VP Supply Renewable Energy

VP Supply (VP) was established in the winter of 1965 by Marv Miller and Elliot Curwin in a small warehouse on Brown Street in downtown Rochester, New York. The company experienced rapid growth and relocated in 1987 to a large new building in Henrietta. In the early 1990s, Elliot Curwin’s sons Gary and Louis agreed to purchase to the company from Marv Miller and take over leadership.

Today VP is proud to be one of the largest wholesalers in the Northeast with offices and showrooms in Buffalo, Holley, Syracuse, Utica, Erie (PA) in addition to Rochester.

Most recently and responding to the growing issues of energy shortage and climate change, VP has taken it upon itself to not only become a more energy efficient company, but offer more energy conscious products. In 2009 VP launched a Renewable Energy division to offer customers excellent options for alternatives to traditional energy sources. The Renewable Energy division carries a complete line of Renewable Energy products ranging from Wind Energy products, Solar Photovoltaic, Solar Hot Water, Geothermal HVAC products, Rainwater Collection Wastewater Treatment and an assortment of other sustainable energy products.

A recent addition to the Renewable Energy division is the Aquatherm line of environmentally friendly piping products.

Many of VP products are eligible under Federal and State Tax Credits for energy efficiency improvements and renewable energy systems!

WHY IS THE AQUATHERM PRODUCTS ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY?

Aquatherm's Polypropylene piping systems cost less than a third of the energy to produce, and generate a fraction of the air, water, and soil pollution when compared to metal systems, and are completely nontoxic, even when burned, with a clean, waste-free joining system and a completely recyclable composition.

All Aquatherm’s piping systems are made from patented Fusiolen® PP-R (80). This material is physically durable and chemically inert, making it ideal for piping systems. Systems made from Fusiolen® boast many advantages, such as:

Complete resistance to scaling

Complete resistance to corrosion

Strong resistance to aggressive mediums

Strong resistance to abrasion

Resilience to impact

Chemical neutrality

Natural sound insulation

Natural heat insulation

Superior heat-fusion properties

It is food grade approved in food processing plants as an alternative to stainless steel

Has excellent applications in Geothermal HVAC systems

KEY STAFF PROFILE
	Michael Parks is the Director of Renewable Energy at VP Supply's Renewable Energy Division. Michael started working with renewable energy technologies in 1992. Later, in 1999, he started his own rewable energy company - Northeast Emergency Power Systems. Michael joined VP Supply in 2009 to help expand the availability and affordability of renewable energy products.

Why piping system is important?

In a 1994 study conducted by the Technical University Berlin called "Comparative Ecological Analysis of Drinking Water Installation Systems", a detailed analysis of drinking water pipe installations was conducted to quantify emission values for common piping materials over its life cycle.

The top figure summarizes the study findings for the air, water, and land pollution effects for steel, copper, and plastic pipes.

The bottom figure summarizes relative energy requirements to produce the competing piping systems.

The study determined steel and copper pipes generates more ecological pollution compared to plastic pipe systems.

There are also differences between the individual plastic pipe systems in view of their energy balance, recycling, and waste disposal; on the whole, Polypropylene and Polybutylene present the most environmental beneficial alternative compared to metallic pipe systems.

Why environmentally friendly piping?

Some of the most energy-efficient mechanical systems are based on hydronics, such as ground source heat pumps, active solar with storage, radiant heating and cooling, cogeneration, and district heating and cooling. It takes less than 10% of the amount of energy to move a British thermal unit (Btu) using water than using air. Environmental and economic issues are driving these projects to use greener piping systems.

Engineers are being pushed to design piping systems that use fewer resources—in both construction and operation—and that have minimal cradle-to-cradle impact on our planet.

Because pumping systems often run continuously and are unnoticed, they can consume many times their initial cost in energy. A small improvement in performance can result in significant lifetime reductions in electrical consumption and the associated costs and negative environmental impacts. Careful piping design and commissioning can reduce pump power demand by as much as 50 percent or more.

In addition to impacting the energy-efficiency of a pumping system, piping material will also have a lasting impact on controlling toxins, system life, recyclability and chemical interactions.

Source: Plumbing Systems & Design, March 2009, page 14 - page 18