April 25, 2014

Brown Bear Corp.

Brown Bear Corporation is a heavy equipment manufacturer specializing in building products for the environmental, pipeline, and utility industries.  Brown Bear was founded in 1961 by Roscoe Brown.  They began manufacturing a line of products for pipeline and drain tile backfilling in 1968, and their first tractor line of machines was built in 1976.  All of the company business, including engineering, design, fabrication, paint and assembly, as well as sales and support, is handled out of their 40,000 square foot facility in Corning, Iowa.

The lighting system in Brown Bear’s facility was showing signs of age. Light levels had dropped considerably from when it was new, leading to less than ideal conditions for their production work.  The old metal halide and T12 Fluorescent lighting system was also very inefficient, leading to high maintenance and electricity costs.  As company president, Mr. Brown was searching for a way to reduce his monthly expenses while improving the overall quality of the lighting in his facility without spending more than he needed to.

Energyficient’s team of professionals met with Mr. Brown and through our consulting/interview process helped him understand what was possible with a lighting efficiency project. Together, we determined the priorities for his project design and began our work. With the help of South West Iowa REC efficiency program rebate, the project payback was shorter than his expectations making the approval of the project a no-brainer.