Solar Energy Gets Smarter (Manhattan)

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http://www.carbonfree.co.uk/cf/news/wk44-0003a.htm

Telkonet has announced that it has completed the installation of the Telkonet Smart Energy system, an innovative energy management and control system, at The Octagon, a 500-unit luxury, eco-friendly apartment complex on New York’s Roosevelt Island. The Telkonet Smart Energy system measures the amount of energy generated from solar panels mounted on the property’s roof towers and, using the Telkonet iWire System, it transports the collected data over the building’s internal electrical wiring, eliminating the need to run costly dedicated cabling.

Becker and Becker Associates of Fairfield, CT, developer and architect of The Octagon, installed 240 solar panels capable of generating up to 50 kilowatts – enough to power common areas, including lights, mechanical systems and elevators. The solar panels, which constitute the largest photovoltaic array in Manhattan, will reduce the building’s electricity costs and demand significantly, enabling The Octagon to become more energy efficient.

Bruce Becker, President of Becker and Becker Associates and Managing Member of The Octagon LP, commented, “Educating building users about energy use and conservation is a key aspect of sustainable development. Telkonet’s success in designing and building our energy management system exceeded our expectations towards this end.”

Telkonet’s energy management and control system enables the energy output from The Octagon’s solar panels to be monitored remotely and on-site, by building management as well as the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). NYSERDA awarded The Octagon $250,000 in funding to support the installation of the electricity generating solar panels, with the funding being dependent on the project meeting specific performance criteria. To collect the funding from NYSERDA, The Octagon has to demonstrate how much energy is being generated from the solar panels.

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