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SatCon Announces Over $1M in Contract Awards

SatCon Electronics, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SatCon Technology Corporation, has been awarded over $1,000,000 in contracts for Class K circuits from two major North American satellite subcontractors. These custom signal-processing devices are used in inertial navigation and guidance control computers. Managed by The Defense Supply Center Columbus (DSCC), Class K device manufacturing provides the industry’s highest quality and reliability for electronic parts through a number of specifications, standards, and test methods. Class K requirements address the special needs of space users and are a class of product routinely used in space flight hardware. SatCon Electronics is one of a select few manufacturers in the United States with Class K certification. “We are extremely pleased with our continued success and penetration in the satellite market,” said Jack Worthen, President, SatCon Electronics, “This brings our year-to-date Class K bookings total to $1.7 million. We expect Class K shipments to increase from roughly $100,000 in fiscal 2006 to over $2.0 million in fiscal 2007. By participating in this growing multi-million dollar market, we expect a significant portion of our revenue and future growth to be associated with space flight applications.” Website: http://www.satcon.com     

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Spire Expands Solar Operations in China

Spire Corporation (Nasdaq: SPIR) has appointed Silicon International Ltd. to represent Spire in photovoltaic sales and service activities in the Peoples Republic of China. Silicon International has offices in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong and joins Spire’s rapidly expanding worldwide sales and service presence. Silicon International is the most recent company to form a strong partnership with Spire to sell and support Spire’s photovoltaic production equipment around the world. Other distribution partners include Four-C-Tron in India, J.v.G. Thoma GmbH in Germany, and Wooil Hightech Co., Ltd. in Korea, in addition to Spire’s partnership with Nisshinbo Industries in Japan that includes joint research and development activities as well as sales and service. Spire has been active in sales and support of photovoltaic production equipment in China for over 20 years, and was the first to assist companies such as Hua Mei Solar, Yunnan Tianda Photovoltaic Corporation, Ningbo Solar and other pioneering companies in establishing production in China. Roger G. Little, Chairman and CEO of Spire Corporation, said, “We are pleased to enter into this relationship with Silicon International to expand our sales and service activities in the Peoples Republic of China, where there is growing interest and demand for developing solar […]

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Itron to Acquire Flow Metrix, Inc.

Itron Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI) has entered into a letter of intent (LOI) to acquire all of the outstanding capital stock of Flow Metrix, Inc. in a cash-for-stock merger. Upon successful completion of negotiations and due diligence, the parties intend to sign definitive agreements and complete the transaction in the fourth quarter of 2006. Financial terms for the transaction were not disclosed. Flow Metrix is a developer and manufacturer of advanced leak detection systems for underground pipelines. Its MLOG(TM) leak detection system uses acoustic sensors to detect water loss from water distribution systems. A typical Flow Metrix installation ratio is one MLOG sensor for every ten water meters. Automatic meter reading (AMR) systems gather the data while reading water meters. MLOG software is used to analyze the data collected and provide the utility with intelligent analysis to pinpoint leaks. There are over 900,000 miles of buried water pipe in the United States. It is estimated that public water systems typically lose 10% or more of their treated water through pipeline leaks. “The economic cost to U.S. utilities and their customers of lost water is estimated to be over $2 billion annually,” said Malcolm Unsworth, senior vice president of hardware solutions for Itron. […]

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California Senate Passes Million Solar Roofs Bill

After two long years, the Million Solar Roofs bill, SB 1 (Murray), passed the Senate Floor yesterday by a vote of 36 to 4, clearing the state legislature and heading to the governor’s desk for his up or down approval. “With this bill, California will get busy building a million solar roofs,” said Bernadette Del Chiaro, clean energy advocate for Environment California. “It has been an incredibly long haul for this particular bill and we, first and foremost, commend Senator Murray for tirelessly championing it for the past three years.” The Million Solar Roofs bill, SB 1, contains three main policies intended to accompany the California Solar Initiative established by the Public Utilities Commission in January to provide rebates for ratepayers in PG&E, Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric territories. The policies contained in SB 1 include: o Lift on net metering cap enabling consumers to receive a credit on their electric bill for excess energy generated by their solar system. Current law caps the number of customers in each utility territory to 0.5% of a utility’s total load. SB 1 would lift this cap to 2.5%. An estimated 5% lift is ultimately needed to build a […]

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New Energy Performance Standards Will Lead to Better Plant Efficiency

The first-ever energy efficiency ratings for corn refineries and cement plants will enable those industries to cut energy usage, save money and prevent greenhouse gases. The plant Energy Performance Indicators (EPIs) made available today by EPA as part of a national energy performance rating system, are the first of their kind for these manufacturing facilities. They provide critical information for driving energy savings by enabling the comparison of energy efficiency for a specific facility in the United States to that of the entire industry. “By making smart energy choices, millions of Americans are saving billions each year,” said EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson. “President Bush and EPA are improving our nation’s environmental and energy outlook, in part, by offering leading U.S. industries efficiency solutions that make sense for our environment and their bottom lines.” U.S. cement manufacturers and corn refiners spend more than $2 billion annually for 626 trillion british thermal units of energy. If energy use for both of these industries was reduced by 3 percent, the energy saved could produce electricity for 187,000 households – preventing the emissions of more than 3 billion pounds of greenhouse gases. Based on the input of simple plant-level information, the energy efficiency […]

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It's Getting Easier to Be Green

By William Neuman, August 13, 2006 THEY are not yet as ubiquitous as the Toyota Prius, the hybrid car popular among the ecologically minded, but “green” apartment buildings have begun popping up around Manhattan. At least six large buildings designed to meet elevated standards for energy efficiency and for the use of environmentally friendly materials have opened in the last three years, and several more are under construction or being planned. The green designation is conferred on buildings that incorporate recycled or renewable materials and that slash energy use and water consumption with features like photovoltaic cells, internal sewage treatment systems and roofs covered in soil and vegetation. Developers say they are building green because they believe in it, but they also expect to gain a competitive edge. If faced with the choice of renting or buying two similar apartments, the developers say, consumers increasingly will opt for the one with green features, even if it comes at a higher price. “We think it’s important to do, and we think that other buildings that don’t do this will become obsolete, and our buildings will continue to maintain their value,” said Douglas Durst, who built 4 Times Square, a pioneering green […]

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