Hutchinson Aerospace & Industry, Inc., Receives Business Clean Energy Award from Consumer’s Energy

Summary

ITHACA, Mich. - Taking another green step forward, the Hutchinson Aerospace & Industry, Inc., plant in Ithaca was recently awarded the Business Clean Energy Award from Consumer’s Energy after participating in energy demand and response, energy waste reduction and sustainability programs in 2023. The award recognizes Hutchinson’s commitment to energy efficiency and energy waste reduction, while helping build momentum toward a clean energy future.

Hutchinson, a world leader in the development of unique and custom solutions for shock attenuation and vibration isolation mounting systems, has been actively working to reduce emissions and act sustainably for the planet and future generations, and credits programs like these with helping.

“We appreciate this recognition from Consumer’s Energy and are grateful for its programs that move us closer to reaching our greenhouse gas goals, reducing our carbon footprint and being a good steward and neighbor to people in Ithaca and the world,” said Don English, Hutchinson’s maintenance manager and health, safety and environmental manager. “It’s all intertwined with our overall goals.”

Hutchinson set a goal to be 50 percent carbon neutral by 2030, and 100 percent by 2050. The company recently achieved a major milestone, receiving ISO 50001 International Energy Management Certificates for its facilities in Ithaca, Michigan, and Hopkinton, Massachusetts.

English said that as part of the Energy Demand and Response Program, the Ithaca plant commits to reducing its power usage by 250-kilowatt hours for up to four hours if Consumer’s Energy contacts them to say it’s anticipating an event that will impact the power grid.

“They want to know they can rely on us to take some power off the grid to help release the overall stress on the system,” said English. “In addition to helping the community, we also earn rebates based on our participation.”
Through another initiative, representatives from Consumer’s Energy audited the Hutchinson plant and used ultrasonic equipment to detect air leaks in pipes, valves and machinery.

“They tagged any problem areas, we fixed them and earned a $1,200 rebate,” explained English. “In addition, Consumer’s Electric tells us how much energy we save by correcting each leak. These may seem like small projects, but together, they can add up to significant savings and a major impact. Over the past two years, we’ve saved more than 2 million kilowatt hours.”

About Hutchinson

Formerly Barry Controls, Hutchinson Aerospace & Industry, Inc., was founded in 1943 to solve shock and vibration problems for the U.S military. Acquired by Hutchinson in 2000 and serving a wide range of diverse global customer applications with extensive materials expertise, the company is recognized today as a world leader in the development of unique and custom mounting solutions needing shock attenuation and vibration isolation. Additionally, Hutchinson is now well recognized as a specialist in custom system design and analysis, innovators in manufacturing, and engineering partners with its customers.