Bay Area food distributor gets distributed solar

Management at Fremont, California’s First World Asian Trading, a food distribution company with roots in the Bay Area for more than 30 years, had set their minds on solar power for sustainability. Sustainability of their electrical costs and financial strength, that is.

With enormous commercial refrigerators, HVAC systems and equipment needed to run their factory day in and day out, electrical costs were spiraling out of control until they contacted Vista Solar to discuss adding solar to their 110,000 square-foot facility.

Cost-effective solar

Having worked with many food distributors before, the Vista Solar team is familiar with the high demands the facilities require. To get control over the electrical costs, the facility called for a 262 kW system. They outfitted the building with 860 Canadian Solar 305-watt modules, feeding power to nine roof-mounted Sunny Tripower 24000TL-US inverters to ensure compliance with NEC 690.12 rapid shutdown requirements.

By choosing the Sunny Tripower, the Vista Solar team was comfortable with the inverter’s design flexibility to avoid rooftop obstructions, simple installation process and proven reliability. Another benefit is the inverter’s 1,000V capabilities, allowing further design and system benefits.

Powerful results

First World’s power demands were cut by 99 percent, presenting the company with more than $80,000 in savings the first year alone and a full system payback in less than four years. The system will produce 400,000 kWh of power and offset 194 tons of carbon dioxide annually over its 25-year lifespan.

Previous installations in the Fremont-area have given Vista Solar’s team insight into working within this notoriously stringent AHJ territory. Its careful considerations when designing the system, including the inverter’s ability to mount within 10 feet of the array, made for an easy commissioning process and making for happy customers.