Ford Dealer Reduces Overhead by Installing Solar Energy System

Organization:

Weikert Ford – Lake Whales, FL

Industry: Auto Dealer

Introduction:
Weikert Ford is the local Ford dealership in Lake Whales, Florida. They sell and lease new Ford automobiles, as well as pre-owned Ford vehicles. They also have a Ford Service Department where they provide state of the art service to customers in Lake Whales and the surrounding area.

Opportunity:
Bob Weikert, owner of Weikert Ford, has a keen business sense. He is always looking for ways to reduce his operating expenses, increase his margins and improve his company’s image. After researching solar PV systems for a while, he realized installing a system on his business would help him achieve all three of those goals.

Solution:

QuickBeam Energy installed a 25kW solar PV system on the roof of Weikert Ford. The system was mounted on his standing seam roof utilizing clamps, which required no penetrations to the roof. Bob Weikert is so excited about solar energy that he also installed a solar system in his home.

Benefits:
The Weikert Ford system will produce a minimum of 3,156 kilowatt hours of electricity a month

This represents as much as $500 a month in power savings
30% grant from the Federal Government
$100,000 rebate from the State of Florida
The building consumes its power from the solar system, reducing its utility expenses and peak charges. Some days, when the system produces more than the building consumes, the excess electricity is put back into the electric grid, effectively causing their power meter to spin backwards.

Project Details
Location: Lake Wales, FL Installation Date: June, 2009 System Size: 25kW Number of solar panels: 122 Solar panel model: Evergreen ESA-250-fa3 Inverter Manufacturer: SMA Sunny Boy Mounting Equipment: Unirac Estimated Payback: 3.5 years