As our name alludes, ACK Smart Energy enjoys the privilege of being part of the Nantucket community. Located thirty miles out to sea and serving a year-round community of only 11,000, we, like so many who call the island home, find the closeness of local faces and businesses to be an exceptionally gratifying part of our work.
For the ACK Smart Energy team, all but one member have experienced the island as a complete novice; stepping off a steamship, Hy-Line, or airplane to the immediate, overwhelming sensation that this place really is unlike anywhere else. It’s that allure that has sparked for so many the transition from visitor to resident.
The exception, of course, is our Customer Liaison Tobias Glidden, who has the lofty bragging rights of being born and raised here. We’re fortunate to learn from his expansive island knowledge and direct it toward making an impact and setting goals for the future we hope to have a hand in shaping for natives and wash-ashores alike.
The work we do at ACK Smart Energy is just that: a way to have a direct impact on the future of Nantucket. Sustainability and conservation are imperative in the procurement of the island as we know it; hoping to even reverse some of the human impact to one day reveal signs of a Nantucket past.
But we know we can’t do it alone. One house making the solar switch is certainly a success, but at ACK Smart Energy we strive for the day Nantucket Island achieves total energy independence.
A few of our clients, ranging from summer residents to year-round, local business owners, find inspiration in this goal as well, and see a large place for solar on Nantucket. Graham Burton, owner of local business The Tile Room, saw potential in his own Nantucket life to implement solar.
“I just thought there was an opportunity there, in this building, a kind of warehouse I built,” Burton said of the structural property he owns near Nantucket Memorial Airport. “I wasn’t really concerned with the looks of solar panels, and I figured it would be a good thing to do for the environment. If I hang it on the building, it’ll pay for itself in a certain amount of time.”
Burton said it was the prospect of the solar benefit that lead him to invest in solar power. “I just liked the idea of renewable energy,” he said.
For year-round business owners and employees, time is precious in any season. Creating a fluid, easily managed, and enjoyable experience is essential to appeal to the business community. Burton’s design and installation experience was just that.
“It was very easy. Basically I met with the guys, I sent them my plans. They kind of outlined, they took that information, then we had a meeting and they presented a couple of options of different sizes and arrays. We just talked about the process, I said I want to do this one, and then we got going.”
And at the end of the day, the benefits of renewable energy are only a small way we can all give back to the place we love to call home. Burton notes that it’s the community itself that makes Nantucket the most enjoyable place to live. “I really like the people, you know? I like living here, I think it’s a great place to raise a family. As far as being a part of the community, the people I’ve gotten to meet and work with over the years, they’re just great folks.”
ACK Smart Energy whole-heartedly concurs.