REI has been a leader in green building design for decades. Because lighting is by far the biggest use of electricity in a retail store – typically accounting for nearly 60 percent of the total electricity usage – REI has installed rooftop photovoltaic panels on eleven of its stores including three in Oregon (Tualatin, Clackamas and Hillsboro), seven in California and one in Texas. And, when they redesigned the Boulder REI in 2007, they included a solar skylight system that provides two percent of the store’s electricity needs through building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV).
Boulder REI Building Integrated Photovoltaic
REI’s goal is to install solar panels on the roofs of more than 10 percent of their stores. The three Oregon REI’s with solar panels are all located within in the Portland Metro Area. Portland Metro receives substantially less solar irradiation than Central Oregon so it simply makes sense that the Bend REI should be high on the list for solar panels for REI to reach their 10 percent goal.
