Renault Gets a Twofer with Massive New Solar Arrays

Renault's sunny yellow logo took on a new meaning last week when the company began flipping the switch on six gigantic new photovoltaic installations, each located at the site of a Renault production facility in France. Aside from juicing the company's already formidable green cred, the solar projects illustrate how the unique two-for-one nature of integrated solar power can provide businesses with bottom-line value over and above any savings related to owning the means of clean, renewable energy production.Basically, the six installations double as protective carports for the company's merchandise. According to Renault's press materials:"The initiative is also an innovative way of protecting new vehicles before delivery to the sales network because it limits storm damage. The panels are designed to resist impact and hail in particular.bench grinder"
As far as threats to vehicles go, hail isn't necessarily the first thing you think of when thinking of France, but as a matter of fact a severe hailstorm did hit the nation just last spring and destroyed 6,000 acres of vineyards.Toulouse has also been rocked by hail in recent years, including one 2009 hailstorm which reportedly involved chunks of ice large enough to pierce the body of a car.Aside from serving as a protective covering for new vehicle shipping and delivery lots, some of the panels were also installed at employee parking lots, which is a nice perk.Hermes birkinSolar iPhone chargers aren't restricted to apple phones only. You can use it with any devices too for example other portable battery charger or types, iPods, PDAs and laptops. This solar charger works with many devices so long as you possess the right usb plug or connector to suit the particular device you will charge.Even without the solar panels, Renault is poised to become an electric vehicle powerhouse.2200mah battery pack Aside from manufacturing electric vehicles, that includes taking up the slack for establishing a serious network of public EV charging stations in France.
Renault has also begun to push electric vehicles into high-profile markets beyond the consumer arena, for example by outfitting an all-electric Twizy as a prototype emergency support vehicle and donating it to a Paris firefighter brigade.cheap gps buy onlineThat's all well and good, but the new solar panels Renault can truly put its money where its mouth is. The company estimates that the solar panels will offset about 200 tonnes (that's metric tons, btw) of carbon dioxide emissions related to the manufacture of electric engines in France.Help from local governments may be the biggest obstacle to making China's solar industry competitive, said Shyam Mehta, solar analyst at the Boston-based consulting company GTM Research."Until they stop supporting the uncompetitive manufacturers, this won't go away," said Mehta. "If LDK was allowed to fail, the market reaction would actually be positive."Suntech is evaluating various financing options and cutting costs, and in September temporarily reduced production in Wuxi, Suntech spokesman Rory Macpherson said in e-mail. He didn't say whether the company expects additional support from the community. Telephone calls to LDK spokesman Li Longji went unanswered.