THE BOLT BLOG

What solar system size works for my business or home?

The system cost of solar PV can vary by energy profile and budget. Hard costs like material and labor are typically assessed in cost per rated watt. Solar modules and inverters are also rated and priced by wattage. For consistency, solar is sized by the DC rated capacity of the array. Local net metering interconnection standards will often set a maximum system size by utility customer class, i.e. 15kW residential, 100kW commercial for Kansas Investor Owned Utilities, 200kW commercial and 25kW residential for some municipal utilities and cooperatives.

Stanion Starting Small

Stanion is proud to be an independent supplier of electrical products. We like being able to run our business as we see fit, and we have spent 60 years doing just that. Our belief is that being independent helps us keep closer relationships with our customers and helps us to be more nimble and agile. However, being an independent does have a few disadvantages. One of the drawbacks relates to our size and scale compared to other distributors. Our larger, national competitors can buy larger quantities from manufacturers and can therefore negotiate lower prices and better payment terms than smaller distributors can. With the goal level the playing field, Affiliated Distributors (AD) was formed in 1981 primarily as a buying group to help companies like ours negotiate lower prices from our vendors. Over the 40 years of AD’s existence, it has grown to become more than just a buying group.

Early 2018, Stanion’s Kansas City branch moved to their current location. It was the largest facility of the 17 Stanion branches and it was intended to be a central hub to support Stanion’s growing Kansas City market. Corporate leadership inquired about supplementing their energy use with rooftop solar, but it wasn’t until 2019 when they better understood the facility energy demands that they request an evaluation of the potential for solar.

Stanion Wholesale Electric Co. recently completed its Charity Golf Classic to benefit Special Olympics Kansas (SOKS). Stanion, its valued employees, customers and vendors came together to enjoy a fabulous day of weather and great golf, raising an impressive $85,000.

Daydreaming

All young children have dreams about what they want to be when they grow up, and I certainly had my share of those dreams. During those early years, I don’t recall having dreams of being a ballerina, but I did entertain wishes of becoming a teacher, which I’m very glad did not become a reality. I eventually entered the workforce via a part-time job working in a bookstore owned by a friend of my mom. I love to read, so this was a great job for me. My first full time job was working for the Southwest Daily Times (Liberal’s daily newspaper) doing advertising layouts. I can assure you that, during those years, I was not dreaming of working in the electrical distribution industry. I had no idea that industry even existed at that time.

Growing Threat

Recently, there has been a growing number of cybersecurity incidents on an international scale. No one is immune, and the question is not “if” you will be attacked, but “when.” Some may already be affected and not even know it. Hackers may not single you out because of the size or your company, or even the industry you are in. You may be under attack just because someone at your facility clicked on a malicious link in an email, or just because you have a checkbook. Let's face it, if someone shut down your system, you are not prepared for it, and you are faced with the options of paying the ransom, rebuilding everything from scratch, or closing down, then you will probably just pay the ransom.

Celebrating 60 Years!

Please click here to view the video interview with Bill Keller

None of the good people now working at Stanion Wholesale Electric Co. were on the job with us when our company started in June of 1961. But, all of them have benefited from the work done by their predecessors in building Stanion Wholesale into a successful business. There may be some individuals within our customer base who became customers of our first branch in June of 1961. If so, we especially appreciate their business and loyalty.

What is Arc Flash?

An arc flash is a sudden, explosive release of energy. Electric current leaves its intended path and travels through air from one conductor to another conductor (or to ground). The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) defines an arc flash hazard as “a source of possible injury or damage to health associated with the release of energy caused by an electrical arc.”

What is Culture?

The word “culture” can mean many different things to just about anyone. When I was younger, I didn’t give much of a second thought to a corporate culture. My feeling was that a company’s culture was completely undefinable and that for large corporations, it was something that didn’t even really exist. Now I realize I couldn’t have been more wrong.

Earlier this month, our Wichita branch moved into its new home. We recently completed the transition to our new location at 350 S. Tracy St. and will now occupy a space of nearly 100,000 square feet. This is a significant increase from the 27,000 square foot space we had previously occupied on Pawnee St. since 2012. Our growth in Wichita over the past decade has translated into an increase in inventory as well as personnel, and we were simply out of room.