Broadway Electrical Company's renewable division, Broadway Renewable Strategies, has recently completed 4 photovoltaic (PV) installations for the town at Leicester High School (172.48 kW) Leicester Primary School (110.88 kW), Memorial School (90.72 kW) and the Leicester Police Station (22.40 kW). On November 9, local officials, students, representatives from Broadway Renewable Strategies, and WPI students and faculty attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Leicester High School. The four roof-mounted solar systems are projected to collectively save the town $34,000 annually.

Broadway Renewable Strategies provided engineering, procurement, construction and financing of each of the four PV systems. The NECA contractor will also own and maintain the solar systems. Broadway provided equipment and services in a Solar Power Purchase agreement with the town. The town has no capital investment in the system. Broadway will furnish these town facilities with solar-generated electricity at a defined, significantly discounted per kWh rate, helping the town reap the significant energy savings and protect the town's budget from future volatile energy prices.

Broadway supervised four field crews comprised of a total of 17 licensed IBEW electricians - a project executive and 4 project foremen based out of IBEW Local 103 and 12 licensed journeymen wire men from IBEW Local 96 in Worcester.

The projects commenced in May and were completed in early September. PV installations at Leicester High School, the largest of the four systems, include 616 - 280W Suntech solar panels mounted via a Reduced Spacing Panel Claw Mounting system, 2 Satcon (Suggestions: Sat con, Sat-con, Satin, Stacking, Sargon, Sitcom, Station, Satan, Seton, Staging, Stain, Staking, Saigon, Saturn, Sutton, Sateen, Deacon, Sating, Satiny, Stan, Stone, Scone, Scorn, Stony, Stalin, Stack, Steno, Stock, Stein, Staten, Styron, Stolon, Scan, Stun, Sedation, Stacks, Stamen, Sagan, Stern, Tuscon, Stack's) inverters, a circuit combiner box, interconnection meter, a Satcon (Suggestions: Sat con, Sat-con, Satin, Stacking, Sargon, Sitcom, Station, Satan, Seton, Staging, Stain, Staking, Saigon, Saturn, Sutton, Sateen, Deacon, Sating, Satiny, Stan, Stone, Scone, Scorn, Stony, Stalin, Stack, Steno, Stock, Stein, Staten, Styron, Stolon, Scan, Stun, Sedation, Stacks, Stamen, Sagan, Stern, Tuscon, Stack's) real-time data acquisition system and an Energy PV View System.

Town officials commended the NECA contractor in the firm's neat and orderly workmanship. The projects were constructed with minimal disruption to the schools' daily schedules.

In a special aspect of the project, WPI students and faculty provided significant pre-construction research to spearhead the renewable project in 2009. Fred Looft, a Leicester school committee member and the head of WPI's (Suggestions: Pia's, Po's, Pie's, Poi's, P's, Pis, Pa's, Pius, Pies, Piss, Wei's, Pius's, Poe's, Pair's, Pus's, Wop's, Pisa, Pea's, Pew's, Pus, Pip's, Pic's, Pig's, Pin's, Pit's, Psi's, PS, Pier's, Wis's, Phi's, Kip's, Pepi's, Rip's, W's, Hip's, Kepi's, Lip's, Pairs, Par's, Paw's, Piers, Pious, Poos, Poss, Puss, Wipes, Zip's, Wis, Apia's, PPS, Pas, PJ's, Pb's, Pd's, Pm's, Pr's, Pt's, Sp's, Pics, Pigs, Pins, Pips, Pits, Pj's, Hopi's, Tupi's, Pars, Pass, Paws, Pays, Peas, Pees, Pews, Tipi's, Topi's, Poise, Pose, Posy, Whips, Wops, Spies, Psi, Pia, Pris, Psis, Wise, Phis, MIPS, VIPs, WP, Dips, Hips) electrical and computer engineering department organized three WPI students - Laura Montville, Chris Gabrielson and Stephen Hanley (Suggestions: Henley, Haley, Haney, Hailey, Halley, Harley, Hayley, Hadley, Manley, Handle, Hale, Sanely, Hensley, Huntley, Handler, Haily, Hally, Hanny, Honey, Haler, Holey, Harlen, Haney's, Henley's) - to conduct a feasibility study to determine the energy savings a renewable energy project would realize for the town. Findings were related to the school department town officials. As the project went forward, the Leicester board of selectmen voted to support entering into a Power Purchase Agreement with Broadway Electric to design and install solar power panels.

Each of the schools will utilize the solar installations as an educational tool in their science curriculum. Students will have the advantage of hands-on learning through monitoring the energy output of the solar panels, and Leicester will serve as a leading Mass. community in the growing trend toward clean, renewable energy.

Broadway executive project manager Dan Griffin said, "Student involvement on the Leicester project makes it a very gratifying project for Broadway Renewable Strategies to complete. The project will bring to the town in clean energy cost savings and plus provide an active on-site solar system as a learning platform."