Michael Chung of Heliocol Solar to Speak at Seminar

Michael Chung, from Heliocol Solar, will be the main speaker at Carefree's "Going Green" seminar on Saturday, Oct. 30 from 10-11 a.m. at the new Carefree Firestation No. 1, 37401 N. Tom Darlington, Carefree AZ.

USDA Issues Call for Energy Grant, Loan Applications for 2010

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently announced that it has allocated $60 million in 2010 energy grants for the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP). Beginning in 2003, the program has each year offered grants and loans to farmers and other producers, tribal government entities, rural electricity cooperatives and public power utilities. The aim is to promote renewable energy and encourage economic activity in rural America.

On paper, a REAP grant may not exceed 25 percent of the costs of eligible projects, which include solar hot water systems, solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, wind turbines, geothermal systems and anaerobic digesters, among other energy technologies. Energy efficiency improvements are also eligible. Grants are limited to $500,000 for renewable energy systems and $250,000 for energy efficiency improvements.

In practice, however, smaller projects may stand a better chance at receiving REAP funding: according to the USDA, "projects seeking REAP grants of $20,000 or less are greatly favored."

REAP also makes available guaranteed loans worth up to 75 percent of a projects cost, with a minimum loans size of $5,000 and a maximum size of $25 million. A combined loan and grant under REAP may not exceed 75 percent of the project’s cost.

The deadline to apply for REAP loans and grants for the 2010 funding cycle is June 30. To qualify, applicants must operate in a USDA-designated rural area.

REAP was originally called the federal Renewable Energy Systems and Energy Efficiency Improvements Program, which began in fiscal year 2003. It was founded by the USDA on the heels of the 2002 federal Farm Security and Rural Investment Act, and was allocated $23 million a year through 2007. A major switch came in 2008, when the Food Conservation and Energy Act changed the program’s name to REAP.

About 88 percent of REAP funds are expected to be used by rural small businesses looking to buy new energy efficient systems or make smaller energy efficient changes. Again, the application deadline is June 30, 2010. Don’t miss your chance to qualify.

**Note that businesses — such as farms and other rural commercial entities — that install a renewable energy system in 2010 may qualify for a treasury grant worth 30 percent of project costs. Since companies are not permitted to participate in more than one federal grant program, the treasury’s program may be a better option of the two for the current year.

UMA Solar Offers New Financing For Solar Technology

UMA Solar, distributor of the industry’s highest-performing solar technology nationwide, is partnering with Lyon Financial to offer a financing program that makes solar energy systems more accessible to consumers. With this new program, UMA Solar dealers nationwide will be able to offer a simple and effective way to be both environmentally responsible and economically affordable.

The program offers an unsecured, same-as-cash loan of up to $45,000 for solar systems installed by any of UMA Solar’s authorized dealers nationwide.

With no principal payments or interest for up to 18 months, this financing provides homeowners with sufficient time to realize the benefits of the existing 30 percent federal tax credit for the installation of residential solar energy systems, as well as the many state and local tax credits that may be available to certain homeowners.

"We are very happy to bring the program to our dealers nationwide," said Victor Eyal, Chief Executive Officer of UMA Solar. “Same-as-cash financing gives our dealers another tool to provide their customers with superior service. This program gives their customers up to 18 months without payments or interest to accrue their monthly utility savings from their solar systems and receive the benefit of the federal and/or state tax credits. This is another example of the advantage UMA Solar has over other solar companies. With this new financing for solar installations and rebates from government programs becoming widely available, we see this as a great opportunity for our dealers to grow their business and for their customers to get the financial assistance they need during these tough economic times.”

Customers of authorized UMA Solar dealers who qualify and participate in the same-as-cash solar financing program will have up to 18 months without payments or interest accruing. At the end of the period, the homeowner can either pay off the loan in full or convert it to a fixed interest installment loan. Individuals should consult with their own professional tax advisors concerning the available tax credits and their specific tax circumstances.

The financing program is administered by Lyon Financial Services, a leader in home improvement loans and funded by EnerBank USA. Electricians, plumbers, contractors and other dealers of solar products interested in learning about the new financing program should call (800) 262-1655, or visit http://www.sameascashloans.com.

About UMA Solar:

UMA Solar distributes the industry’s highest-performing technology for residential and commercial solar applications nationwide. UMA Solar features industry leaders such as MyGen by Kyocera photovoltaic (PV) solar electric equipment packages designed specifically for residential grid tied application; Solene Solar Water Heaters which reduce utility bills by 25-30%; and Heliocol, the world’s largest solar pool heating manufacturer. UMA Solar offers its products through its network of over 700 dealers nationwide. In addition, five distribution locations are strategically placed throughout the U.S. for convenient and continuous availability. For more information, call UMA Solar at 1-800-79-SOLAR or visit http://www.umasolar.com.

PRESS CONTACT:

Tod Ellington
Director of Marketing, UMA Solar
T – (407) 831-1941, ext. 107
E – TEllington@umasolar.com

Despite Tough Economy, Kyocera Stands Strong

September 10th, UMA Solar, in conjunction with SunCentric and Kyocera, presented a great webinar and training session to all our dealers nationwide.

In the conference, they referred to a great blog article about the changing face of many solar companies in the light of today’s economy. Right now, it seems many other companies are dealing with a combination of an excess of product, and not enought places demanding solar, and sundry financial problems. However, Kyocera is still standing strong, and proving themselves as an industry leader, with over 35 years of experience, weathering economic storms like this many times, and always coming out stronger than before.
Read the blog yourself, and see the difference.

UMA Solar Offfers New Imaging Tools For Dealers

UMA Solar is proud to announce a great new service to our dealers – Pictometry Intelligent Images®. For years, Pictometry has enabled emergency responders around the country to literally "know before they go". Today, Pictometry solutions are doing the same for professionals in commercial industries as well. Pictometry can change the way your business works, using the same sophisticated oblique imagery that was once available only to mapping and GIS professionals.
"Pictometry works great in regards to solar," says Ryan O’Leary, UMA Solar’s expert in Pictometry. "It allows you to get a very good quality picture of roof tops or any area you need to see from up above. This tool lets our dealers have prior knowledge of the work site before ever getting up on the roof. They can take pictures of the work site, highlight angles/surface area and write all the measurements or other annotations before taking the picture. One of the best features our dealers can use is after saving a screenshot; they can open the file in Powerpoint and add small images of solar panels on the picture. Having these pictures with all measurements, text, and solar panels included will be a great in helping our dealers show their customers their plans."
Before even visiting an installation site in person, Pictometry allows our dealers to:

• Measure the pitch, square footage, and bearing of roof, as well as the overall height of the structure.
• View of any obstructions on the roof that would be in their way for panel/collector installation.
• Accurately estimate how many panels an installation will need or allow for.
• Get views from every compass direction, as well as a direct overhead top view.
• Measure the distance of leeway in regards to objects (e.g. trees, sheds, etc.) in close proximity to the building.

For more information on how to get started using Pictometry for your business, contact Ryan O’Leary at ROleary@umasolar.com or call 1-800-797-6527.

UMA Solar Collaborates With Clipper Magazine

UMA Solar is pleased to announce its collaboration with Clipper Magazine and its subsidiaries.

We’ve managed to negotiate deeply discounted rates for you, our dealers, so you can begin local advertising campaigns in their publications. You can save 30% to 40% off the local rates by taking advantage of this program.

Working through our dedicated National Account Manager, Barabar Mill, we have provided Clipper Magazine with our authorized artwork and logos to create compelling advertising campaigns to help drive qualified leads to your business. Their staff of graphic artists will be able to create lead generating, results oriented, visually appealing ads customized to the individual dealer’s likeness and message.

Here is just a sample of the regular regional rates vs. our UMA Solar regional rate structure:

If you are interested in creating a campaign that is specific to your market and generates a great return on investment, please contact Barbara Mill at 888-569-5100 ext 3975 or email her at barbara.mill@clippermagazine.com.