Harley Marine

Harley Marine’s primary goal for this project was to offset 5% of energy costs and obtain LEED Platinum certification for their new 45,000 square foot headquarters on Seattle’s Harbor Island. To accomplish this, we installed a 29.25KW of Mage 250 Watt modules on Schletter Windsafe ballasted racking system and 3 SMA 8000US 277/480V inverters tied into the MSB of the building.

The 117 modules are distributed over 8 arrays on 4 sections of the roof. The Mage 250W modules – which provide a combined 29.25 KW – were used at that time because of the low upfront cost and power density. This system is projected to produce approximately 30,413kwhs a year.

Schletter’s Windsafe ballasted racking system allowed for a monolithic tilted array of only about 8psf. This racking was essential for the Harbor Island location, due to the not inconsiderable winds the site receives. The customer preferred that the three inverters and sub-panel remain on the roof. They were attached on the back of the Schletter racking system. SMA inverters are the industry gold medal winner for quality and durability, which is necessary for this building’s marine climate.

The Harley Marine array was the product of a real team effort. We collaborated seamlessly with Tri-Nar, the electrical contractor, Mithun architects, and Schuchart Builders from the design phase to completion. The new, state of the art and the energy-efficient building is a great showroom for solar as one drives over the West Seattle Bridge and looks north to Harbor Island. Harley Marine was named 2013 Marine Environmental Business of the year by Tay Yoshitani, CEO of the Port of Seattle.