Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Mills River, NC

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.’s state-of the-art brewery in Mills River, NC demonstrates several leading-edge sustainability measures, including on- site solar electric generation. With a combined capacity of 710 kilowatts DC, two separate photovoltaic systems produce a significant amount of the electricity used in their operations. The rooftop array covers nearly two acres on the facility’s packing and warehouse, while nine parking lot canopies are strikingly visible to the public. They also provide shading, reducing the heat island effect, and enhancing the experience for visitors.

Rooftop Array 

• System Size: 650 kW DC
• Estimated Annual Production: 852,857 kWh
• PV Modules: (2,030) Kyocera 320W Modules
• Racking: Daetwyler Eco-Top Mounting System
• Inverters: Solectria (1) 250 kW, (1) 300 kW
• Monitoring: Deck (string level)
• CO2 Offset: 588 metric tons

Parking Lot Canopies

• System Size: 60 kW DC
• Estimated Annual Production: 50,053 kWh
• PV Modules: (198) Suniva 305 watt modules
• Racking: Custom design
• Inverters: Solectria (1) 50 kW
• Monitoring: Deck (zone level)
• CO2 Offset: 5 metric tons

Sierra Nevada Brewing chose Asheville, NC as the location for their East Coast brewery and they deserve three big cheers for arriving here with an impressive suite of strong values and high standards. These values are manifest in their collaborative efforts, community-mindedness, and commitment to sustainability. Founder Ken Grossman was quoted early on in the process saying “For years, we’ve considered a second brewing location. The recent growth of craft beer in the eastern USA, combined with the environmental impact of shipping all the way across the country, made a second brewing location the most sustainable solution for us moving forward. In North Carolina, we were humbled by the community, its values and the outstanding craft beer culture in the area… Mills River and the Asheville area feel like a great fit for us; a close-knit community with outstanding quality of life, shared values and access to the outdoors.” Considering they reviewed over 200 sites, being selected for the home to their expansion speaks to WNC’s strengths and resources.

Asheville has long been recognized as a mecca for craft beer, with one of the highest numbers of breweries per capita anywhere in the United States.  The Asheville Brewers Alliance, true to its mission to “promote regionally produced beers and exchange knowledge and support between our members for the betterment and enrichment of the beer community” welcomed Sierra Nevada, forging a win-win collaborative relationship, rather than a competitive one. While a thriving market made this area a strong choice, the allure of WNC’s mountains and natural resources, especially clean water, a critical element to making quality beer, were also paramount in the siting decision. Much of the site’s 180 acres bordering the French Broad River are being revitalized with hiking trails, garden spaces and river access, creating a hub for outdoor recreation that has always been close to the heart of Sierra Nevada.

A strong environmental ethos, along with a creative, innovate spirit to make the most out of everything, led the development of Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. since being founded in 1980 in Chico, California. The company’s commitment to sustainability has been a cornerstone of their success, and they’ve raised the bar on many levels. Their 2012 Sustainability Report is an impressive account of their efforts to “maintain a healthy balance between environmental stewardship, social equity, and economic stability,” and is specifically aimed at three main goals: promote zero waste action, increase work space efficiencies, and lead by example to inspire change. Their basic approach “is to close the loop” wherever and whenever possible. “We look for opportunities to bring materials leaving our facility – such as heat, water, and packaging – back into our production process.”

Apparently, nothing escapes the scrutiny of the Sustainability Department in Chico, as Sierra Nevada received Platinum Zero Waste Certification from the US Zero Waste Business Council, making them the first company ever to reach that status. An audit showed that 99.8 percent of its waste was successfully diverted, often becoming a valuable resource for another process in their operations. Scraps from the restaurant are composted for use in the gardens, while waste vegetable oil is converted into biodiesel on site and used in their truck fleet.  Spent grain, hops and yeast are fed to cattle on local farms, including Sierra Nevada’s own herd. Biogas from the wastewater treatment plant is captured and used to fuel the boilers. They even go so far as to recover Carbon Dioxide from the fermentation tanks, and use it for pressurizing and moving beer through pipes and in bottling it.

Energy is also approached with uber-efficiency at Sierra Nevada, and heat recovery units on boilers, fuel cells, and brew kettles reclaim waste heat, rather than venting it.  Of course, they also soak up the solar energy spilling on their site, with one of the largest privately owned solar systems in the country.  Two megawatts of capacity, between several arrays, including one on their rail spur, generate nearly 20 % of the electricity used at the site.

Expanding upon this strong legacy of sustainability established over years of continually striving to do better, the new brewery is poised to model leading edge technology and operations.  “Our team is eager to apply lessons learned in Chico as well as new thinking to our North Carolina brewery,” stated Ken Grossman. Their stated goal is to earn a minimum of silver leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, but when it is said and done Gold or even Platinum level wouldn’t come as a surprise.

The inclusion of on-site solar generation will contribute to this goal, and Sundance was extremely proud to be awarded the contract for the installations. Sierra Nevada committed to work with local vendors, suppliers, and installers, and this is also valued in the LEED ratings. Cheri Chastain, Sustainability Manager said of the system “Integrating renewable energy into our Mills River facility was an important part of our project design.  Mirroring our Chico, California brewery’s diverse approach to renewable energy, we decided to couple biogas powered microturbines with photovoltaic technology in North Carolina.  Sundance Power Systems designed and installed our 710 kW solar system which covers a warehouse roof and features canopies in our parking lot.  We are looking forward to enjoying many years of renewable energy from the system.”

The 650 KW rooftop system consists of over two thousand 320 watt photovoltaic modules manufactured by Kyocera. This array expands over nearly two acres on top of the packing hall and warehouse. Daetwyler’s Eco-Top Rooftop Mounting System with Built-In Wire Management uses durable recycled rubber ballast pads to protect the integrity the roof, and is manufactured regionally in NC. Two Solectria inverters (250 and 300 kW) prepare the electricity for interconnection with Duke Energy, and production is monitored through a Deck package.  The parking lot canopy system, with a collective capacity of 62 kW, is made up of nine umbrella-like canopies, each fitted with twenty-two 315 watt modules. A 50 watt Solectria inverter connects this system to the grid. These canopies are strikingly visible to visitors and provide cool shading in the parking lot, reducing the heat island effect.

Sundance Power Systems is honored to have been selected for this landmark project. We take pride in helping Sierra Nevada Brewing achieve their renewable energy goals and hope that more companies follow their example of sustainability and community engagement!