Sunshine powers Document Warehouse
Seven-year journey ends with self-sufficiency
Information storage specialists run solely off solar powered electricity.
The Document Warehouse has fully switched over to solar-generated electricity.
Since its inception in 2006, the innovative organisation has often led the way in information management, but managing director Wouter van Zijl could not wait forever to bring his experience with solar water heaters from the eighties to bear on the ever-accelerating race for efficiency.
Seven years ago, the organisation began installing solar panels on the roof, and as of this month, it expects to pay the City of Windhoek municipality zero dollars for grid electricity.
The Document Warehouse now produces all the power it needs.
According to Van Zijl, it’s important to begin by reducing an organisation’s energy consumption. This includes replacing inefficient bulbs with energy-saving alternatives, eliminating the use of heaters and instead providing jackets, blankets and gloves.
“When we brought in solar, we were still connected to the grid, but as the business expanded, we had more people, more computers and everything, so we started logging the electricity usage. We did the sums and worked out what it would take to meet the load using solar,” he explained.
During the seven years, they carefully monitored the in-house system.
While connected to the grid, power failures would mean work stoppage, despite the supply of solar electricity, as the network was needed to make the system live. “Now we are in our own world; we make our own energy, and we consume it as well,” Van Zijl said.
“Despite power failures, we can still do the work,” he added.
A vision
Once the initial investment had been paid off, new investments were justified, and Document Warehouse decided to “go as energy efficient as possible,” he said.
Employees have since joined the "war on energy waste" within the 26 metre-high specialised warehouse, embracing efforts to “make the energy your own” and to “stand on your own legs,” he explained.
The first two phases of solar panel installation, first reaching 17 kW peak and later up to 25 kW peak, cost the company an investment of about N$500 000. According to Van Zijl, financing was not a big problem.
“It is not difficult to get the money if you can demonstrate that it is a feasible scheme and you use the savings to pay off the loan,” he said.
And, as to the savings, “typically a company of our size could expect to pay about N$25 000 a month, which we brought down to N$15 000 and recently we paid N$2 000 to N$2 500 a month. Now it is zero,” he said.
"This month we will not pay anything.”
Peak sustainability
The building now boasts an expanded capacity of up to 37 kW peak, with additional battery storage to save energy during the day for use at night when needed.
“Luckily we don’t work at night, so there is no high usage apart from a few vital servers and some computers, CCTV, and burglar alarms. In the morning we fire up the other servers and the power users get active,” he said.
With 77 employees at the Windhoek office, most of the power demand comes from computers, scanners and printers.
The solar system starts making power available at around seven in the morning, reaches peak production around one in the afternoon, and continues to produce power until just before sunset, between six and seven o'clock.
This production schedule aligns well with the company’s operating hours from eight to five.
“Production and usage are more or less at the same time,” Van Zijl said.
“We are sensitive, and when we buy anything, we make sure we are fully aware of the energy usage,” he explained.
“We push hard and have built it up over a long period. The biggest key to success is wonderful staff who realise that energy saving is not only good for the company, but good for yourself, good for Namibia and good for the world. You can take it home,” he said.
Great future for solar
Apart from their height, the solar panels at Document Warehouse benefit from a well-designed roof mounting system, which places them at an optimal angle. The only challenges they face are wind damage and dust.
Document Warehouse has partnered with NEC Energy, which supplied the equipment for the initial phases of the switch to solar and also for the latest phase.
“We spent a lot of time logging, doing calculations, tweaking and fine-tuning the system,” according to the managing director.
“I think there is a great future for solar, but we must bring in logic, common sense and sound engineering,” said Van Zijl.
“The bigger picture is that we (Namibia) transport energy over long distances and then distribute, so we maintain a vast network of power lines, transformers and switch gears. When we will produce what we need where we need it, it will be better for the landscape.”
He added: “We have a lot of sunshine and a lot of space, if we use it wisely, and storage is also available to us. If everyone at home, all houses were equipped with a system, we could all produce and use energy in the same space, and then we can and will do very well."
He concluded: “I have high hopes for Namibia in the energy sector.”
Since its inception in 2006, the innovative organisation has often led the way in information management, but managing director Wouter van Zijl could not wait forever to bring his experience with solar water heaters from the eighties to bear on the ever-accelerating race for efficiency.
Seven years ago, the organisation began installing solar panels on the roof, and as of this month, it expects to pay the City of Windhoek municipality zero dollars for grid electricity.
The Document Warehouse now produces all the power it needs.
According to Van Zijl, it’s important to begin by reducing an organisation’s energy consumption. This includes replacing inefficient bulbs with energy-saving alternatives, eliminating the use of heaters and instead providing jackets, blankets and gloves.
“When we brought in solar, we were still connected to the grid, but as the business expanded, we had more people, more computers and everything, so we started logging the electricity usage. We did the sums and worked out what it would take to meet the load using solar,” he explained.
During the seven years, they carefully monitored the in-house system.
While connected to the grid, power failures would mean work stoppage, despite the supply of solar electricity, as the network was needed to make the system live. “Now we are in our own world; we make our own energy, and we consume it as well,” Van Zijl said.
“Despite power failures, we can still do the work,” he added.
A vision
Once the initial investment had been paid off, new investments were justified, and Document Warehouse decided to “go as energy efficient as possible,” he said.
Employees have since joined the "war on energy waste" within the 26 metre-high specialised warehouse, embracing efforts to “make the energy your own” and to “stand on your own legs,” he explained.
The first two phases of solar panel installation, first reaching 17 kW peak and later up to 25 kW peak, cost the company an investment of about N$500 000. According to Van Zijl, financing was not a big problem.
“It is not difficult to get the money if you can demonstrate that it is a feasible scheme and you use the savings to pay off the loan,” he said.
And, as to the savings, “typically a company of our size could expect to pay about N$25 000 a month, which we brought down to N$15 000 and recently we paid N$2 000 to N$2 500 a month. Now it is zero,” he said.
"This month we will not pay anything.”
Peak sustainability
The building now boasts an expanded capacity of up to 37 kW peak, with additional battery storage to save energy during the day for use at night when needed.
“Luckily we don’t work at night, so there is no high usage apart from a few vital servers and some computers, CCTV, and burglar alarms. In the morning we fire up the other servers and the power users get active,” he said.
With 77 employees at the Windhoek office, most of the power demand comes from computers, scanners and printers.
The solar system starts making power available at around seven in the morning, reaches peak production around one in the afternoon, and continues to produce power until just before sunset, between six and seven o'clock.
This production schedule aligns well with the company’s operating hours from eight to five.
“Production and usage are more or less at the same time,” Van Zijl said.
“We are sensitive, and when we buy anything, we make sure we are fully aware of the energy usage,” he explained.
“We push hard and have built it up over a long period. The biggest key to success is wonderful staff who realise that energy saving is not only good for the company, but good for yourself, good for Namibia and good for the world. You can take it home,” he said.
Great future for solar
Apart from their height, the solar panels at Document Warehouse benefit from a well-designed roof mounting system, which places them at an optimal angle. The only challenges they face are wind damage and dust.
Document Warehouse has partnered with NEC Energy, which supplied the equipment for the initial phases of the switch to solar and also for the latest phase.
“We spent a lot of time logging, doing calculations, tweaking and fine-tuning the system,” according to the managing director.
“I think there is a great future for solar, but we must bring in logic, common sense and sound engineering,” said Van Zijl.
“The bigger picture is that we (Namibia) transport energy over long distances and then distribute, so we maintain a vast network of power lines, transformers and switch gears. When we will produce what we need where we need it, it will be better for the landscape.”
He added: “We have a lot of sunshine and a lot of space, if we use it wisely, and storage is also available to us. If everyone at home, all houses were equipped with a system, we could all produce and use energy in the same space, and then we can and will do very well."
He concluded: “I have high hopes for Namibia in the energy sector.”
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