Global Plastics Company Works with Southern Energy Management to Install Pilot Solar Project

May 20, 2011 - PRLog -- Mebane, NC - With the throw of a switch, a world-class plastics injection molding and assembly company is evolving into a greener business. Nypro activated a 222-kilowatt solar system and four wind turbines at its Mebane facility Thursday morning during a public ceremony. Morrisville-based Southern Energy Management (SEM) designed and installed the rooftop solar array, which consists of 1,008 REC 220-watt PV modules.

“These are the types of companies we love to work with, especially because their mission aligns with ours in a lot of ways,” said SEM commercial solar services director Eric Blomendale. “Nypro has some ambitious goals in terms of environmental sustainability, and a company of their size could have a really positive impact.”

Based in Massachusetts, Nypro is one of the 10 largest employee-owned companies in the world; it has 17,000 employees working at 45 locations in 16 countries. Corporate responsibility is a big part of Nypro’s long-term strategic plans, with a commitment to decrease greenhouse gas emissions through improved operational efficiency and the use of clean, renewable energy resources. The solar array and wind turbines in Mebane are the first renewable energy installations Nypro has approved so far.

“This project is a pilot program to adapt renewable energy to plastics manufacturing. Our long-term goal is to power all Nypro Packaging operations with renewable energy,” said Paul Kayser, Group President for Nypro Packaging.

The combined energy from the solar and wind installations is expected to generate enough power to offset the electricity used by six of Nypro’s 200-ton injection molding machines, which are typically used to make plastic packaging and medical products.

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http://www.southern-energy.com Southern Energy Management is a North Carolina-based sustainable energy company offering energy efficiency, green building and turn-key solar services for homeowners, builders, companies, government and military clients across the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic. A certified B Corp, SEM's mission is to have a measurable impact on reducing greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change, and to build a sustainable triple-bottom-line company. SEM was founded in a living room in Raleigh in 2001, and now employs a team of more than 90 sustainable energy professionals. SEM is consistently recognized as an industry leader both locally and nationally, and is among a small handful of companies in the U.S. to earn the National Energy Star Partner of the Year award five times (in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 & 2011). SEM also received the City of Raleigh 2011 Environmental Stewardship Award and the 2010 Green Jobs Award from SJF Institute & Green For All.