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Show n Wed/Thur/Fri, September 3-5, 2008 The Park Record -10 MEETINGS AND CONVENTIONS MARKETPLACE Rethinking the use of solar power Local convention properties have reported that the following groups will meet during the week of August 30 - September 6, 2008 in Park City. Information is supplied by the Park City Chamber/Bureau. GROUP The CEO Project Best Buy Deseref Power Ken Blachard Co K Group LLC Catholic Diocese Iris Center World Financial Mountain Supply Inc UofU Alpine Credit Union Chelsea Kauffman Wedding University of Utah Dept. of Pediatrics Fidelity National Veterinary Continuing Education VerticalXchange Borrick A Park City solar energy company does a lot more than just install panels, it also sells solar hot-water heaters, natural lighting and natural heating to reduce energy bills and emissions By ANDREW KIRK Of the Record staff amount of energy it uses, then a smaller (and more affordable) system is needed for solar power or heating. The USAE team doesn't try to convince.people to "get off the grid" with their products. They're focused on using renewable energy to lower bills. Everyone on the team is trained in other ways to make money, but they're each committed to spending their days helping solve one of the world's problems, instead of just worrying about them. "I wasn't doing anything I felt good about at the end of day I have a carpet cleaning business, which is really lucrative, but I wanted to feel like I made a difference at end of day, like a teacher This isn't your dad's solar energyFor decades, the prohibitive :ost of solar panels has fed the influence of nay-sayers. Now a jmall company called Utah Solar And Alternative Energy is helping to redefine the role of the sun. While photovoltaic cells for a tome or business can run between 10,000 to $50,000, solar-powered ot-water heaters are under 10,000. For even less, fixtures can e added to a building to enhance Natural light and heating. '- "Energy is kind of a staple of business," said Joe Raycraft, USAE founder. "I don't like how we're interconnected with oil. This is a direct way to change "•-the' Itreally.cajne down to doing someprofile of , tyiergy use thing that was directly addressing the and to problems I was seeing in the world." empower people. - Joe Raycraft, founder of Utah : A solar water heater, Solar and Alternative Energy produced by a European , company called Velux, can reduce or nurse, I was ready for that in my a hot water bill by 80 percent. life," said Josh Kordecki, sales, "That's a pretty easy sell," design and installation expert. Raycraft said. Raycraft actually moved to Precedents in real estate prove Carbondale, California to work that solar panels increase the value with a solar power firm for four of a home and make it easier to years to become trained and certisell, but can take up to 20 years to fied in the industry. pay for themselves in energy sav"It really came down to doing ings, explained Raycraft's business something that was directly partner, Bill Wilson. addressing the problems I was seeHot water systems however, ing in the world," he said. "J lived automatically pay for themselves if in Park City for 20 years, living a folded into a 30-year mortgage good life, but felt like I needed to and will pay for themselves within do something that responded to ^ to 7 years if installed into an how I felt about the world, and this existing home, he said. was it." t That isn't to say USAE doesn't Kordecki doesn't think they're sell the panels. The average Park alone in feeling this way. (pity home can get a good ground, "People are starting to recogole or roof panel system for nize the growing problem of glob30,000-not at all prohibitive for al warming. It's not just a trend, ijiany homes in the area. but a growing necessity," he said. | With the coal industry holding "Things have to change. I almost tfie price of electricity fairly steady feel like this is a calling." &nd the price of gas rising, using According to Wilson, he's right. golar for heat, rather than generaThe company only started in tion, is becoming an easy selling November, yet it's already moving [Joint, Wilson said, into where Wilson wrote the busij "Business is really taking off. ness plan to put it in three to four The rising prices of fossil fuels, I years from now. think, has made people not previThis is exciting for him, because ously interested in alternative he had years of experience workenergy research it and consider it," ing on business development lie said. "Our call volume has before joining with Raycraft, picked up exponentially. People Wilson said. £ re starting to feel a pinch in their Kordecki refers to him as their \ wallets. "quarterback." Many solar-power experts, Wilson said he knew the market including Raycraft and Wilson, are was right for products that reduce getting into energy consulting, as energy bills. Architects and yell as sales. If a home or business builders are already using triple(}an find ways to reduce the paned windows, better insulation ? ? PROJECTED ATTENDEES 5 25 40 40 134 36 17 60 55 90 15 25 50 80 12 255 24 TOTAL ATTENDEES 963 ICE: Use E-Verify Know the do's and don'ts when hiring By ANDREW KIRK Of the Record staff DAVID RYDER/PARK RECORD Solar panels installed by Utah Solar and Alternative Energy are seen gathering energy for a home in the Stagecoach area. and other insulation to reduce mizc sun exposure during differwaste. They're also becoming ent seasons. The panels move 15 more conscious of positioning degrees. They're also easier to and design to minimize energy clean and maintain than roof use. panels. "We're a new company, but The latitude and longitude of really optimistic that we're com- Park City, however, is "pretty ing into this at the right time," he ideal" for roofs, which are usualsaid. "Timing couldn't be better." ly pitched at about 40 degrees. As USAE is also benefiting from long as the panels are not in connections they've made. shade and are facing south, they The team installed some work do pretty well, he said. in the Daybreak development in Not every building is an easy West Jordan and was involved install, bul Kordecki said he likes with the Parade of Homes in Salt that because it gives him an Lake County. They've also excuse to study up on the technireceived referrals from The cal side of the business. Some sysGreen Building Center. tems arrive from the manufacturA roof-mounted photovoltaic er kind of piece-meal, Raycrofl system takes about five business said. They have to be assembled days to install. A hot-water sys- in a custom design for the home. tem only takes a day or two. Raycroft said they don't mind. Retrofitting into an existing "We have a love for this place home takes a little longer, but not and a love for what we do. That much, Wilson said. greases the skids," he said. The tilt with pole mounts can To contact USAE, call Wilson be manually adjusted to maxi- at 801-949-6219. As businesses hire new workers for the ski season, immigration officials encourage personnel departments to scrutinize documents presented with 1-9 forms, participate in verification programs like EVerify and speedily react to notices of incongruities from the Social Security Administration. There is no way to 100 percent safeguard your company from hiring an illegal worker or to avoid prosecution from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said Pat Reilly, a spokesperson for ICE, but her office asks businesses to perform "due diligence." "If we think you have a predominantly illegal workforce, it's because of steps you're not taking, not steps you are." she said. "What we're looking for is people exploiting vulnerabilities." There are also limits as to what measures a business can take to verify its own compliance with immigration laws. Employers may not ask to see any documents other than the ones presented by a prospective employee if they meet the requirements of the 1-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification Form), explained Bill Wright, a spokesman for U.S. Citizens and Immigration Services (USCIS). It is also against the law to discriminate against an applicant because thev look or seem Knead a Good Deal <J The Basic Knead foreign. The laws protecting applicants often only apply to companies with more than 15 employees, but ignoring the laws could land smaller companies in a legal quagmire, advised, Mark Wagner, an employment attorney with Van Cott. Bagley, Cornwall & McCarthy. "An employer's job is to take reasonable steps to obtain appropriate documentation that the identity of the person is valid and that they have a legal right to work in the U.S. If documents look good on the face, the employer is prohibited from taking further actions," he said. Kim Mayhew, human resources director for Deer Valley, said that with a little training it isn't difficult to catch obvious fakes in regards to documents. She has also found information booklets provided by the government to be helpful in staying compliant. Wright with USCIS encourages all employers to register with the government's E-Verify program and run a new employee's information through the database1. E-Verify has been criticized for problems and is still in development, but Wright believes it can be useful in identifying obvious problems with an employee's information in a speedy manner. If the program red-flags any information entered, it doesn't mean there's a problem with the person, it just means further investigation is needed, he said. "It's not a screening program. It's only to verify status. That's what it's for, and about 94 percent of inquiries (that's Please see l-9s, A11 Colon Cancer. Get the test. Get the polyp. Get the cure. Colon c*nc4r i l u i t alvi (So minfult body session) vttb • polyp. 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