April 27, 2023 – Solar Project Pipeline Fireside Chat – 2-3pm

Learn more and register: https://secure.everyaction.com/OrFi4HOHqEWvb-vgnWtlxg2

This event is for a specific audience of government officials, economic development practitioners and others in our partner networks with direct interest in the topic. Please feel free to forward to your networks!

Guest speakers:

-Jacob Hannah, Coalfield Development, West Virginia

-Flore Marion & Will Bernstein, City of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

-Mayor Steve Patterson, City of Athens Ohio

-Others TBD

May 24, 2023 – Green Build United’s 2023 Sustainability Symposium

Our partners at Green Build United are promoting their 2023 Sustainability Symposium taking place at Drexel University.

This year’s Symposium will cover topics including innovative green building, sustainability and industry best practices, city-level decarbonization, public funding and financing, community climate resiliency, integrated building design, indoor air quality, Passive House, Living Building Challenge, green stormwater infrastructure, legislation, and so much more! Attendees will hear directly from experts across our region and beyond in discussion around new projects, opportunities for social, environmental, and economic impact, and how communities are applying innovative solutions throughout the sustainability field.

Learn more and REGISTER

February 28, 2023 – [See the recorded presentation!] 11th Annual Energy Briefing – 8:15-10:30 a.m.

The SEI Energy Briefing took place 2/28/2023. View the presentations on SEI You Tube Channel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDY_1uqrAKE

Learn more and register

Stay on top of the ever-changing energy market with SEI! Join us to explore the impacts of the IRA funding on various energy projects.

Hear from leaders in the energy field on such topics as:

  • Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)
    • EV vehicle deployment
    • distributed generation
    • impact onsite energy efficiency projects
    • investments into energy and climate change
  • Combined Heat & Power, Solar and Geothermal systems

Who should attend:

Those interested in the state of the national, regional, and local energy economy, facilities managers, energy professionals, project & property developers, municipal developers and job seekers.

Event Agenda: 

8:15 to 8:30 a.m. – Check-in, networking and light breakfast.

8:30 to 10:00 a.m. – Program followed by Q & A

Continue the discussion until 10:30 a.m. and be present for a chance to win a Google Nest, compliments of Emergent Energy Solutions!

Presenters:

Tom Bonner (Sr. Manager, State Government Affairs; PECO)Tom will speak broadly about EV Vehicles and the impact of the IRA on this market.

Steven Mathews (Sales Engineer; Kinsley Energy Systems) Steven will provide a summary of CHP and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).

Mark Connolly (Energy Engineer; RER Energy) Mark’s presentation will explain what some of the IRA impacts are on the solar industry.

Learn more and register

11th Annual Energy Briefing – Presenter Bios

Tom Bonner, Sr. Manager, State Government Affairs – PECO

Tom Bonner serves as Manager, State Government Affairs for PECO, with primary responsibility for analyzing the impact of federal, state and local policy challenges on the company and leading internal teams to develop climate & clean energy policy and business solutions.  During his time with PECO, Mr. Bonner has focused on both policies and programs advancing new technologies, including serving as the lead author of PECO’s successful $200 million Smart Grid Investment Grant application with the U.S. Department of Energy.  In addition to representing PECO in numerous state and local stakeholder forums, he currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Eastern PA Alliance for Clean Transportation and the Transportation Management Agency of Chester County.

Prior to coming to PECO in 2007, he served as Manager, Congressional Relations for MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company for more than a decade, and as Associate Director of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Washington, DC office.  From 1991-1995, he worked in the U.S. House of Representatives as a senior legislative staffer.  Tom holds a Master of Planning Degree from the University of Virginia and a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania.

Steven Mathews, Sales Engineer – Kinsley Energy Systems

Steven Mathews is a sales engineer at Kinsley Energy Systems, a turnkey supplier of packaged CHP systems and maintenance services. He is responsible for integrating CHP systems into the onsite energy infrastructure of new and existing facilities. With the passing of the Inflation Reduction Act, he focuses on new microgrid projects at hospitals, WWTPs, military bases, manufacturing facilities, and other C&I campuses. Steven is based in Philadelphia and is an active member of several of the city’s energy-focused networking organizations.

Mark Connolly, Energy Engineer – RER Energy

Mark Connolly is also the President of The Phoenixville Green Team

January 24, 2023 – 2018 Building Codes Training for Commercial and Residential Users – 8:00 a.m.

This workshop is designed for home builders, contractors, manufacturers, HVAC mechanical engineers, distributors, architects, code officers and municipalities.

Program modules include

  • PA Building Energy Code Highlights – History, Current, and Future
  • IECC for PA – Commercial Codes
  • IECC For PA – Residential Codes

Learn more and register

Who should attend:

The comprehensive installation workshop is designed for GSHP installers, contractors, dealers, home builders, manufacturers, distributors, architects, heating cooling mechanical engineers, trenching/water well drilling contractors, and anyone who desires a working knowledge of this innovative technology.

Instructor BIOS

Steve Krug, AIA

Steve Krug is Principal at Krug Architects, an acknowledged leader in developing over $500M sustainable net-zero designs and carbon-neutrality plans, including award winning projects such as the West Chester University Student Recreation Center. Mr. Krug attended Syracuse University for Bachelor of Architecture, and Penn State AE for graduate studies focused on energy conservation. Subsequently, he was an Adjunct Professor of Architecture at Penn State. He has dedicated his career to energy efficiency and serves Chair of the Smart Energy Initiative of the CCEDC, a member of the Chester County Environmental and Energy Advisory Board appointed by the County Commissioners, and as Chair of the Pennsylvania Climate Change Advisory Committee, appointed by the Governor of Pennsylvania.

Steve is also Co-Founder of CHP-Funder.com., which is a web-based platform that simplifies the financing of CHP projects. The database matches CHP applicants with suitable CHP funders. https://chp-funder.com/has grown word-wide and has streamlined the deployment of energy efficient CHP and other energy efficiency improvements. Steve is also Co-Founder of www.WorldCogenerationDay.org, www.WorldGeothermalEnergyDay.org, and has strategic alliances with Krug Resources Group, a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE).

Mike Turns, Director of Energy Code Services

Mike has been with PSD for over nine years, managing several residential new construction and energy code support programs. Mike manages the implementation of energy code training and support services across four states throughout the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast. He is an expert in the International Energy Conservation Code and has developed and taught numerous training programs in several states under a variety of code versions. He has over 15 years of energy code training experience and has presented at national conferences like the RESNET, HPC, DOE National Energy Codes, and AESP conferences. Prior to joining PSD, he was the Associate Director of the Pennsylvania Housing Research Center (PHRC) at Penn State University, where he managed the largest provider of residential building code training in Pennsylvania. Mike has a master’s degree from Penn State with a thesis focused on assessing and reducing energy consumption in new homes.

Adam Smith, Energy Codes Specialist

Adam Smith is an Energy Code Specialist for PSD.  He has over two decades of experience in the facilities and project management field, including full oversight and completion of large construction capital projects.  Most recently, he worked for Camphill Ghent, a Gold LEED certified retirement community in the Hudson Valley, where he supervised all facilities and grounds projects and wastewater treatment plant, ensuring compliance with NYS Department of Health, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation and local building codes.  Adam has served in the volunteer fire department for over 30 years, most recently at Ghent Fire Department, holding the office of First Lieutenant.

December 8, 2022 – Chester County Solar Stakeholders Roundtable – 2:00 PM – 4:45 PM

Learn more and save a spot! 

The intersection of widespread corporate ESG goals and expanded funding for renewable energy has generated significant interest in solar power. Chester County’s Environmental and Energy Advisory Board seeks to better understand the current barriers within the solar installation landscape so it can advise the County on pathways to advance the adoption of solar energy and leverage all available resources. This series of topical panel discussions with local solar stakeholders aims to identify barriers to increased adoption of on-site solar (or other distributed energy, including energy storage) in Chester County. Suggested actions made through these discussions will be compiled by the Environmental and Energy Advisory Board.

**Panelists should attend in person. Attendees may attend in person or virtually via Teams. A Teams link will be provided in your confirmation email.

December 8, 2022 – Instructor Bios – Geothermal Service and Installation Training at CCEDC

Mike Hammond – Creative Energy

Mike Hammond started in the HVAC early in life at 16 years old. He started working for a company in their sheet metal shop and delivering materials to jobsites and slowly became more involved in installation and service.  Later, Mike went on to own his own business for years – installing equipment and started to specialize in geothermal installations and service in the early 1990’s. Then in 2009 he made a decision to join ClimateMaster to be a trainer, traveling the country to train distributors and dealers on service and installation of geothermal equipment.  In 2022 I left ClimateMaster and joined Creative Energy.

Fred Umble – Creative Energy

Fred Umble has supported the geothermal industry while working in the marketing department at PPL from 1991 until 1995, when he started Creative Energy Distributors.  Creative Energy started out as a Command-Aire distributor.  Climatemaster was added as a second line in 2002, and Hydron Module was added to their line in 2010.  Fred has supported his dealers with design, tech support and training for the past 27 years.  His system designs have ranged in size from small residential up to 170 tons.