Alza Corporation
The Challenge
ALZA Corporation, a member of the Johnson & Johnson family of companies, develops and manufactures drug delivery systems that are now incorporated in more than 30 products, marketed in over 80 countries worldwide.
One of the company’s large-scale manufacturing facilities located in Vacaville, California, needed a stable energy supply for its around-the-clock operations. Because Johnson & Johnson had a goal of reducing greenhouse gases at its facilities nationwide by seven percent by 2010, ALZA moved forward with a renewable energy solution that would put them another step closer to their goal.
The Solution
ALZA had a vacant seven-acre plot of land adjacent to the Vacaville facility. SPG Solar, Inc. developed a solar energy solution that would maximize the amount of power that ALZA could capture on that land, while maintaining its environmental integrity—another important issue for ALZA.
SPG Solar used its single-axis solar tracking array, the SunSeeker™ Tracker to generate the most power per acre of land. This efficient tracking system follows the path of the sun as it moves from east to west throughout the day. This allows ALZA to generate more electricity than they would if they used fixed-tilt solar arrays
The Benefits
- The solar photovoltaic (PV) system will enable ALZA to produce one-third of the power the plant requires when demand is at its peak.
The Green Line
This 1.1 MW system generates enough energy to power 265 homes for a year. Over its 25 year warranted lifespan, it will off set 18,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions—equal to the carbon dioxide absorbed by more than 13,100 acres of rainforest, or to taking 3,500 passenger cars off the road.
In addition to the ALZA Vacaville site, Johnson & Johnson has installed solar power systems at a number of other corporate locations including J&J Pharmaceutical Research and Development in San Diego. Johnson & Johnson now produces over 304,000 megawatt hours of renewable energy annually in the US, making it the third largest producer of renewable energy.
