Pictured in front of the new Solarflower at Sunflower Child Development & Discovery Center is Perry Novak Electric General Manager Brent Freilinger, Sunflower’s Daiton Johnson, Amy Winter, Sunflower Executive Director Holly Benda and Winneshiek County Development and Tourism Director Stephanie Fromm. (Photo by Zach Jensen)
Pictured in front of the new Solarflower at Sunflower Child Development & Discovery Center is Perry Novak Electric General Manager Brent Freilinger, Sunflower’s Daiton Johnson, Amy Winter, Sunflower Executive Director Holly Benda and Winneshiek County Development and Tourism Director Stephanie Fromm. (Photo by Zach Jensen)
As the new Sunflower Child Development & Discovery Center blooms, an extra bit of solar technology is blossoming with it.
Perry Novak Electric General Manager Brent Freilinger said that, thanks to a special grant, the newly-built structure – locally known as “Sunflower” – is the site of Iowa’s first “Smartflower” solar array; a multi-panel solar assembly fixed to one “stem,” which opens every morning, tracks the sun’s movement throughout the day and closes at night.
“The Smartflower will be a daily interest of children and their families seeing the process of opening, following the sun’s movement and closing at the end of the day,” said Sunflower Executive Director Holly Benda. “This may even inspire questions and curiosity, which are vital parts of learning.”
Freilinger said that with the combined power of the Smartflower and the solar panels on the facility’s roof, Sunflower has 210 kilowatts worth of solar power, which will help offset the majority of the facility’s power consumption.
“Sunflower was awarded a grant to help offset some of that cost, and that grant had a resiliency factor, because there are batteries and a generator interconnected with the solar,” Freilinger said. “That way, if the facility loses power, a small portion of the building would still have power.”
“The solar energy captured will be stored for emergency use in the case of power failure,” Benda added. “This will allow our center to utilize vital parts of the building to continue providing care in such events.”
John Nielsen, Perry Novak Electric, said the Smartflower is the latest development in the industry which really began growing over a decade ago.
“The solar industry started growing 12 years ago, and it’s been growing ever since,” Nielsen said. “At one point this year, we had three crews installing solar. We’ve put in more than 500 systems in the last 12 years.”
Freilinger added that nonprofits like Sunflower are eligible for a federal tax credit as an incentive to have solar power installed in their facilities. “With the tax credit, grants and the cost savings, going solar just makes sense,” he said.
The general manager said state officials are also excited about the project, because Sunflower’s Smartflower is the first of its kind to be installed in Iowa.
“The location of the Smartflower is cool, because it’s right outside the Discovery Center,” Freilinger said. “When the Discovery Center is complete, it will be open to the public, so everyone can see the Smartflower in action.”
“Sunflower tries to be diligent in using renewable resources — to be environmentally conscious as well as cost effective,” Benda said. “This whole project will be a leader in the industry. Being able to showcase a community’s commitment to a project is such a wonderful feeling.”
For more information, call Perry Novak Electric, Inc. at 563-382-2179, call the Sunflower Child Development & Discovery Center at 563-382-5717, or visit smartflower.com.
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