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Dealer���s Notebook The Hubert Company���s Latest Green Initiative is Proof that it���s Serious about its Commitment to Global Responsibility By Stacy War d, Man agin g Editor fedastacy@ izon .n et ver few steps into the lobby of the visitor���s entrance at the Hubert Co., is yet another reminder of the distributor���s stance on green, a practice it takes very seriously and equates with corporate responsibility���opposed to a trendy marketing ploy or a few notches on a do-good meter. The proof is on its website, where Hubert posts a fourtiered declaration of corporate consciousness that touts its commitment to its customers, its vendors, its employees and the environment. Next to it sits a link to a 70-page report detailing how its parent company, German firm TAKKT, ���plans to become a worldwide role model in sustainability.��� As part of its sustainability plan���the latest and greatest verbiage to supplant green���Harrison, Ohio-based, Hubert recycles more than 140 tons of corrugated cardboard and 22 tons of shrink film, uses 100 percent recyclable shipping cartons, whenever possible, and made the switch eons ago from high-pressure sodium lighting to T8���s throughout its 500,000-square-foot warehouse. Upping the ante just last March, it celebrated the completion of a nearly $3 million solar rooftop installation project, making it A one of the largest of its kind in Ohio. Other large-scale solar installation systems in the area include the Cincinnati Zoo and the Duke Energy Convention Center in downtown Cincinnati. Two 40-inch Samsung TV monitors��� one hanging in the visitors lobby and another in the employee lobby���displays real-time data lauding the energy savings recouped from the 3,840 solar panels covering an area about the size of two football fields over Hubert���s warehouse. According to the monitors, the system has already surpassed expectations by producing more than the projected annual output of 1,039,000 kilowatt hours of energy, or enough to generate 28 percent of Hubert���s electricity needs on an annual basis. ���It���s been a win-win for us,��� says Vice President of Operations Tim Lansing, alluding to everything from the sizeable federal grant the distributor received to help pay for the project to the surprisingly hitch-free installation process, handled by local roofer Ameridian Specialty Services. ���We had the mildest winter in 25 years,��� he says. ���Whereas we were expecting delays, they were able to work every day and had us up and running ahead of schedule. We���ve already hit our yearly projections and everything we collect until the end of March is just icing on the cake.��� The Benefits of Green Clean energy first became a topic of interest in 2009, when Hubert realized that it would eventually have to cover its aging metal roof with a new rubber membrane. ���Some of the sections were 20 plus years old and there was some buckling and leakage issues,��� says Lansing. ���One of the companies that bid on the project, Ameridian, also happened to have a solar division. At that time, we asked for some ballpark pricing on solar panels, got the information and put it on the back burner.��� In 2011, when Hubert finally decided to move forward with the new roof, it submitted a funding request for both the roof and the solar installation project to TAKKT. Lansing is not so sure an American company would have been as eager to give the nod on a project that called for a six-year wait before seeing a payback. ���In Europe, they���re big on green, so having German ownership probably helped in getting it approved,��� he says. ���TAKKT has really been highly supportive of sustainability and corporate responsibility.��� Hubert has made its own strides in green since installing its 979.2 kw solar continued on page 34 Clean Energy���s ROI The Hubert Co.���s 979.2 kw solar PV system includes state-of-the-art tracking, which allows it to monitor the amount of energy generated from computer screens throughout the building. The data above, available at http://live.deckmonitoring.com/?id=hubert, is a great example of clean energy���s impact on the environment. 32 FEDA New s & View s