August 30, 2011
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E.B. Stone and Son began its operation of producing organic fertilizers and soil conditioners for flowers, fruit trees, and plant materials nearly 100 years ago. They are located just an hour’s drive outside of San Francisco,in Suisun, California. The Shiloh II, 6100 acre wind farm can be found just across the street and stands as a prime indication that they have considerable wind speeds in the area.
"Every morning I would look out the window at the vast field of wind turbines and I wanted to have one of my own. When the opportunity arose that we could tap into this resource, we jumped on it," stated the CEO, Brad Crandall Jr.
In 2006, the family-operated business underwent a drastic fire that left the entire factory burnt to the ground. Re-building from the ashes, EB Stone and Son began a whole new company model that incorporated a number of new sustainable business practices. Installing motion censored lights and skylights to reduce energy consumption in the new facility were just a start. They also began implementing some new packaging for E.B. Stone that was the first of its kind in the market. The products that E.B. Stone produces are normally packaged in non-recyclable laminated plastic bags but the company began implementing materials in their packaging that was recyclable in most programs in the country. Their packaging material is similar to that in orange juice cartons and uses ink that is less toxic zero VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds). The packaging also uses new coatings that reduce the impact on the environment. For some product lines the packaging uses 35% post consumer plastics that reduce the amount of plastic going into the landfill and consume less energy to produce. The carbon produced from the electrical energy that is used to print their boxes is even offset through their partnership with the ClimateNeutral program which allows them to support thedevelopment of alternative energies around the world.
As a further commitment to their support for alternative energies E.B. Stone installed two wind turbines for its own personal source of clean energy production. Upon measuring for appropriate wind speeds and turbulencelevels, the Endurance E-3120, the second of the two turbines, was installed and commissioned by Bill Swearingen of WPS Construction, a dealer for the leading distributor for small wind turbines in North America, Talco Electronics.
The wind turbines now produce clean, renewable energy at their facilities and have attracted like-minded customers to their products that share the same vision for a sustainable future. They have trademarked their logo for “Wind Powered Organics†and placed it on all of their bags and boxes of fertilizer. It has provided some great success in attracting new customers. Their sales for potting soils grew by 30% while sales for their line of Tomato and Vegetable Food have doubled! The first four months of the 2011 year were the biggest the company has ever had, and they set a new company sales record in the month of April of $3.2 million dollars. Overall, it has been very profitable for them and they believe the wind turbines have played a big role in stimulating this company growth.
When asked what he thought of his company’s new Endurance wind turbine, Brad Crandall Sr., the owner of EB Stone and Sons commented, "It has far exceeded my expectations! As the price of energy goes up I think it will prove to be the right move and it will also take care of our carbon footprint. Being in business, I look at things a little harder and colder. If a project pays out, then I’ve made a good investment. Bill did a wonderful job for us putting this turbine in and took care of everything we asked to do and then some. The job was professionally done. We are a busy plant and he was able to work around our needs. It is a win/win for everybody!"
In the first six months in operation the record daily output for the E-3120 is 1,203kWh, with a record monthly production of 24,229kWh. Brad Jr. states
"We are now producing more energy than we consume!" EB Stone is then paid for each kWh the turbines produce over what is consumed, and placed back on the electrical grid. Between the utility buill in May of 2010 of $5400, and this year’s bill of just $11, EB Stone and Son is expecting to eliminate their $40,000 annual electricity bill with their two wind turbines.
"Our company has been around nearly 100 years; these wind turbines will help us to continue for another 100 with minimal impact on our environment!" declared Brad Jr.
Through the installation of their two turbines and several other sustainable practices E.B. Stone has effectively increased sales and profitability while decreasing the carbon footprint of their business. They are a model of sustainable business leadership and the Endurance E-3120 is a part of the "green energy that works" at E.B. Stone and Son.
© 2012, Endurance Wind Power.
www.endurancewindpowerinc.com
Posted by admin on August 30, 2011
