Media Contact: Scott Reigstad (608) 458-3145
Company used WPL Shared Savings program to purchase wood waste boiler, go green
MADISON, WI – April 17, 2009 – In the middle of 2008, Reedsburg Hardwoods decided it wanted to reduce its energy cost by taking advantage of a plentiful by-product of its own manufacturing process: wood waste. At the time, the company was using two natural gas-fired boilers and one wood waste boiler to process steam for its kilns, steamers and dryers. While the lumber mill was already powering about two-thirds of its processing operation with the wood waste boiler, it had more wood waste available to do more and wanted to effectively eliminate the use of natural gas for its wood processing energy demands.
“We really saw a great opportunity for our company to move toward completely using a renewable resource to power our lumber mill process,” said Doug Hilber, Reedsburg Hardwoods Facility Manager. “With the excess wood waste we generate and had available on and off-site, it made sense to look at purchasing a larger capacity wood waste boiler that could handle processing steam for all of our lumber mill process now and into the future.”
As with any business, cash is important and paying for the new wood waste boiler and the other upgrades needed to support it, would take upfront dollars before the long-term energy-efficiency gains could be realized. That’s where Wisconsin Power and Light’s (WPL’s) Shared Savings program stepped in to assist the company.
The Shared Savings program is an initiative that assists industrial, commercial and agricultural customers with identification and implementation of energy efficiency projects – and invests the capital to finance them. The program’s low-interest financing, and ability to repay the loan using the energy savings, is attractive to many businesses.
“I met with Doug several times and we looked at what type of boiler and other equipment would be needed to improve the natural gas energy efficiency of their lumber mill process,” said Mary Eiler-Radl, Alliant Energy Strategic Account Manager. “It turned out that the purchase of a new, higher-capacity wood waste boiler and other related equipment could accomplish that goal. The project was a perfect fit for our Shared Savings program and we were able to quickly pull the financing together.”
By the end of 2008, a new 307-horsepower wood boiler, soot blowers, two kilns, a steamer and vacuum dryer were installed at Reedsburg Hardwoods with the help of financing through the Shared Savings program. With the new equipment, it is estimated that Reedsburg Hardwoods is reducing their annual natural gas use by nearly 403,000 therms per year, the equivalent of removing the annual greenhouse gas emissions of 369 passenger vehicles from our roadways or removing the carbon dioxide emissions from the energy use of 183 homes for one year. In addition to the positive environmental impact of the project, the company is also seeing bottom line benefit by realizing an annual savings of approximately $416,000 on its energy bill.
“Reedsburg Hardwood has a strong belief in sustaining our natural resources and in taking care of the world around us,” added Hilber. “We are proud to be using a renewable resource to power our lumber mill process and the funds from the Shared Savings program made it possible for us to make these investments that will benefit our business, our customers, and the planet for years to come.”
Reedsburg Hardwoods is a subsidiary of Maple Grove, Minnesota-based Midwest Hardwood Corporation. Midwest Hardwood Corporation is a fully integrated hardwood lumber and distribution company serving secondary wood products manufacturers and hardwood distributors worldwide. Combined, the firm’s eight companies offer forest management services, logs, green and kiln dried domestic and exported hardwood lumber, plywood and panel products, laminates and hardware.
Through its Shared Savings program, Wisconsin Power and Light Company, an Alliant Energy company, has helped thousands of Wisconsin business and farm customers cut energy usage, save money and preserve precious natural resources for over 20 years. More than 2.1 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity have been saved over the last seven years with the program – that’s equal to the energy produced by a 280-megawatt power plant.
Business and farm customers interested in the low-cost financing available through WPL’s Shared Savings program are encouraged to visit http://www.alliantenergy.com/sharedsavings or call 1-866-ALLIANT (255-4268) for more information.
