June 10, 2008--From a story in The Bellingham Herald, SPIE has installed a new solar electric system on the roof of its Bellingham headquarters. The system, installed by Ecotech Energy Systems of Bellingham, is the largest solar-electricity-generating installation in Whatcom County, according to Ecotech owner Dana Brandt.

The system will include 75 solar panels and will generate around 15,700 kilowatt hours per year. Brandt said the perception that northwest Washington state is too cloudy for solar electricity generation to be effective is mistaken.

"Our long, sunny summer days more than make up for our short, rainy days in the winter," he said. "Bellingham receives more hours of sun than most of Germany, the country with the world's largest solar energy market."

For more information, visit www.spie.org.

Mon Jun 09 21:04:00 CDT 2008