A Marshalltown electric co-op hopes to be a nationwide example on how to use renewable energy. Brian Heithoff, the general manager of Consumers Energy, says they incorporated several renewable energy devices in their new headquarters building. He says they’ve installed two wind turbines which produce 173-kilowatts of electricity, they’ve incorporated energy efficiency technology such as geothermal heating and cooling, and some daylighting technology. Heithoff says the technology has allowed them to expand while keeping operating costs down. He says their new headquarters is two-and-a-half times their old headquarters building, and they’re using less energy in the new facility than the old because of the things they’ve done. Heithoff says they hope to be an example to other co-ops on how to use the renewable energy and energy-saving technology. He says that’s not only for co-ops, but also for homes and businesses too. He says they’re getting a lot of interest from a lot of different groups who want to tour the facility. He says they’ve been operating the new facility for six months and hope to add even more technology to be a resource for the future. Heithoff says some of the technology they’ve incorporated into their building has been around awhile, while other innovations are relatively new.
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