James Madison University - Index

James Madison University - Madison Magazine - Summer 2009 - Index

A JMU go-green energy team
Sustainable Energy Developments is a leader in wind power
By Hali Chiet (’07)
I
n April 2002, five JMU alumni came together to form
Sustainable Energy Developments Inc. — a company that
is now the leader in decentralized wind energy projects
in the northeastern United States. The original founders
of this go-green energy team, Kevin Schulte (’00), Loren
Pruskowski (’00), George McConochie (’00), Ernest
Pritchard III (’00) and Joseph Swaha, all met at JMU. Now,
the company boasts three more alumni — David Strong (’03),
John Trout (’05) and Scott Abbett (’00).
“We’re trying to bring renewable energy services and
products to people so that they can be more self-sufficient,”
says Pruskowski.
Schulte adds, “One of
our goals is to increase
the awareness of the
benefits of wind power
across the Northeastern
United States.”
Whereas most companies
set up large wind
turbines in one location,
SED installs turbines
in a more distributed
fashion. “Most of the
electricity people use is
actually made hundreds
of miles away,” says
Strong, who joined SED
in 2002 after serving as
an intern. “We encourage
people to make
energy right where they
use it. To break it down simply, we create distributed rather
than centralized energy generation.”
After graduation, Schulte worked on building wind farms
for a company in Texas. Pruskowski was working on wind
resource assessment in Albany, and McConochie, Pritchard
and Swaha were learning about wind project construction
throughout the nation. In September 2001, Pruskowski got the
urge to reconnect with the others after 9/11. “I was working in
the field on top of a mountain during 9/11, and I was very isolated,”
he says. “I phoned Schulte and told him it was time we
created our own company. I felt it was a great time to start; the
world was changing, and a company like ours could support
positive change.”
In March 2002, Schulte, Pruskowski and McConochie
moved into a small apartment in Schenectady, N.Y., to create
a formal business plan. Pritchard joined soon after and helped
finance the company. On April 2, 2002, the plan was submitted
to the New York State Attorney General’s Office, and SED Inc.
became official.
“We’re all excited by the freedom of a small business and
by working by our own philosophy,” says Trout, who became a
full-time employee in August 2006 after interning in 2005.
At first, the company founders focused on wind resource
assessment work, evaluating potential wind farm sites on the
East Coast. They were successful thanks to Pruskowski’s and
JMUWORKS
Schulte’s educational foundations in environmental engineering
and energy systems design from the JMU College of Integrated
Science and Technology. “They have a mantra in ISAT
about being problem solvers,” says Schulte. “We help develop
wind power projects that allow people to be more self-sufficient
and that contribute to a greener environment.”
To remain financially sound from the start, SED received
its main source of income by installing meteorological towers.
Pritchard, McConochie and Swaha had all previously worked in
the meteorological tower construction business. As the company
developed, the founders realized there was a niche in the
wind market that was
not being attended to —
schools, farms, municipalities,
factories and
small towns. “We want
to help benefit communities
and show them
that wind power can
provide both environmental
and economic
benefits,” says Abbett,
who joined SED in 2005.
In July 2007, with
the help of a grant, SED
installed a 1.5-megawatt
GE wind turbine atop the
Jiminy Peak Mountain
Resort, which helped the
company gain a strong
foothold in the wind
power industry. “It’s
At the wind turbine outside the exciting to be a part of
SED company headquarters a company that’s on the
are (l-r): George McConochie forefront of change,”
(’00), Ernie Pritchard (’00),
says McConochie.
Loren Pruskowski (’00), Dave
Strong (’03), Kevin Schulte
“We’ve seen so much
(’00), John Trout (’05) and change in the accept-
Scott Abbett (’00).
ance and conscience of
wind power energy.”
In 2008 SED moved to a new office in Ontario, N.Y.,
and completed a 600-kilowatt wind turbine at Holy Name
Junior/Senior High School in Worcester, Mass. — the first
turbine of that size in Worcester. The team also installed the
first large wind turbine at Hyannis Country Garden in Cape
Cod and incorporated wind power into the Massachusetts
Bay Transportation Authority. SED is the first company to
have installed four commercial scale wind turbines in Massachusetts.
The projects also were each a first — the first
wind turbine at a ski resort in the United States, the first for
a high school in Massachusetts, the first commercial scale
wind turbine on Cape Cod and the first at a public school in
Massachusetts.
“We really need to see the use of more renewable energy
sources in the U.S.,” says Pritchard. “I hope that our experience
and our abilities can help promote the use of wind energy
throughout our great nation.” M
ClassNotes
PHOTOGRAPH BY MEAGHANN SCHULTE
SUMMER 2009
59