Naval Supply Systems Command, Weapon Systems Support Installs New Wind Turbine

Navy News Service

Story Number: NNS121121-19
11/21/2012

By Jennifer Blair, NAVSUP Corporate Communications

MECHANICSBURG, Pa. (NNS) -- As part of an ongoing initiative towards energy conservation and going green, NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support (WSS) installed a Horizontal Wind Turbine at its Mechanicsburg, Pa. site Nov. 12.

The turbine, located just outside the command's main office building, is the latest technology implemented by the command, which began focusing on energy conservation, going green, and footprint reduction in 2005.

NAVSUP WSS manages approximately 1.3 million square feet of Navy owned real estate and employs 1,200 civilian, military, and contractor, personnel at its Mechanicsburg site. The command's assets include 13 administrative and warehouse buildings, a 1,000-seat Special Events Forum, a 350-seat auditorium, 11 miles of railroad tracks, an off-base railroad bridge, test pads, crane runways, storage sheds and associated support infrastructure.

"Because we have such a large footprint in Mechanicsburg, our command recognizes its enormous responsibility to focus on opportunities for energy conservation," said Ann Wise, project team lead and director of the NAVSUP WSS Business Office. "Despite the fact that our facilities were built in the 1940s, we have continued efforts toward facility modernization, innovation and sustainability."

The wind turbine stands 90 feet tall, has a 23-foot diameter rotor, and has an energy output of 10 kilowatts. It is designed for distributed generation applications and is connected to the power grid on the building's utility meter. The turbine has a minimum wind speed of 5 mph and a maximum design wind speed of 134 mph.

The next step in the project is to install a 42-inch kiosk in the building's main lobby which will allow personnel to observe a real-time display of the Wind Turbine's energy production as well as a 12-month historical trend graphing. The kiosk will also display output for solar panels recently installed on five NAVSUP buildings. Once a year's worth of data on performance and rate of energy production from both the wind turbine and the solar panels is collected, it can be determined if it would be profitable to expand the projects to other NAVSUP WSS buildings.

"I am very excited about the introduction of new energy technology at NAVSUP WSS and I look forward to incorporating additional ideas in the future," said Rear Admiral John King, NAVSUP WSS Commander. "I welcome the opportunity to further increase our energy conservation, reduce costs, and promote energy awareness to our employees."

A field activity of the Naval Supply Systems Command, NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support (NAVSUP WSS) is the U.S. Navy's supply chain manager providing worldwide support to the aviation, surface ship, and submarine communities. NAVSUP WSS provides Navy, Marine Corps, joint and allied forces with products and services that deliver combat capability through logistics. There are more than 2,000 civilian and military personnel employed at its two Pennsylvania sites. The NAVSUP WSS Philadelphia site supports aircraft, while its Mechanicsburg site supports ships and submarines.