SED Installs 25th Wind Turbine in NY

Ontario, NY – On, Tuesday, July 14th, Sustainable Energy Developments, Inc. (SED) completed the installation of a 10kW Bergey wind turbine at the residence of Steven Lay and Jody Duggan-Lay in Pavilion, NY.  The installation marks the 25th 10kW Bergey installation for the Ontario, NY based company, making SED the leading small wind turbine installer in New York State in Bergey sales and third in the country over the last five years.

SED was founded in April 2002 in order to provide professional resource assessment and development services to the emerging wind industry.  The company’s initial services included the installation of meteorological towers and site prospecting. As SED and the demand for clean, renewable wind power began to grow, the young company transitioned this expertise into an expanding niche within the wind industry – installing wind turbines to provide electricity directly to serve local energy demands.

The first wind turbine that SED helped to install was a 10kW Bergey at Apple Pond Farm in Callicoon Center, NY, during the winter of 2003. Several SED technicians participated in a hands-on workshop taught by Mick Sagrillo, the leading American expert on the installation of small wind turbine systems.  This class provided the opportunity to learn the basics of small turbine technology to complement their tower installation experience. Building upon this training, SED took on the maintenance responsibilities for several 10kW wind turbines.  These slow steps into the small wind industry allowed the company to acquire technical skills and to assess the long-term viability of the machines installed in the harsh northeastern climate.

In 2004 SED began actively promoting small wind turbine installation services. Four of SED’s technicians applied for and were granted eligibility as certified small wind turbine installers under the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) incentive program. By the summer of 2004, SED had contracted with several homeowners, as well as with the State University of New York – Morrisville, to design, permit and install 10kW wind turbines.

SED’s first 10kW Bergey wind turbine installation took place at an organic farm in Moravia, NY owned by Doug and Rose Ryan. Since that original install in the winter of 2004, SED has expanded its decentralized wind model, installing 24 more 10kW Bergey machines across the State of New York. SED is the leading small wind turbine installer in New York State and third in the country over the last five years. “SED’s history is rooted in tower erection and small wind turbine installs and we are a company which takes a lot of pride in our roots,” said Ernie Pritchard, a Founder and the Director of Small Wind at SED. “This is a huge milestone for our company, and looking forward, we plan on doubling our number of installs in half the amount of time.”

SED sells and installs Bergey Windpower’s 10kW Excel wind turbine which is manufactured in Norman, Oklahoma.  Bergey is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of small wind turbines  and with 30 years of experience  the company has installations in all 50 U.S. States and more than 100 countries.

SED’s business includes the development of large scale wind projects as well as residential-scale applications. SED has grown into the leader in community wind energy in the Northeastern United States, with more than 3 Mega-watts of installed projects that include a 1.5MW wind turbine at Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort in Hancock, MA, a 600kW wind turbine at Holy Name Junior/Senior Central Catholic High School in Worcester, MA, a 100kW wind turbine at Country Garden in Hyannis, MA and more than 250kW of small wind turbine projects in New York.