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Success Story: American Environmental Outfitters, Inc.

Partner Information

American Environmental Outfitters, Inc.
10,000 Sq. Feet
New Construction Project

“We are sure we will see a good return on our investment, both short term and long term.”
— Jim Miller
President, American Environmental Outfitters

American Environmental Outfitters, Inc., a company in Taylor, PA that screen prints on T-shirts and other items, wanted to be sure its new 10,000 sq. ft. office/production facility was as environmentally friendly as the company’s name suggests. To that end, Jim Miller, president of the company, made sure that ENERGY STAR qualified equipment was used as much as possible.

Good Environmental Business is Good Business

Good insulation is a fundamental building block to creating an energy-efficient building. If the building itself is properly insulated, energy loss from escaping warm or cool air is kept to a minimum, and heating and cooling systems don’t have to work as hard to keep the building comfortable. In the American Environmental Outfitters new facility, full building insulation has been installed. In addition, all exterior walls have a continuous vapor barrier. All exterior doors are properly insulated, and all interior walls are thermally and acoustically insulated. Moreover, all exterior glass is mounted in thermal aluminum with 1-inch insulated tinted glass. A tight building is an efficient building.

Better Lights, Lower Cost

The company used highly efficient compact fluorescent lamps to light interior areas. Compact fluorescent lamps are fluorescent lamps that have been specifically made in a compact form to replace incandescent lamps in traditional screw-in fixtures. Compact fluorescent lamps are as easy to install as incandescent lamps, and most major hardware stores sell them.

In addition, metal halide lamps with photoelectric cells and timers were used for all exterior lighting.

Other Steps

The screen printing company also installed a high-efficiency split system heat pump to provide more efficient air heating and cooling.

In addition to the steps taken to ensure that the new building and its lighting, heating, and cooling systems are efficient, Miller has also been replacing the company’s computer systems with ENERGY STAR qualified equipment.

Save Money, Save the Environment

The main obstacles Miller faced involved dealing with contractors who were not well informed about ENERGY STAR. “Many of the recommendations made by our contractors were simply based on cost and did not take into consideration environmental concerns. I believe the benefits of saving energy will far outweigh the costs of compliance,” Miller said.

A 2000 ENERGY STAR for small business Award Winner