Blueline Power Brochure

Blueline Power

efficient renewable energy

Pushing the envelope in technology with techniques like energy mapping and satellite data, Blueline Power creates efficient renewable energy systems for wind, geothermal, biofuels and more.

ENERGY LEADERS TODAY T H E M A G A Z I N E F O R C A P TA I N S O F I N D U S T RY

www.energyleaderstoday.com

solar | corporate profile

Preparing for the Energy Paradigm Blueline Power promotes clean energy, helping its’ customers go blue while saving green

by Robert Janis

Blueline Power, based in Hollister and Marina, Calif., is pushing the envelope in the use of the latest technologies to create efficient energy systems for home and business. A true full-service sustainable energy provider, the company offers renewable energy systems that are based on solar, fuel cells, wind, geothermal, biofuels and more. And they use such state-of-the art techniques as energy mapping, satellite data and Geographic information systems (GIS), and the Global Positioning Satellite System (GPS) to select the proper energy systems to use and provide the tools to assist the client to use those systems as efficiently as possible.

High tech is nothing new to the president and founder of Blueline.

Ed Bless spent two decades learning about high tech working for Silicon Valley companies like Xerox, Apple, Phillips and Nortel. He actually made it to the position of COO of a high tech firm before deciding that he was ready to go off on his own and start H2 Solutions in 2001. It is there that he tackled the difficult task of developing a hydrogen fuel cell. However, he soon discovered that it was

solar that was becoming the well established means to distribute electrically generated energy and in 2003 started Blueline Power.

“We start off with a site survey of a target location and figure out the best type of renewable and/or clean energy that is available from the site. Then we look at the energy requirements and design the most economical system,” Bless said.

The company has a total of seven employees, but it has ties to the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and uses the union to scale up their staff to the size requirements of each project.

Blueline Power uses energy mapping to determine the most efficient energy source for a particular site.

“Energy mapping is an efficient way to understand what is available on a given site,” Bless said. “Then the company adapts a system to fit.”

In one project, the company used energy mapping to find geothermal content it could use in a system. But after gathering the data and doing analysis it was determined that an energy system based on wind would be more appropriate.

Ariel photo of the Pinnacle Organic Ranch, San Juan Bautista, Calif.

Fall 2010 3

corporate profile | solar

2 3

4 5

6

4 Energy Leaders Today

solar | corporate profile

“We start off with a site survey of a target location and figure out the best type of renewable energy that is available. Then we look at the energy requirements and design the most economical system.”

“Energy mapping of a location takes into account the wind, geothermal, running water, solar irradiation and others,” Bless said. “We then take the data we get from the energy mapping and translate that into the creation of an energy system that best uses what the site offers.”

The firm also does technology business model demonstration projects. One project, known as AAraya, is an example of how Blueline seeks to combine different elements of the energy paradigm to create an efficient, sustainable system.

AAraya is designed to provide a sustainable energy source for businesses or municipalities that use a fleet of vehicles. Blueline has the capability to provide the energy, the electric vehicles and the software that enables the fleet manager to manage those vehicles on the web or any smart phone.

“AAraya is a combination of three technologies – solar electric, electric vehicles and software that enables the management of the system,” Bless said.

AAraya features a canopy of solar panels that cover a parking area. The panels generate electricity which is supplied to and credited by the local utility. The electrons generated 2-3. York School, Monterey Calif. Solar panel installations.

Photo courtesy of Blueline Power.

4. Chartwell School, Seaside Calif. Solar panel installations.

Photo by Quinn Allard.

5. Chartwell School, Seaside Calif. Solar panel installations.

Photo by Elliot Mirassou.

6. Aerial photo of the Chartwell School, Seaside Calif. This project at the Chartwell School made it the first complete LEED Platinum campus in the world.The 31kw laminate solar system provided by Blueline Power added points to the school’s LEED rating helping them achieve their Platinum rating. Photo courtesy of Blueline Power.

7

7. Chartwell School, Seaside, Calif. 6th Grade student Isabel Chavez and her teacher Kris Hill pose in front of the newly installed solar panels. Photo by Sarah Austin.

Fall 2010 5

corporate profile | solar

“We import 11 million barrels of crude oil a day for a cost of $7.5 trillion a year. If we can fuel cars with solar energy then we don’t have to depend on foreign oil.”

SCHLETTER Schletter Solar Mounting Systems offers innovative product design and delivery to fulfilling its customers requirements. This is accomplished by transferring over 40 years of design, engineering and fabrication knowledge to each project. Known as a leading solar mounting system manufacturer in Europe, Schletter is also the industry’s technology innovator.

Schletter offers solutions for roof or ground mounted systems—small scale up to utility power plants—while supporting nearly every photovoltaic module manufacturer. The majority of Schletter systems are up to 70 percent preassembled in the Tucson, Ariz. factory. The result is a repeatable product with reduced cost, expedited delivery after purchase, and decreased installation time in the field. Call +1-520-289-8700 or visit www.schletter.us.

by the station are either used by the vehicles parked in a lot under the canopy or credited to the station by the utility. Bless noted that without any incentives, the cost of the canopy is less than five years worth of gasoline used in the average American vehicle. Also, nearly 80 percent of American driving is less than 40 miles per day. See www.MySolarFuel.com for more specs and information.

“We import 11 million barrels of crude oil a day for a cost of $7.5 trillion over a 10 year period,” Bless said. “If we can fuel more cars with solar energy then we don’t have to depend on foreign oil.

Moreover, the largest congregation of vehicles in the U.S. are fleets.

What if we create fleets that use plug-in electric vehicles fueled by solar energy instead? That is what AAraya does.”

The inclusion of the software assures further savings of energy because fleet managers receive a vast array of data about the vehicles including the charge of the battery, the route the driver is traveling, the speed of the vehicle, the time the vehicle arrives at a location, the maintenance needs of the vehicle, the proximity of a charging station to the location of the vehicle. This allows the fleet manager to make decisions that result in abundant savings.

Blueline uses a variety of technologies to assure that the data is gathered for the fleet manager’s analysis. This technology includes GPS and GSM systems.

“If you can measure it, then you can make it better,” Bless said. “A fleet that relies solely on gasoline or petroleum fuel could cut its fuel use by as much as 30 percent. Solar electric systems are increasing in number and can gather fuel at any reasonable location where there is sunlight. Moreover, electric vehicles are increasing in numbers as well and will change the petroleum fuel paradigm,” Bless said.

Blueline also provides solar services to schools; agricultural related business, such as wineries and organic farms; local governments and non-profit groups. Signature solar projects that Blueline has completed include the Chartwell School, Pinnacle Organic Ranch, York School, Monterey County Weekly Newspaper and the Eagle Oak Ranch.

The project at the Chartwell School made it the first LEED Platinum campus in the world. The EPA and Flex Your Power have recognized the building for its ecologically friendly design.

Pinnacle Organic Ranch, which grows 100 percent organic produce, is powered by multiple photovoltaic systems featuring five arrays installed by Blueline.

York School, a private college preparatory school in Monterey, Calif., features a similar, fully integrated Blueline system.

Monterey County Weekly, located in Seaside, Calif., is the first newspaper to be fully powered by solar energy in the U.S. and features a photovoltaic system utilizing just three solar arrays.

Before Blueline installed a solar energy system at Eagle Oak Ranch, they were using four V8 engines running on propane to irrigate pasture land. Blueline provided solar energy to all of the ranch’s power electric pumps.

It is quite apparent that Blueline Power is a leader in developing cutting edge answers to complex energy problems. ELT

BREATHE CALIFORNIA As the coordinator of Silicon Valley Clean Cities Coalition, Breathe California of the Bay Area has appreciated Ed’s service on the coalition’s board and his dedication to the Clean Cities mission. Ed has a passion for reducing US dependence on petroleum through renewable energy that is inspiring. For more information on Breathe California’s work, visit www.lungsrus.org.

6 Energy Leaders Today

solar | corporate profile

8. A solar array showing an installation without the use of a concrete foundation.

Fall 2010 7

1100 H Street NW Suite M Washington D.C. 20005 info@energyleaderstoday.com www.energyleaderstoday.com