Insight on Business

October 2012 Insight on Business

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IN FOCUS GREEN BUSINESS Easy being green? Four area sustainability practitioners offer their insights By Rich Redman ON THE WEB www.bemismfg.com www.eco-manity.com www.johnsonville.com www.oesx.com The return on investment is almost always under two years." Kevin Crawford, senior vice president of external affairs at Orion Energy Systems, cites Orion's work with permanent distributed load reduction. "We want to reduce energy consumption as much as possible right at the end user's site. We are actually able to run our own facility without using power off the grid. Kevin Crawford, senior vice president of external affairs at Orion Energy Systems, says the company's solar light pipe provides full-spectrum daylight, offering a sustainable alternative to energy use. Companies that have used sustainable practices often find the savings are worth the initial investment. C reduce energy costs, it can strengthen a company brand and it can even create customer and employee loyalty. Four regional green experts, each ompany leaders in the New North know that sometimes going "green" can make the most business sense – it can of whom were part of the Sheboygan Chamber of Commerce's recent First Friday Forum on Green, shared their experiences with improving sustainability in their companies. focusing on? Brian Schwaller, owner of energy consulting firm EcoManity, points to What "green" initiatives are you www. insightonbusiness.com new technology in energy-efficient lighting. "That's the low-hanging fruit because it's always on. There are some new things like daylight harvesting or lighting controls that do automatic dimming, or occupancy sensors. There is also LED lighting. LED pricing has come down lately, and people are very interested in that because your maintenance costs go down. You can get 10 years out of a bulb, instead of two or three or four. conditioning – equipment we can install that allows the building to use the power more efficiently. We actually have a power conditioner manufacturer that will guarantee a 10 percent reduction in kilowatt hours. "We also do a lot of power " use renewable energy. "Our Apollo Solar Light Pipe, which provides full-spectrum daylight, accomplishes work as a renewable source without first having to turn the energy into electricity. Orion also focuses on direct- " that will provide better heat dissipation. Anything electric hates heat, so we are constantly trying to figure out ways to wick away or dissipate heat, and safety director for Johnsonville Sausage, says life-cycle analysis is important to how Johnsonville thinks about "green." "We look at the whole creation of a product – how it' manufactured, put in a box, what kind s of packaging and transportation." Glen Schnicke is Bemis Manufacturing Company's continuous improvement manager. Paul Rutledge, environmental health " adds Crawford. "We have new products underway " [continued] » October 2012 • INSIGHT | 47 COURTESY ORION ENERGY SYSTEMS

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