Northfield EnergySmart BuildingWorks has named Northfield Construction Company (NCC) as its May EnergySmart Partner of the Month. EnergySmart BuildingWorks is an initiative of RENew Northfield, with funding from the Northfield Area Foundation and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. NCC was selected as the May EnergySmart Partner of the Month in recognition of the company’s long-standing commitment to building high-quality, energy-efficient homes and commercial buildings to customers’ specifications.

Founded in 1972, NCC started as a design-build firm focusing on the construction of churches, and quickly branched out to serve the area’s general commercial and residential construction markets. The company is owned and operated by Ray Cox, with the assistance of about 25 talented employees who work for the company on a year round basis.

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If you’d like to help protect your family, your budget and the planet from future energy shocks, feel you’ve already taken the energy efficiency and conservation steps you can, but want to go further, plan to attend “Renewable Energy Systems for Your Energy-Efficient Home” Thursday, May 24th from 7 to 8:30 PM in the Northfield Public Library (210 Washington St.) meeting room.

The natural gas used to heat your home and water has increased in cost by 567% in the past 30 years (the typical length of a home mortgage). Electricity prices have increased by 269% over the same period. Building energy use contributes about 40% of the anthropogenic carbon dioxide leading to global warming, and future supplies of oil and natural gas are uncertain to say the least. Solar water heating, solar electric, and small wind systems will be discussed in detail. Kurt Koegel of SolarSkies, Inc. (a new solar thermal panel manufacturing firm in Starbuck, Minnesota) will be on hand to answer questions about solar water heating installations, system costs, and more.

The workshop will conclude with a visit to a local home with a solar electric system providing its electricity and a solar water heating system in the process of being installed.

This is the second in a series of workshops sponsored by Northfield EnergySmart BuildingWorks, an initiative of RENew Northfield and the Northfield Area Foundation. As a follow-up to the workshop, the local installation of a solar water heating system in the first two weeks of June will provide an opportunity for hands-on learning about solar system installation. For more information, contact Northfield EnergySmart BuildingWorks.