projects
Fletcher Cemetery Memorial
Ceremonial placement of a wreath at the base of the Veterans Memorial on Memorial Day 2014
Becky and I attended the Memorial Day service at the Fletcher Cemetery just outside Hamlet yesterday. It was a very respectful service and I was pleased that they had a reasonably good turnout with a spread of ages. Thank you to the veterans there and across the nation for their service. I spoke to one of the veterans that said he had war veteran family members in that cemetery dating back the the Civil War and the Spanish American War. That is a lot of history for a small cemetery in rural Indiana.
The service included reading a well written letter from Indiana State Senator Arnold, a traditional 21 gun salute and the playing of taps. It was all well done and we were glad we went.
Country Auto Center Facade Renovation
What a difference a week makes. Last week the EFIS crew was finishing up with the base material. (See Below) This week we have the finish coat in place. Is that Blue or is that BLUE! Ha! Time to install the Chevy sign!
Shell Building Groundbreaking
I attended the groundbreaking for the new shell building in the Plymouth Industrial Park today. I got to wear multiple hats at this. Both PIDCO and MCEDC are partners in this venture and I sit on both boards. Easterday Construction Co., Inc. is doing the electrical installation for the building. There were a lot of nice words said about the project, but it’s hard to convey how much coordination went into getting all of the groups together on this. Not only PIDCO and MCEDC as listed above, but also the City of Plymouth and the Plymouth Redevelopment Commission had to come to terms on the project. It was a major effort over two years to make this happen. The building is scheduled to be complete early this Fall.
I’m hopeful that this will lead to similar projects throughout Marshall county. I have spoken to Culver about this. Argos could easily pursue this on the new Shovel Ready site they’re developing. The other Marshall County communities should be considering it as well.
For more particulars about the project, check out the MCEDC page on it here.
Interesting Streetlights
Image borrowed from webecoist.com
In doing the previous post on alternate WECS’s (Wind Energy Conversion Systems) I ran across some interesting options for street lights that are powered by wind, solar or a combination of the two. Some are more decorative than functional, but I thought they would be interesting to consider for the Sand Hill Farm project. I’ve collected a list of interesting links below showing some of the innovations that are out there. I’ve also included some pictures gleaned from the net.
E-Turbine image borrowed from alternativeenergyecogreen.blogspot.com
I also was impressed with the idea of the E-Turbine. This bollard size WECS is designed to be installed along roads and take advantage of the constant rush of air caused by passing vehicles. I would imagine these would be extremely efficient in underpasses and tunnels where that energy can be directed to the turbines and then employed to light the surrounding areas. Each Turbine has a built in battery to store the energy produced. This is similar to the idea previously posted here regarding paving tiles that steal the energy created by foot traffic.
With the currently proposed ordinance these may well be banned too. 0.5 Kilowatts (low end of proposed ordinance WECS definition) is 500 Watts. Street lights use bulbs averaging from 35 to 250 watts per hypertextbook.com That means for a fixture using bulbs at the upper end of this scale, each bulb would require its own turbine to stay under the mandated wattage.
The Flow fixture by Igen Design. Link: http://www.coroflot.com/vasquez/Flow-public-lighting-for-the-Third-World
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UGE Wind-Solar Hybrid Street Light
UGE’s whimsical Wind-Solar Hybrid Street Light. http://www.urbangreenenergy.com/solutions/wind-solar-hybrid-streetlights/how-it-works
Wind Tulip by Tuvia
Wind Tulip by Tuvie: http://www.tuvie.com/windtulip-wind-powered-street-light-that-looks-like-a-tulip-flower/
Beach Lamp by Zengzhu Deng
Beach Lamp by Zengzhu Deng. http://www.ecochunk.com/3777/2012/11/14/sea-and-land-breeze-power-the-eco-friendly-beach-lamp-concept/
Loopwing Korea’s WECS
Loopwing Korea powers clocks as well as street lights. http://www.greendiary.com/loopwing-korea-unveils-self-powered-streetlight-wind-power-generator.html
Of these, I think I like the UGE version with the banner option and wind/solar combination power. Some of the links above talk about 400 watt bulbs, but assuming there is a battery to charge too, the wattage may well exceed the 0.5 Kilowatt limitation being proposed. The wattage restriction would also limit the option of one turbine powering several lights.
The kind of creative thinking that creates these things won’t be stifled by Culver banning WECS’s. The ban just stops the use of the new technology that’s out there. This is what I tried to suggest at the Plan Commission with limited success.
Warning Sign
We have started work replacing restrooms at Saint Mary of the Lake Church in Culver. The start of work basically took the restrooms out of service. This is the sign that the Church put up to inform parishioners:
