EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aggreko, a global leader in rental power and temperature control solutions, will provide large-scale power generation for Americas largest national football championship game on February 2, 2014 between the Seattle Seahawks and the Denver Broncos. The event, taking place in East Rutherford, NJ at the MetLife Stadium, will require heating and an unprecedented 21 MW of power, taking into consideration the frigid weather conditions and additional security needs of the highly populated metropolitan area.

This marks the 24th year Aggreko will be supplying power and climate control solutions to the big game and surrounding festivities, said David Prince, Event Services Senior Project Manager, Aggreko North America. Our experience in dealing with energy demands both large and small equip Aggreko uniquely to execute the many engineered decisions and installations required for a successful event of this magnitude.

Aggrekos major events division, Aggreko Event Services, will power Bruno Mars half-time performance, the broadcast and international media compounds, stadium security efforts and several celebration sites and VIP areas.

Powering an event of this magnitude requires a massive amount of Aggreko equipment and manpower, including:

An event of this nature also requires detailed design and logistics. The Aggreko team kicked off initial planning meetings almost one year ago following the 2013 game, and installation for this year began right after the New Year. The complete project timeline, including equipment removal, will encompass approximately two months.

Aggreko has a long history of providing critical power to high-profile championship sporting events, including seven PGA Championships, nine U.S. Open championship tournaments and the recent 34th Americas Cup in San Francisco. Aggreko has also recently been named the Official Temporary Power Generator of the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil.

For more information, visit http://www.aggreko.com/northamerica.

Ends

EDITORS NOTES

Aggreko plc is the world leader in the supply of temporary power and temperature control solutions. Aggreko employs over 5,700 people operating from 194 locations. In 2012 we served customers in about 100 countries, and had revenues of approximately GBP 1.6bn (USD 2.5bn or Euros 2.0bn). Aggreko plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (AGK.L), is a member of the FTSE-100 index, and is headquartered in Scotland. For more information, please visit the company website at http://www.aggreko.com

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Aggreko Powers America’s Football Championship

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INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) The Indianapolis Home Show is full of products designed to make your home more comfortable and energy efficient.

The folks at Godby Heating Plumbing and Electrical say installing the next generation of programmable thermostats is a good place to start.

People who have put this thermostat in, they dont go to their thermostat anymore. They control their home by their smart phone, said Godby HPE Vice President Kevin Greisl.

The smart device even learns your comfort preferences.

Over time it adjusts temperatures to keep you comfortable and save energy.

It can monitor your sump pump, it can monitor your furnace. So if there is anything running or not running that is supposed to it will let you know that right there on the spot, Geisl said.

The thermostat costs around $300 installed.

From heating your home, to heating your water, a company called Grundfos offers a hot water pump designed to save you money and time.

This ensures that when you turn on that hot water in the morning your shower is hot you can step right in, said Fred Bock, Grundos vice president of Marketing.

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Companies offer energy efficient alternatives for the home

Kincardine council found few savings in the 2014 capital budget at the second round of budget talks on Jan. 20.

Of the long list of high-priority projects identified by municipal staff, council scrapped just one: a new $7,500 microphone system for the council chamber.

The most contentious item discussed on the list was the $1.449 million to make repairs to the municipal administrative centre, which staff recommend be funded through an Infrastructure Ontario loan.

Councillor Mike Leggett motioned to defer the work until council can see a real estate assessment and consider relocation.

I would like a lot more information before we spend this much money on this building, he said, but acknowledged repairs to the heating and cooling system at the building are needed immediately.

The expenses to operate this building are huge, said Leggett. The expenses to repair this place are huge, and it is larger than what we need.

I would be shocked if you would find anywhere that would serve us nearly as good as this building, said Mayor Larry Kraemer, but Im not ready to spend $1.4 million on repairs either.

Chief Administrative Officer Murray Clarke said council could conduct only the most pressing repairs to the buildings exterior and HVAC system budgeted at $1.282 million.

Clarke said sealing the exterior skin of the building to prevent water infiltration and replacing the HVAC system were vital to its continued use and protecting its resale value.

Its a wonderful building, said Clarke. Its practical and serves the purpose. I think it is a good investment.

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Council finds minor savings in 2014 capital budget

Boston, MA (PRWEB) January 24, 2014

Next Step Living, New Englands leading provider of whole-home energy solutions, is pleased to announce the winners of its Good Energy Giveaway. First Prize winner Carol Kaesmann of Shelton, Conn., will receive $10,000 in Next Step Living services; Second Prize winner Leslie Colello of Weymouth, Mass., will receive $5,000 worth of home energy-efficiency upgrades; and 10 additional homeowners will receive $100 gift cards. All winners were notified between January 6, 2014 and January 13, 2014.

Were just as excited as our winners, said Brian Greenfield, chief operating officer at Next Step Living. We created The Good Energy Giveaway late last year to share the celebration of our companys fifth anniversary with our customers, and the response was terrific. Almost 11,000 people participated. Whenever we can help homeowners save energy and live more comfortably and sustainably, we feel like winners too.

Were going to install energy-efficient windows in our home, said Carol Kaesmann, the Giveaways First Prize winner. We know that will help make our home more comfortable and reduce our energy use. Thats almost like winning twice.

The top-prize winners also will get a home energy evaluation, a thorough overview of how to make their homes cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter while shrinking their monthly utility bills and carbon footprints.

Im really looking forward to making my home more energy-efficient, says Second Prize winner Leslie Colello, whos interested in installing a ductless mini split system, an increasingly popular supplement to conventional heating and cooling systems.

To underscore the high level of customer service that Colello and other Next Step Living customers receive, the company is introducing a new program, Our Best Foot Forward. In this program, homeowners in our Massachusetts or Connecticut service areas who schedule a home energy evaluation with Next Step Living can expect their energy advisor to wear protective shoe coverings to keep out winter grit and grime. If the energy advisor does not wear protective shoe coverings, the customer will receive a $25 gift card by notifying our customer support department.

Net Promoter survey data indicates that 95 percent of our customers say they would refer their friends and relatives to Next Step Living, added Greenfield. That says a lot about the quality service we deliver and our energy advisors keen attention to detail. We created Our Best Foot Forward as a visual reminder of our commitment to customer care.

About Next Step Living, Inc. One of the fastest growing companies in New England, Next Step Living is the leading provider of whole-home energy solutions. Headquartered in Bostons Innovation District, Next Step Living makes it easy and affordable for people to live in homes with a low environmental impact. A one-stop service provider for informed advice, funding guidance and expert work, Next Step Living partners with more than 400 municipalities, civic organizations and leading corporations to deliver energy-efficient and environmentally friendly solutions for better living. Since 2008, Next Step Living has helped New England homeowners achieve almost $15 million in energy savings, which is expected to grow to $70 million in the next five years. Next Step Living makes our world better. Visit NextStepLiving.com for more information.

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Next Step Living™ Shares Good Energy in Massachusetts and Connecticut With the Winners of "The Good Energy Giveaway"

Financial independence and early retirement are within reach of anyone earning just above minimum wage and who is willing to work for 15 years and follow this 10-step early retirement plan. Buy land, build a home, buy a new car, retire early and comfortably. Read below to learn how.

Created upon request, this article is being written at the insistence of readers of this column's previous "Retire Early" articles who have requested an easy step-by-step guideline toward becoming financially independent and retiring early.

This easy-to-follow 10-step process is a complete guide that enables the low income wage earner (between $8 and $10.75 per hour, full time) to become financially independent and retire in only 15 years**. Two wage earners can work together to execute the below 15-year early retirement plan, each making $10.75 per hour, or one person making $21.50 per hour. If the wages are less than $21.50 per hour (2 people combined or one single worker), early retirement and financial independence are achieved at a slightly slower pace** (table below).

The table at the end of this article shows how much to invest monthly to build a retirement fund (about $400,000) which provides an annual retirement income of over $31,000 for varying amounts of hourly wages ($8 through $10.75). With total monthly living expenses under $500 (detailed below), the $31,000 retirement provides a very comfortable lifestyle with sufficient cash for travel, entertainment, giving, and sharing. It is far easier to live in a new home on $31,000 in an area of low taxes and low cost of living than it is to live on $80,000 near a metropolis where the cost of living is high. This is explained below in detail.

The 5 Prerequisites:

Prior to starting the below steps toward financial independence and early retirement, some prerequisites must be met. Do not attempt to execute the below 10-step early retirement plan if any one of the prerequisites is not met.

1. To retire in 15 years, annual earnings of $44,720 are required. Lower earnings will require more time (see table** below). This can be accomplished if two people work together, each making $10.75 per hour ($21.50 per hour combined) for an average of 40 hours per week. If 2 workers make $8 per hour ($16 combined, or $33,280 annually), they can retire in 21 years. Review the table at the end of this article for varying amounts of hourly earnings.

2. One wage earner must have financial credit sound enough to qualify for a $50,000 loan (detailed below).

3. The wage earner(s) executing this 15-year early retirement plan must be free of unhealthy and expensive habits and must be in good health in order to keep both medical and food expenses to a minimum. This means that the wage earner(s) follow a healthy, inexpensive diet found at WellBeyond100.com and the wage earner(s) are not obese, which can be determined by answering 2 confidential questions at ThinAndHealthyForever.com

4. The wage earner(s) must be able to adhere to a strict budget (below) and have the ability to live frugally for 15 years while building the capital investment that will make early retirement and financial independence possible.

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The 10-Step Guide to Early Retirement and Financial Independence on a Low Income

For pretty much anyone in the Western world, the Internet is not only ubiquitous, its practicallyinescapable.Between phones, tablets, PCs, game consoles, televisions and set-top boxes, the Internet exists in every corner of our lives. Almost. In the wake of this years CES, were hearing louder than ever that the future is The Internet of Things,everyday devices equipped with sensors and connectivity to work together, understand what were doing, and operate automatically to make our lives easier. And, of course, well be able to control and configure it all, likely with our tablets and smartphones, or by speaking. After all, Siri and Google Now have taken voice recognition mainstream.

But beyond a well-meaning concept that promises to deliver us all to an even higher state of connectivity, what does the Internet of Things mean? When will it finally arrive? How will it change our daily lives? What happens when it goes wrong?

The phrase Internet of Things is widely credited to Kevin Ashton; hes indicated he coined the term in 1999 while at Proctor & Gamble, but it didnt take off until 2009 with an article in RFID Journal. At a very basic level, Internet of Things means devices that can sense aspects of the real world like temperature, lighting, the presence or absence of people or objects, etc. and report that real-world data, or act on it. Instead of most data on the Internet being produced and consumed by people (text, audio, video), more and more information would be produced and consumed by machines, communicating between themselves to(hopefully) improve the quality of our lives.

A bathroom cabinet that lets you know when its running low on toilet paper could be worth its weight in gold.

Smart devices use Internet technologies like Wi-Fi to communicate with each other, your laptop, and sometimes directly with the cloud. Some also talk to a central hub that serves as control point for many different devices, like theRevolv. Ideally, owners can use that central access point from their smartphones and tablets, either at home or when theyre out and about.

Thats all pretty abstract, so lets bring it down to Earth. The classic example is a smart refrigerator that can read RFID tags on grocery items as theyre put inside, then look up those tags via the Internet to identify milk, eggs, butter, and those four frozen pizzas you just bought. The fridge tracks usage, then cue trumpets! alerts owners when theyre running out of groceries, or need more food since people are coming over to watch the game this weekend. (The fridge can tap into your calendar, of course). The refrigerator could even place a grocery order automatically (perhaps delivered via Amazon Fresh). Similarly, that smart fridge could warn about products nearing (or past) their expiration dates.

In theory, extending these ideas to things like pantries, closets, medicine cabinets is simple. Seniors and others could benefit from smart medicine cabinets that track meds, order refills, and even alert physicians if somethings amiss. And just think: A bathroom cabinet that lets you know when its running low on toilet paper could be worth its weight in gold. Smart closets could help you manage your clothes with reminders you really ought to do laundry (youve got two pairs of clean socks left!), take things to the dry cleaners, or even say goodbye to some items you never wear.

Cant remember whether you need to buy toothpaste? Ask your house. Or maybe your house can save you the effort by recognizing that youre at a drugstore and automatically sending a list of things you need. Stuck out of town on a business trip? Tell your house to stay on vacation mode, turning lights on and off to make the place look lived-in, but not running up heating and cooling bills.

Device-to-device communication creates other possibilities. Simple motion sensors can detect people moving around the house, turning lights on and off, opening or closing blinds or drapes, or even adjusting temperature. This functionality is already so refined, many sensors are reasonably pet immune, so dogs and cats dont trigger automated functions. Got an important phone call and left the TV on? The house could turn the TV off (to save power) but leave the DVR running. Sensors in a bed (or an alarm clock) could notify other devices youre awake; in turn, they could open drapes, start the coffeemaker, and discretely turn on the TV in the breakfast nook for news, weather, and traffic. When the clothes dryer finishes, maybe an alert appears on your TV so you can grab items before they wrinkle. If its dark outside, a sensor in your front door lock could turn on inside lights before you step inside after all, cars have been doing stuff like that for decades.

If these smart home ideas seem familiar, its because many are on the market theyre just not commonplace. One well-known example is the Nest thermostat (now owned by Google). It adjusts heating and cooling based on usage patterns and even billing rates, and can be controlled from a mobile app. Nest has just branched out into smart smoke detectors, and has competition from the likes of Netatmo and many other smart-home solutions.

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You can’t avoid the ‘Internet of things’ hype, so you might as well understand it

Dear EarthTalk: Will I really be able to save money and energy in the long run by shelling out hundreds of dollars now for a so-called "smart" thermostat?

Bill Cone

Aptos, Calif.

Spending $200 or more to replace that older, still functioning thermostat with a new whiz-bang "smart" variety might seem like a waste of money, but it can be one of the best small investments a homeowner can make, given the potential for energy and cost savings down the line.

The coolest of the bunch of new smart thermostats, the Nest, was created by former Apple employees who had been instrumental in designing the original iPod and iPhone years earlier. This simple-looking round thermostat is reminiscent of old-school thermostats that one would manually adjust by turning the temperature dial. But the auto-awake feature that turns on the bright blue digital display when someone walks nearby gives the Nest away as an ultra-modern piece of high tech gadgetry.

The Nest's software "learns" the habits in a given space by logging when inhabitants tend to be home and awake and noting when they tend to turn up or down the heat -- and then sets a heating/cooling schedule accordingly. Owners can also program the Nest, which connects to the Internet via Wi-Fi, to heat up or cool down the house at a set schedule or go into "away" mode from any web browser or smart phone.

Several other manufacturers (including Honeywell, ecobee, Hunter, Radio Thermostat, Trane and Lux) have Wi-Fi-enabled smart thermostats available now as well.

While only some of them have the auto-sensing and "learning" capabilities of the Nest, those without that feature also cost less. And merely programming in a weekly schedule to any smart thermostat will be the main source of cost and energy savings. People who were diligent about turning their old thermostats up and down throughout the day might not see any substantial savings with a smart thermostat, but most of us aren't so diligent -- especially when it comes to turning the heat down at night when we are sleeping.

Many smart thermostat owners report savings of between $10 and $30 per month on their heating/cooling bills -- and research has shown that such an upgrade can save upwards of 10 percent of the total energy consumed by a given household. Smart thermostats range in price from $50 to $250, so upgrading could pay for itself within a year or two at most, with long-term savings racking up month-by-month after that.

Many utilities now offer free or discounted smart thermostats to customers. Getting in on such a program is a great way to reduce energy costs without the up-front expense of installing a smart thermostat independently. According to the Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency, incentives to install smart thermostats are available through utilities in 45 states.

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EarthTalk / 'Smart' thermostat a smart way to cut energy bills

If you need cooling and heating installation in the Montgomery County or Frederick County areas, look no further than GAC Cooling & Heating. Weve provided the Gaithersburg, MD area with heating and cooling services since 1970, so you know youre getting proper, high quality cooling and heating installation with GAC.

At GAC, our technicians work closely with you to help determine the ideal heating and cooling system for your home before professional installation. The installation process is extremely important to make sure your system operates efficiently and properly, which is why we spend so much time training and focusing on quality. Others might offer the same type of equipment, but our process and customized approach make the difference in performance and comfort.

GAC guides you through the process to ensure your new heating installation improves your homes comfort and efficiency.

At GAC, our heating installation services include:

When youre in need of new heating installation, you wont find a more experienced and qualified team than the one here at GAC.

There are many benefits to installing a new air conditioning system, including:

Armed with the best products and certified energy consultants, we can help you identify the most appropriate cooling system for your home. Once we find the right cooling system, our NATE Certified technicians will ensure your AC installation goes smoothly so you can begin saving energy from the day its installed. At GAC, our primary goal is to provide excellent service and high quality products that manage rising energy costs while maintaining comfort for your family.

GAC Cooling & Heating provides heating and cooling installation services in the Montgomery County and Frederick County areas. If youre interested in new furnace, heat pump, or air conditioning system and live in the Gaithersburg, MD area, contact us today for a free replacement estimate on your HVAC system.

At GAC Cooling & Heating, our HVAC installation services include:

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Cooling and Heating Installation | AC, Furnace, Heat Pump ...

OREGON Government agencies often spend every cent they get. Sometimes they dont.

In the past 2 years, Ogle County Sheriff Michael Harn has left unspent more than $1 million from his annual budgets.

According to the county treasurers numbers, Harn didnt spend $766,000 in his budget last fiscal year and $572,000 the previous year. His budget includes law enforcement, corrections, and building and grounds for all county property.

In the 2013 budget, Harns unspent money included $350,000 for repairs and maintenance of buildings, including redoing the heating and cooling system for a county building, Treasurer John Coffman said.The sheriff handles the countys buildings and grounds.

Projects were planned, Coffman said, and for whatever reason didnt happen.

While the countys budgeting process wont begin for about 6 months, Ogle County Chairman Kim Gouker said, there might be a review to determine whether the Sheriffs Department or others are being overbudgeted.

Theres no point in budgeting funds, if theyre not necessary, he said.

Harn did not respond to requests for comment.

Gouker said Harn had saved money for the county by working to get favorable contracts for natural gas and electricity for county buildings.

The sheriff is also saving money by having patrol cars fill up at the gas pumps the county owns, he said, and has increased revenue the county receives from federal inmates who are housed by the U.S. Marshals Service at the Ogle County Jail.

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Ogle County sheriff leaves money unspent

OREGON Government agencies often spend every cent they get. Sometimes they dont.

In the past 2 years, Ogle County Sheriff Michael Harn has left unspent more than $1 million from his annual budgets.

According to the county treasurers numbers, Harn didnt spend $766,000 in his budget last fiscal year and $572,000 the previous year. His budget includes law enforcement, corrections, and building and grounds for all county property.

In the 2013 budget, Harns unspent money included $350,000 for repairs and maintenance of buildings, including redoing the heating and cooling system for a county building, Treasurer John Coffman said.The sheriff handles the countys buildings and grounds.

Projects were planned, Coffman said, and for whatever reason didnt happen.

While the countys budgeting process wont begin for about 6 months, Ogle County Chairman Kim Gouker said, there might be a review to determine whether the Sheriffs Department or others are being overbudgeted.

Theres no point in budgeting funds, if theyre not necessary, he said.

Harn did not respond to requests for comment.

Gouker said Harn had saved money for the county by working to get favorable contracts for natural gas and electricity for county buildings.

The sheriff is also saving money by having patrol cars fill up at the gas pumps the county owns, he said, and has increased revenue the county receives from federal inmates who are housed by the U.S. Marshals Service at the Ogle County Jail.

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Sheriff leaves money unspent