Sustainable-energy projects create sustainable growth at Taitem

ITHACA — Increased solar business is providing a sunny forecast for Taitem Engineering, PC for 2015.

The Ithaca firm, recently selected as a preferred installer for the Solarize Tompkins program, expects to install more than 400 kilowatts of solar-energy systems in Tompkins County, and that’s just one of several projects on tap for the company this year.

“We have a lot of different projects lined up,” says Theresa Ryan, marketing manager at Taitem. Along with the Tompkins County solar project, the firm has its eye on the Southern Tier and the Syracuse area as its next solar markets. Taitem will be busy in the New York City area with its Aeroseal duct-sealing services, has work lined up at Purity Ice Cream in Ithaca, is providing design work for EcoVillage in Ithaca, and is hoping to land the design bid for a project to repurpose the old Tompkins County Public Library.

On top of that, Taitem Engineering remains a busy statewide quality-assurance consultant for the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s (NYSERDA) Multifamily Performance Program, ensuring quality energy improvements, and provides energy audits for small businesses in Tompkins County.

“We have our hands in a lot of different things” Ryan says. “We’re growing, and we’re growing sustainably.”

While she didn’t provide revenue figures for the firm, Ryan says employment grew 20 percent in 2014 to 43 employees, including nine licensed professional engineers; six LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design)-accredited professionals; certified energy auditors, energy managers, and solar/photovoltaic installers; a master plumber; and a master electrician.

The consulting firm specializes in mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and structural engineering services, but has carved out a solid niche with its solar services and Aeroseal duct sealing.

In recent years, the company has worked on a number of LEED green-design projects including Gateway Commons and Maguire Automotive in Ithaca and the 4.2 million-square-foot Varyap Meridian project in Istanbul, Turkey.

Sustainable technology, particularly solar energy, has been a solid growth point for Taitem Engineering, Ryan says. “The technology is just getting better and better.”  

The company’s name stands for “technology as if the earth mattered” and that is the philosophy for all the company’s work, Ryan explains. That’s why Taitem doesn’t just sell a solar system to a client. The firm also performs an energy audit. The key is to find out how a client can conserve energy and then pair conservation efforts with the best system to generate energy, she says.

“I think that’s where people are headed,” Ryan notes. “They want to build efficient buildings.”

Taitem Engineering makes sure to practice what it preaches, she asserts. In 2013, Taitem earned B-corporation status, which makes it a for-profit entity that includes a positive impact on society and the environment. Taitem has a triple bottom line, Ryan adds, that includes profit, people, and the planet.

“We’re very conscious of our footprint and what we’re doing,” she says. The firm composts and uses energy-efficient lighting and low-flow toilets at its office, located at 110 S. Albany St.

Taitem Engineering (www.taitem.com) celebrated its 25th anniversary in December. Ian Shapiro founded the firm in 1989. Three years ago, the firm became a partnership with six senior staff members joining Shapiro as owners. 

Lou Vogel became the firm’s president in 2014. Shapiro is Taitem’s chairman.