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green sustainable Lower first costs with strategic partnerships Many hospitals assume large-scale renewable energy sources are costprohibitive. However, multi-disciplinary partnerships can help make the technology more affordable. Utility-solar partnerships are an early example. A theoretical net-zero energy hospital designed by Gresham, Smith and Partners for Kaiser Permanente's "Small Hospital, Big Idea" design competition produced 75 percent of its power with solar photovoltaic cells. To finance the technology, which initially showed a 15-year payback, designers proposed that local utility Pacific Gas and Electric Company partially own the cells and subsidize Kaiser's costs. Kaiser has implemented similar partnerships on a smaller scale to subsidize renewable installations at other California hospitals, and has realized significant savings.2 Despite early successes, changing market conditions have altered utility and solar relationships and more recent news indicates a parting of ways. Solar energy prices are dropping and becoming more directly competitive with electricity. One report by Swiss investment bank UBS predicted a boom in unsubsidized solar photovoltaics in Europe, a shift from marginal to mainstream.3 Sustained decreases in manufacturing and operating costs are driving that shift, with reports citing decade-long cost declines and a 75 percent price drop since 2009.4 The UBS report even cites cases in Germany where solar energy is cheaper than grid electricity. Under these circumstances, solar and utility companies are becoming more direct competitors and less likely partners, forcing consumers to seek alternatives. Fortunately, falling solar costs have opened doors for new partnerships. These decreases have dovetailed with decreases in the cost of battery manufacturing, creating a mutually beneficial partnership opportunity with several prospects for improving ROI: > Battery storage technologies allow solar customers to store excess energy to minimize costs during peak www.mcdmag.com times or when sunlight is lacking. This can help offset the first costs of solar storage units, which are admittedly higher than traditional utilities. > As solar prices fall, utility prices are rising in many areas. While solar installations might be costly in the short term, long-term comparative rates favor solar power and could generate significant savings or decrease payback periods. > Solar battery storage devices could benefit from decreasing feed-in tariffs, which originally subsidized the solar industry. As tariffs fall, producers are increasingly focusing on saving energy and battery storage devices are becoming more attractive. Battery-solar partnerships can provide what the UBS report terms "a partial hedge against increasing energy prices or general cost inflation." Given market fluctuations and rising utility prices, that hedge could be a boon for long-term ROI. While in the early stages of development, battery-solar partnerships are an important option as designers work to make renewable energy affordable. Additional options include solar-utility partnerships, in areas with willing utility companies, and Solar Power Purchase Agreements, with a third-party investor owning and operating a photovoltaic system hosted on a hospital's property and selling energy to that hospital. These relationships can lower rates for hospitals while also providing income and tax credits for investors. Each of these options brings advantages and disadvantages, and should HEALTHCARE ODOR & PATHOGEN CONTROL NEEDLEPOINT COLD PLASMA BENEFITS CLEANS UP FOULED COILS KEEPS COILS CLEAN CONTROLS ODORS WITHOUT CARBON GPS-IBAR KILLS BACTERIA KILLS VIRUS KILLS MOLD NO REPLACEMENT PARTS REQUIRED 0.00 PPM OZONE PER UL 867 NO UV LIGHT PRODUCED CONTROL PANEL CONTAINS NO MERCURY CONTAINS NO TITANIUM DIOXIDE (Ti02) CUSTOMIZED TO FIT ANY SIZE SYSTEM OVER 15,000 INSTALLATIONS WORLDWIDE Global Plasma Solutions 10 Mall Terrace, Bldg C Savannah, GA 31406 Ph. 912.356.0115 Fx. 912.356.0114 www.globalplasmasolutions.com November/December 2013 | Medical Construction & Design 39