business Direct Install Program by connecting with Prism Energy Services. Prism helped Smith’s Country Cheese upgrade to high efficiency lighting systems that reduced operating costs and cut carbon emissions. The following will detail Smith’s Country Cheese’s money and energy savings:
Through the National Grid Small Business Direct Install Program, Smith’s Country Cheese was able to improve its lighting systems, saving energy and money, thereby reducing the store’s lifetime CO2 emissions by 6 tons. Plus, Smith was able to take advantage of the 70% incentives offered by National Grid. The amount of energy Smith’s Country Cheese will save will reduce his electrical bill by $1,218 a year, which is almost the same amount it cost to install the new energy efficient lighting. As a result, Smith’s Country Cheese saw a return on investment in only one year.
Best Western Adams Inn
Located on the outskirts of Boston on the shore of the Neponset River in historic Quincy, Massachusetts, The Adams Inn offers hospitable service and a convenient location to its guests. The Adams Inn sought to improve its guest experience and lower its energy costs and decided to work with National Grid and Prism Energy Services to improve its lighting, heating, and cooling systems.
The Adams Inn approached Prism because of its energy bill concerns. Second only to payroll, energy expenses are the highest costs a hotel contends with. The Adams Inn decided to take advantage of the National Grid Small Business Direct Install Program and upgrade to more energy efficient equipment. The first measure we examined were its lighting systems, followed by non-lighting.
Lighting
After reviewing the hotel’s existing lighting systems, and taking into account the aesthetics a popular seaside hotel must uphold, Prism created a lighting project that consisted of several new technologies at the time. These included:
Energy efficient fluorescent lighting in the common areas
Special dimming fixtures installed in under-utilized areas, such as the stairwell
Custom LED Can fixtures installed in the function room, where more formal lighting was required
LED pole lights installed in the parking lot, replacing energy “hogging” metal halides
Non-Lighting
The non-lighting project consisted of examining the hotel’s heating and cooling systems and occupancy levels. A major issue was wasted energy from utilities left on by guests in unoccupied rooms.
The heating and cooling of the rooms was provided by an individual Packaged Terminal Air Conditioner (PTAC). These units are air source heat pumps with an electric resistance heating coil. Control of these units is achieved via a manual heat/cool/off switch with a digital temperature gauge and a high/low auto fan speed controller. The close proximity of the space temperature sensor to the unit was the direct cause for false temperature readings, resulting in the units being turned off even though space temperature requirements had not been satisfied. Furthermore, the existing system had no way of determining if the room was occupied or not, causing the unit to attempt to hold setpoint, even when there was no occupancy. This wasted significant energy and was detrimental to both the business and the environment. To solve this problem, Prism conducted a LEVEL 1 engineering assessment of the mechanical processes and electrical systems. As a result of our findings, Prism recommended the following:
Installation of controls hardware and software to facilitate a networked thermostat energy management system
Installation of Telkonet digital networked controllers to replace each existing guest room thermostat, sensors, and remove user interfaces for the PTAC units in each room
Through these upgrades, the new system sensors tied into the new energy management system to adjust the temperature in guest rooms based on occupancy levels—resulting in significant savings and increased comfort for hotel guests.
Project Cost & Savings
Through the National Grid Small Business Program, The Adams Inn was able to take advantage of utility incentives of 70% on their total project cost. As a result, National Grid paid $109,000 for The Adams Inn’s capital improvements. The energy upgrades made to the hotel was estimated to save The Adams Inn $33,000 per year. According to The Adams Inn management, “It’s not often we get to invest in a project that makes our guests more comfortable and saves us money. By working with National Grid and Prism Energy Services, not only did we accomplish these two goals, but the results were almost immediate and we realized a positive return on our investment in just 17 months!”
Saint Joseph’s Abbey
Saint Joseph’s Abbey is a cloistered Roman monastery set in Spencer, Massachusetts. The monks live a life of silence and solitude. With a history of over 900 years, the monks and the Abbey are a story of perseverance and faith.
Sustainability is important to the brothers of Saint Joseph’s Abbey. “Monks have been around for a long time, and we plan to be here far into the future,” says Brother Brian Rooney, “so being sustainable and protecting the environment is important to us. That is the reason we wanted to participate in this energy program. Reducing our electric bill made the decision easy to make.”
The organization supports itself through the sale of their Trappist Preserves. Despite the success of their preserves, the Abbey, wanted to reduce their electricity bills and become a more sustainable organization. The brothers reached out to Prism Energy Services and connected with the National Grid Small Business Direct Install Program. Prism helped the Abbey install high efficiency lighting systems and lighting controls. The following will detail Saint Joseph Abbey’s money and energy savings:
Through the National Grid Small Business Direct Install Program, Saint Joseph’s Abbey was able to improve its lighting systems through high efficiency lighting upgrades and controls. The lighting upgrades were estimated to save the Abbey an incredible $10,000 a year on their electricity bills. With only an initial investment of $6,400, after National Grid paid for 70% of their total project cost, the Abbey saw a return on investment in only a matter of months.
Royal Pastry Shop
Royal Pastry Shop was established in 1941 in East Cambridge, MA by Vincenzo and Ninetta Coppola. Vincenzo was born in Hamrun, Malta, but was of Sicilian descent. Vincenzo emigrated to the U.S. in 1925. He worked at his uncle’s pastry shop in Boston’s North End before going to Cambridge to open his own business. His twin sons eventually took over and expanded the business by opening a second location in historic Lexington, MA. The business is still owned by the Coppola family and continues to use the same Italian recipes that Vincenzo used 70 years ago. Located at 738 Cambridge Street in Cambridge, MA, Royal Pastry Shop is open 7 days a week, baking fresh goods daily to ensure freshness and quality.
For Lisa Moreira, owner, the goal was to ensure the store’s fresh baked goods were well lit in their display cases. For Lisa, it’s not enough for lighting to be energy efficient; it also has to be stylish and presentable to highlight their cakes, cannolis, cookies, and pies.
Lisa and her team were recommended by the City of Cambridge to work with Prism Energy Services and the Eversource Small Business Program. After a quick energy efficiency audit, Prism worked with Lisa and her team to understand her lighting challenge. Together, they designed a solution to retrofit Royal Pastry Shop’s existing low-efficiency CFL and T12 fixtures to high-efficiency LEDs. With light fixtures that dated back to the ‘80s, Lisa will no longer need to replace her lamps as frequently. The new LEDs last up to 10 times longer and maintain the same quality of light. Effectively, Royal Pastry Shop will save $634.08 in maintenance costs. “The whole process was fast and easy,” says Lisa. “The installation only took a day, and all of the new lights look great.”
By working with Eversource and Prism, Lisa was able to take advantage of Eversource’s 70% incentives on the total installation cost of the project. As Lisa noted, “the incentives were very good.” Lisa was also able to take advantage of Eversource’s 24 month, 0% financing option. After all is said and done, Lisa was able to pay for the whole project at only $139/month for 12 months at 0% interest.
Quirk Auto Group
Quirk Auto Group consists of 15 car dealerships in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, providing a wide selection of used cars, trucks, SUVs, and vans from leading brands. Understanding that the right lighting can make or break a sale, it’s no wonder why Quirk Auto Group set its sights on National Grid and Prism Energy Services to enhance its showroom experience and improve their parking lot lighting efficiency.
Auto dealerships are among the most energy-intensive businesses in the U.S. Showrooms require the right amount and correct setup of lighting systems to present new models and brands favorably. In the evening, pole lights must remain lit all night to support safety and to show off the wide variety and selection. Working closely with Quirk Auto Group at eight of its locations, smart lighting measures were identified to brighten up the showrooms and parking lots. With the installation of new LED lighting with the right color temperatures, pleasing environments were created that invited potential customers to stop by and browse their selections.
By working with National Grid and Prism Energy Services, Quirk Auto Group was able to take advantage of the National Grid Small Business Direct Install Program and save considerably on the total installation cost of their project.
With a 70% incentive from National Grid, and by saving a whopping $198,000 a year on their electricity costs, Quirk Auto Dealership was able to see a return on investment in only 26 months. “We are very proud of our lighting improvements,” says Daniel J. Quirk, CEO of Quirk Auto Group. “Not only do they let the stunning design of our car and truck brands shine, but they also helped us reduce our utility bills” It’s truly a win-win project that has further set us apart from the competition.”