The home of Ferreira Construction and Noveda Technologies is going one step ahead with its green building. The building uses patent-pending technology that is accessible from any computer to monitor the building's green features, such as solar panels, the building's carbon footprint, and the status of vehicles being charged with solar power, MyCentralJersey.com reports.
The building has almost 1,300 solar panels that cover about 85 percent of the roof of the 41,508 square-foot facility. The companies say the building is the first commercial building in the country to provide all the electricity it needs to run itself and more.
Edward H. Brzezowski, executive vice president and founder of Noveda Technologies, an offshoot of Ferreira that focuses on green technology, told MyCentralJersey.com that the facility has had a perfect Energy Star score and is applying for LEED certificate as an existing building.
Brzezowski says the building's carbon footprint has been cut by more than 85 percent, from 237 metric tons of CO2 annually to 34 metric tons of CO2 after using renewable energy. The green technologies not only saves the company, but also helps it generate revenue through sales of renewable energy credits.
"I pay all my utility bills, and then after that, conservatively, I generate over a $1.11 a square foot running this building per year," Brzezowski said. Without the renewable sources of energy, Ferreira would otherwise be spending about $2.31 per square foot on utility bills.
