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Local 332, San Jose, CA, BM Terry Tanner, right and Pres. Gerald Pfeiffer, left, with San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales at a recent press conference designating their hall as a "green building."

Part 3:  IBEWs San Jose Union Hall in the Limelight

June 2001 IBEW Journal

On March 15, IBEW members installed nearly 200 PowerGuard roofing tiles at our new union hall, which will result in the generation of about 30,000 kilowatt-hours per year for three decades, said Business Manger Tanner. The cost of the solar panels will be recouped in lower power bills and rebates offered by the state of California and Pacific Gas and Electric Company, he added.

San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales and the San Jose City council have designated the Local 332 facility as a green building model. A televised press conference was held March 14 at our new building, said Tanner. Mayor Gonzalez spoke before KN-TV, ABC-TV and various radio stations, and recognized our local for installing the first commercial solar electric system in San Jose.

The mayor lauded the IBEWs public-minded initiative, noting that the IBEW San Jose facility will serve as a showcase illustrating environmentally responsible technologies that can be incorporated into future construction projects, as well as retrofits to existing buildings.

 IBEWs [building] will serve as a model of energy efficiency and on-site electricity generationa cornerstone of San Joses aggressive efforts to reduce energy consumption ..., Mayor Gonzalez told the media. This project is very consistent with our principal energy management goal, which is to develop practical strategies to achieve a more reliable energy system and greater energy self-sufficiency for our entire region. San Jose, in close partnership with our creative and entrepreneurial business community, is working very hard to achieve long-lasting energy reliability with smart energy solutions like this one, solutions that balance supply, conservation, and protection of neighborhoods.

The Local 332 facility has 4,200 square-feet of photovoltaic panels on the roof, with BIPV skylights and photovoltaics on the shading devices at the entries. The  solar power array will generate 55 percent of the buildings electrical requirements, according to Local 332 Project Manager James. The solar panels on the 29,000 square foot building will put out 35 kilowatts of power on a sunny day, he said.

In 1999, Local 332 graduates of a JATC solar training program installed a 4-kilowatt solar PV system on the roof of the Santa Clara County Electrical Training Center [See IBEW-Certified Solar Installers, IBEW Journal, October 1999, p. 5].

[ To Part 4 ]