NY Helps Fund Bates Troy Cogen Effort

Posted June 4, 2014 at 5:27 pm

New York state officials recently designated Bates Troy Healthcare Linen Service, Binghamton, NY, as a “critical facility,” that’s qualified to receive a $660,000 grant through the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s (NYSERDA) CHP (combined heat and power) Acceleration Initiative. Bates Troy currently processes some 15 million lbs. of textiles annually for hospitals and nursing homes in Central New York and Northern Pennsylvania.

CHP or cogeneration (cogen) is the simultaneous production of electricity with the recovery and use of heat. The new system will provide a backup source of power for Bates Troy in case of utility outages, according to a news release. It also will take the company “off the grid” and lower its energy costs, while reducing air emissions through the use of natural gas.  

Tecogen, Waltham, MA, the only engine-driven CHP system pre-qualified by NYSERDA for this program, will install its InVerde CHP microgrid system for Bates Troy. The installation is tentatively slated to begin in late June, said Ed Arzouian, compliance & special projects coordinator at Bates Troy. "Resilience, redundancy as well as environmental responsibility are the cornerstones of our company," said Arzouian. "By integrating our backup generation with our CHP approach, we are able to perform our service with long-term blackout resilience, and with a minimized impact on our environment. We have considered many CHP systems and after due consideration, we have concluded that the Tecogen InVerde microgrid system to be the best fit for our facility, not only from a cost-benefit perspective but also, more importantly, from a reliability and market-experience standpoint." Tecogen uses a patented two-stage emission system to virtually eliminate criteria pollutants (contributors to smog).

Arzouian said the move to cogen followed a three-year process of study and analysis by the company. Tecogen will install four 100 kW units in an area of the plant formerly used for folding isolation gowns. Bates Troy is renovating another area of the plant to accommodate the gown-folding operation.

Each cogen unit is powered by a 454-cubic inch Chevrolet engine and stands 7 feet, four inches in length, 4 feet wide and 5 feet 9 inches high. Click here to see detailed specifications. Click here to see a video from a working facility equipped with a cogen system.

Tecogen also will install piping and related equipment, and will maintain the system through a service agreement with Bates Troy, he said. Bates Troy preferred having multiple cogen units as opposed to one large one because it gives the company added flexibility, in case one unit requires servicing.

Two “500 year floods” in 2006 and 2011 that hit Binghamton made the decision to invest in the cogen system more attractive, Arzouian said. While Bates Troy didn’t lose power during those incidents, other area businesses did. “The cogen gives you that redundancy,” Arzouian said. “As long as there’s natural gas, we can produce electricity.” 

Bates Troy also has received a $380,000 grant from Empire State Development (ESD), New York state's chief economic development agency, that was disbursed through the Southern Tier Regional Economic Development Council to help fund the purchase and installation of the InVerde combined heat and power (CHP) units. However, the grant money is taxable, so Bates Troy is making a significant investment of its own funds in the project as well, Arzouian said. But with electricity rates from area utilities rising, he said he’s confident the company is making a wise move. What’s more, by lowering energy costs, the cogen upgrade will enable the company to hire an additional 50 employees.

To read the full release, click here.

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