The owner proposes to construct a 7,186 SF single-story Town Fair Tire, tire sales and service center at the corner of the property. Access to the facility will be from two new curb cuts, one on each of the adjoining roadways. This reconfiguration will serve to make vehicular access safer and more efficient. Along the eastern edge of the site, a vegetated water quality depression will be constructed to intercept runoff from the majority of the property. Additional proposed site features include landscaping, aesthetic street trees and vegetative screens.

We worked closely with our client, The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, to contract the specified wind turbine and a monitoring system that will show beach visitors the historical and instantaneous power output of the turbine.

Construction began with the assembly of the 100 foot lattice tower, which was constructed on it’s side, in the adjacent parking lot. The turbine was then assembled and attached to the top of the tower with the use of a 100-ton crane. After the completion of the electrical system, the tower and turbine were hoisted and placed on the concrete foundation. The state of Rhode Island will enjoy this renewable energy project for years to come.

The grand opening ceremonies for the new facility took place on May 24, 2010. The event was open to the public and attended by Governor Donald Carcieri, Senator Jack Reed, Congressman Jim Langevin, Wally Brine, Jr., and other state and federal officials.

Built in 1972, the parking garage is constructed of prestressed, post tensioned, reinforced concrete. It is four stories high, with continuous ramping occurring within the structure. The reinforcement of the existing spandrel wall at the rooftop (fourth level) of the Promenade parking structure had corroded to a condition where the structural adequacy of the reinforcement has failed. The existing condition caused a grave threat to the public’s safety. The successful rehabilitation plan depended on a well-organized program of investigation and analysis leading to an effective repair solution.

NE&C’s program consisted of a comprehensive concrete condition survey, several levels of structural analysis, and a detail repair program.

The structural analysis was an essential tool to determine if the damage was due to accidental overloads or possible design errors. These errors could range from insufficient steel reinforcement, poor detailing, inadequate provisions for drainage and insufficient travel in expansion joints. A good understanding of the structural mechanism of the parking structure was essential in deciding the appropriate repairs.

The proposed repairs will restore the structural integrity of the parking structure and arrest the deterioration of the structure, particularly by preventing further corrosion of the reinforcing steel.

 On Tuesday, September 22, RIEDC presented Northeast Engineers with a grant and loan check for $250,000 for the construction of a 100kW wind turbine at the company’s global headquarters located in the Aquidneck Corporate Park in Middletown, RI. 

Over 200 people were on hand to witness the presentation of the grant check and to see the new 150’ high turbine first hand.  Northeast Engineers hosted the event for business associates, state and local politicians and corporate park neighbors to celebrate the completion of the wind turbine which is now spinning. October. 

Northeast Engineers CEO Blake Henderson thanked the EDC and the many local businesses and contractors who helped with the project, emphasizing that this one project supported many local jobs and contributed to the new green economy in RI. 

Other speakers included Fred Hashway, Director of Government Affairs, Policy and Innovation from the RIEDC, Don Troppoli, Chairman of the Newport County Chamber of Commerce, Richard Cambra, Vice Chairman, Middletown Council,

Northeast Engineers estimates that the new turbine will provide about 75% of the company’s electrical power needs and they have plans to add photo-voltaic solar panels to the building’s roof in the spring enabling them to reach their goal of being the first commercial building in RI to be completely off the grid.

Northeast Engineers and its divisions Northeast Engineers & Consultants and Sustainable Global Energy offer turn key wind and solar solutions for commercial applications including engineering, permitting, procurement, construction, installation and commissioning.  They also help their clients find funding through federal and state grants for renewable energy projects.  In addition, the company accepted a 2009 Innovation Award from the Providence Business News in the category of Energy & the Environment at Bryant University on September 23^rd. 

For more information please contact Mary Pat Radeka at +1.401.849.0810 or info@sge-corp.com

Blake Henderson (right) of Northeast Engineers accepts an Innovation Award from Roger Bergenheim of PBN.

To date Northeast Engineers has contracted for the majority of on-going wind studies in Rhode Island and has begun wining contracts for studies in Southeastern Massachusetts. The company currently has three wind turbines at different stages of design and construction. In a recent report, Northeast Engineers was named as the leading Wind Energy and Engineer/Procure/Construct company in Rhode Island.

Northeast Engineers & Consultants, Northeast Engineers’s engineering division, won PBN’s Business Excellence award in 2005 for their civil engineering and electrical work in Iraq and has been named to PBN’s Top 100 and Fastest Growing Companies, and Top Private Companies for five consecutive years including 2009.  For more information please contact us at +1.401.849.0810 or info@sge-corp.com

Pelosi and Northeast Engineers’s principals Blake Henderson and Eric Offenberg discussed the company’s transition to the renewable energy sector, and how it has helped Northeast Engineers retain and create jobs.

Pelosi also got a close-up look at the inside of a wind turbine tower which was delivered to Northeast Engineers on July 9 by Northern Power Systems of VT. The tower is part of the 100kW wind turbine which will be installed to power the Easton Pond Business Center and Northeast Engineers’s offices. The project received final approval from the Town of Middletown in June, and the turbine is expected to be operating by the fall.

Click here to read the entire press release from Congressman Patrick Kennedy’s office.

Developed by Sonalysts of Waterford CT, the videos show what the wind turbine will look like at distances of 175 and 700 yards.

Click here to see the videos

Click here to learn more about the project

Northeast Engineers’s booth on renewable energy featured informational brochures about solar and wind power, a kid’s fun book, and a “Color a Wind Turbine” activity. Over 35 kids spent time coloring a rainbow of colorful turbines for a chance to win a solar powered mini-wind turbine in our raffle.

It was a successful event and Northeast Engineers is looking forward to participating again next year.

A family coloring wind turbines at Northeast Engineers’s booth.

Caleb, the winner of Northeast Engineers’s “Color a Wind Turbine” raffle

Join Northeast Engineers in celebrating Energy Independence Day on Sunday, July 5th from 1:00-4:00pm under the wind turbine at Portsmouth High school, 120 Educational Lane, Portsmouth, RI.

The free fun-filled family event is being held to highlight America’s reliance on foreign oil and the damage of fossil fuels on our climate and environment.

The gathering features a pot luck picnic, educational activities, and exhibits by non-profit organizations and vendors. Activities include an energy facts scavenger hunt, a mock-up wind turbine that families can be photographed with, high-mileage vehicles, and give-aways and contests.

For more information click here http://aisavesenergy.wikispot.org/Energy_Independence_Day

RIEDC, through its Renewable Energy Fund, awarded almost $700,000 to fund 17 renewable energy projects in Rhode Island. Northeast Engineers assisted the the following applicants with the development of their grant proposal, and has been retained to manage their projects:

• Feasibility of wind turbine and solar panels for affordable housing projects in Portsmouth. Applicant: Coastal Housing Corporation.
• Study the installation of wind turbines on a 750-acre parcel in Exeter. Applicant: SLA Realty.
• Feasibility of wind and other renewable energy opportunities for land and projects being developed in Portsmouth and Newport. Applicant: O’Neill Properties Group.

Click here to see other projects that received funding.

Awards for construction grants will be announced late July.