A new solar power project at Guido’s north side headquarters takes advantage of its location along a flight path to the San Antonio International Airport.
Guido recently had an 85-kilowatt solar power system installed on the roof a building at the general contractor’s office on Vidor Avenue.
Sitting just across Loop 410 from the San Antonio airport, Guido capitalized on its location to create a solar billboard. The renewable energy project — which spells out the company’s name in solar panels — is only partially visible from the street but can be seen by airplane passengers arriving or departing along the airport’s southwest flight path.
San Antonio-based Guido Construction has gone solar with a creative design for an array atop its headquarters.
“We didn’t go for a typical array,” Guido Project Manager Cosmo Guido said. “Because of our close proximity to the airport, my father had the foresight to see this building is a marketing opportunity for us. It’s essentially free advertising for us.”
Installed as part of an expansion of the company’s headquarters and renovation work to fix roof damage from San Antonio’s April 2016 hail storm, the solar power system was designed to offset about one-third of the company’s power demand.
Guido tapped the San Antonio office of Freedom Solar Power for $212,000 project, which used SunPower solar panels and SMA inverters. After a $61,000 rebate from city-owned utility company CPS Energy, a 30 percent federal tax credit and tax deductions for asset depreciation, the project’s annual savings of $12,000 are expected pay off in about five and a half years.
Freedom Solar Power Sales Director Kyle Frazier told the Business Journal that the project provided some unique engineering challenges. Due to the design of the building’s metal roof, solar installers could not drill into the rooftop so they had to use ballasts and clamps that hooked onto the edges of the rooftop. The system’s design is rated to withstand 120 mph winds.
However, when it came to spelling out out the company’s name, Frazier said there was some debate about whether to use the panels themselves for the letters or to use a design where negative space would do it.
“We went back and forth on how it would look from an airplane,” Frazier said. “It turned out to be a very fun project to work on.”
Guido CEO Maryanne Guido said the company views the solar project as one part of its long-term business plan.
Maryanne Guido is CEO of San Antonio-based Guido & Companies Inc. Guido & Companies INC.
On the sustainability side, the Guido campus includes a compressed natural gas fueling station that powers eight CNG-powered forklifts and one CNG-powered vehicle as well as a charging station for a company-owned electric vehicle. Keeping future growth in mind, the campus renovation also included remodeling the entire electrical system laying the ground work for future solar projects.
“We’ve here for the long haul,” Maryanne said. “We’ve been here for 90 years and we’re going to be here for another 90 years. Solar just seemed liked a good investment.”