GREENVILLE, S.C.—Windsor/Aughtry Company announced an agreement with FLS Energy to provide solar hot water technology for the new Courtyard Marriott hotel at the intersection of Main and Broad Streets in downtown Greenville, S.C. This marks the first Marriott property in the United States to boast a commercial-scale solar hot water system. The plan includes 60 solar panels that have been installed to heat 2,900 gallons of hot
water a day for the hotel. The hotel is scheduled to open late this month or early May.
According to Paul C. “Bo” Aughtry, III, principal with Windsor/Aughtry Company, this environmentally sustainable venture represents an investment of a quarter of a million dollars.
“Our intention is to make environmentally friendly choices where possible and when financially feasible,” Aughtry said. “It is our hope that the solar panels will have paid for themselves within five or six years. After payback, the sun will be heating nearly a million gallons of water a year for free. This is a very big investment for us and a significant milestone for Marriott. We hope to be the first of many hotels that will make this environmentally sensitive move.”
Largest System in South Carolina
According to John Clark, director of South Carolina’s Energy Office, Windsor/Aughtry’s latest hotel development in downtown Greenville is the largest commercial domestic solar water heating system in South Carolina.
“The Courtyard Marriott at Main and Broad is setting a new standard for developers,” Clark said. “This project demonstrates that renewable energy can be affordable and reliable while protecting the environment at the same time.”
Frank Marshall, director of sales and marketing with FLS Energy, the company which designed and will install the solar solution, was impressed with Windsor/Aughtry’s commitment to environmental stewardship.
“We are at the dawn of the solar age,” Marshall said. “The folks at Windsor/Aughtry are taking the lead in South Carolina and in the Southeast. Their commitment to solar and a green hotel is creating jobs, reducing pollution, and reducing their energy costs. You can’t beat that!”
Works With Existing Water Heating System
The design for the new Courtyard’s hot water system includes a cutting-edge solar hot water heating system that pre-feeds the hotel’s conventional water heating system.
“The conventional system will make hot water on a rainy day,” Marshall said. “But as long as the sun shines, it’s like money falling from the sky.”
Marshall estimates that Windsor/Aughtry’s investment in a solar hot water solution will save 6132 therms of energy per year. Assuming a therm of energy costs roughly $1.10, that equates to $8,400.00 dollars saved each year. He says that the payback for the system is estimated at six years when taking into account the energy savings, federal tax incentives, accelerated depreciation and potential renewable energy credits. In addition to the solar hot water system, Windsor/Aughtry has installed infrastructure to allow for additional solar energy solutions in the future, if it becomes financially feasible.
“We have designed the building so that we can add photovoltaic panels down the road to generate electricity from the sun,” Aughtry said.
Go to Windsor/Aughtry Company and FLS Energy.
