Advanced Energy Industries announced that its AE 75TX solar inverters have been selected by First Power and Light for a 147 kW solar energy system at the Mary Switzer Building, which when completed, will be the oldest federal building to use solar power in Washington. The entire system is comprised of U.S.-manufactured components and was installed by First Power and Light, a commercial, government, and large residential solar installer recently acquired by Mainstream Entertainment.
Originally built in 1939, the Mary Switzer building today houses the Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Education, among other government employees. The building was selected as a candidate for complete modernization as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which included the installation of a solar power system to help produce clean, affordable solar energy and comply with the Office of Federal High-Performance Green Buildings‘ energy efficiency standards.
As evidenced in President Barack Obama ‘s recent State of the Union address, the entire federal government is focused on embracing domestic sources of energy. And with the Department of Defense identifying climate change as a threat to national security, clean sources of renewable energy — like the solar energy system on the Mary Switzer building — are expected to be a cornerstone of this effort.
Some of the American-made components used in the Mary Switzer building solar installation include:
- AE 75TX inverters made at Advanced Energy Solar Energy’s manufacturing facility in Bend, Ore.
- System racking components manufactured by Daetwyler in Huntersville, N.C.
- Solar modules manufactured at the Motech manufacturing facility in Newark, Del.
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