'Green' technology booms in North Bay |
Solar, Water-conservation Systems Make Environmental Tech Fastest-growing SegmentMay 7, 2007From the North Bay Business Journal By Loralee Stevens NORTH BAY - The future looks scary, but opportunities to improve it abound, say proponents of "green" technology, the fastest-growing tech segment in the North Bay. Water conservation and solar power have been of interest to residents of the counties north of the Golden Gate for decades. Technologies developed over the years by hobbyists matured into businesses, and companies that were successful at marketing their technologies are now leaders in a state that itself leads the nation in environmental awareness. "When three major drivers - economic, social and political - come into play as they have in the case of clean tech, the entrepreneurs of the area rise to the challenge," said Chris Spain, president and CEO of HydroPoint, developer of smart irrigation controllers that adjust watering based on changing weather conditions. Saving water in the drought state The company has grown from three full-time employees in an office in 2002 to 55 employees in what will soon be 15,000 square feet of office and assembly space in Petaluma. HydroPoint and 20-employee ET Water in San Rafael, with a similar technology, lead the smart irrigation industry in the U.S. Both have installations throughout the Western states. Because their satellite-fed, Web-enabled sensors can save up to 40 percent or 50 percent water used for landscaping, municipalities from Florida to Washington are now offering rebates and other incentives to residents and businesses that install them. In California, a three-year phased-in series of mandates will require separate meters for landscaping exceeding 5,000 square feet, the use of smart controllers and the banning of irrigation run-off. Every city and county in the state must pass an ordinance consistent with the state's water resources model by 2010. "There are four or five companies nationwide who are jumping into the smart controller space," said Steve Snow, vice president of marketing for ET Water. "But the primary motive of our and HydroPoint's founders was conservation, and that's why we're the leaders today," he said. Solar industry goes mainstream When federal tax incentives and state rebate programs were enacted in the 1980s, the solar industry moved into the mainstream. But the recent Federal Energy Act of 2005 and new California solar bill in 2006 kicked off a major expansion of the industry. Bay Area players were already established. SunPower Corp. of Berkeley and San Jose and SPG of San Rafael are industry leaders with installations worldwide. SPG, formerly Sun Power and Geothermal Energy Co., has grown from 22 employees in 2002 to over 100, adding 30 new hires during the last few months. The company has offices in San Diego, Oroville and a newly established presence in Sonoma County. Its founder, Dan Thompson, a long-time believer in solar energy with 25 years in the electrical industry, said in 2002 that "all the stars are aligned" for the industry and predicted his startup would go from $1.5 million then to $20 million in several years' time. In 2006, SPG had revenues of $38 million, and Mr. Thompson projects that number will grow to $65 million in 2007. "When I started SPG, the solar industry in Marin was limited to heating swimming pools. But I thought, if I can't get a photovoltaic business going here, I can't do it anywhere," he said. "Sonoma and Marin counties have been green before they knew what it meant." SPG, like many solar companies, is converting the local wine to industry to solar energy. Wineries, he said, are particularly concerned about global warming. "Energy and water are equally critical. We've invented a floatable solar installation for retention ponds that not only prevents sun from producing much of the algae growth, it produces energy to run the pumps to keep the water moving, and also does it on a part of the land that can't be used for anything else," Mr. Thompson said. "We'd like to do more to combine water quality and solar technologies." Mr. Spain of HydroPoint made a similar point. "What people in the Bay Area have is a strong comprehension of systems, and that contributes to their edge in environmental tech," he said. "You have to think of resource protection from a systemic point of view - how various technologies can work together. "Global warming and overuse of resources make a frightening scenario, but they also present an unprecedented challenge to problem solvers," said Mr. Spain. |
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