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in the news

City amends wind ordinance; Meijer ready to set-up - July 10, 2009
(Muskegon Chronicle) - Norton Shores officials have finalized changes to the city's wind turbine ordinance, and Meijer Inc. is ready to take advantage of those changes. City council members Tuesday night unanimously approved ordinance amendments -- including allowing more units per property and loosening up a setback requirement -- recommended by the city's planning commission. City officials are hoping the amendments will lead to a surge in installation of wind turbines in the city. Meijer Inc. seems interested in becoming the first in the city to install a wind turbine. Company officials earlier this year announced plans to install six Swift Wind Turbines...read more...

Is the answer blowing in the wind? Local Meijer store first to install wind turbines; others may follow
(Grand Haven Tribune) - The Meijer store in Grand Haven Township has taken a first step in renewable energy. The store, 15000 U.S. 31, recently erected six wind energy turbines atop its roof that will capture wind power and turn it into energy."We're a leader in new technology," said Store Manager Greg Hendricks. "It's just a good push for the environment." The 7-foot-diameter Swift wind turbines, built by Grand Rapids-based Cascade Engineering, were attached on the building's roof � four on the south end and two on the north � last week. Hendricks said he has heard nothing but positive comments from customers about the turbines. read more...

Developer installs wind turbine on roof of Peregrine Tower in downtown Kalamazoo - March 21, 2009
(Kalamazoo Gazette) - The ultra-modern-looking thing that could be mistaken for artwork at the top of the Peregrine Tower in downtown Kalamazoo is something Tom Huff decided he really needed to add to the building. The urban developer and property owner decided early this year that installing a commercial wind turbine to help cut utility costs and reduce the 10-story property's energy consumption was the right thing to do. He got working on it about a month and a half ago, and on Thursday, he completed the installation of a Swift Wind Turbine, manufactured by Cascade Engineering of Grand Rapids.read more...

Donated wind turbines surprise church, school with lower bills, small size and quietness - March 7, 2009
(GR Press) - It started with a phone call last spring. "You're going to get a windmill," benefactor Peter Wege told St. Anthony of Padua's pastor, the Rev. Mark Przybysz. Today, the rooftop wind turbine spins with the breezes, lowering the electric bills at the Catholic church and school with every revolution. An identical one does the same atop Grand Rapids City High/Middle School. "When the environment and education come together, those are some of Mr. Wege's favorite projects," said Ellen Satterlee, executive director of the Wege Foundation, which funded the purchase and installation of the Swift Wind Turbines, built locally by Cascade Engineering. read more...

SWIFT Wind Turbine sees aggressive sales, numbers doubling every month - March 6, 2009
(Rapid Growth Media) Grand Rapids- Cascade Engineering said this week that sales of the Swift Rooftop Wind Turbine have doubled every month since its launch last October. The numbers are still small with 32 sold to-date, but the company expects March sales to number between 20 and 30 units, installed. The Swift is a small, super quiet model designed for rooftop mounting on houses, commercial buildings and light industrial plants. On average, the turbines can generate 1,680 watts of instantaneous power at any one point. With an average 12 mph wind speed the turbines can produce 20 percent of an average home�s electricity. The expected sales increase is partly due to warmer weather, and partly due to a 30 percent federal tax credit. read more...

(Grand Rapids, MI, 88.5 FM/NPR) Radio Broadcast Interview with a SWIFT Customer - February 20, 2009

Meijer looks to Cascade Engineering for wind to power offices, stores - Febrary 20, 2009
(GR Press) WALKER -- Wind power might be coming to Meijer Inc.'s corporate offices and two of its Lakeshore stores. The Walker-based retailer plans to install six SWIFT Wind Turbines, manufactured by Cascade Engineering Inc., atop its corporate offices. Company officials said Meijer also looks to fit its Grand Haven and Norton Shores locations with the small-scale devices.read more...

Bringing Wind Turbines to Ordinary Rooftops - Febrary 14, 2009
(NY Times) WIND turbines typically spin from tall towers on hills and plains. But in these green times, some companies hope smaller turbines will soon rise above a more domestic spot: homes and garages.One new model, the SWIFT Wind Turbine, is designed to do its job quietly, said Dave Anderson, co-director of Renewable Devices in Edinburgh, which has partnered with Cascade Engineering in Grand Rapids, Mich., to offer the turbine in the United States.read more...

Cascade - February 6, 2009
Grand Rapids' Cascade Engineering created a new niche industry with its whisper-quiet rooftop wind turbine for home and business. Thanks to assistance from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, Cascade diversified its plastic injection molding business in a new direction.read more...

Got Wind? - November 20, 2008
Doug Morrell had already installed solar panels on his house in Coopersville, Mich., but he was eager to get a little bit greener. So the 52-year-old Navy veteran bought something that might seem more at home on the Dutch countryside than in a small town in western Michigan: his own personal wind turbine. The 33-ft.-high (10 m) machine, whose blades span 7 ft. (2 m) in diameter, sits next to the pole barn 100 yd. (90 m) from Morrell's home. (Turbines like Morrell's convert the energy of the wind to electricity, while old windmills are geared for mechanical power, like pulling water from a well.) On days with decent wind--which occur frequently enough, since he can feel the breeze from Lake Michigan--the $16,000 Swift wind turbine can generate 1.5 kilowatts (kW) an hour...read more...

America's Greenest City - October 2008
On a sunny afternoon in Grand Rapids, a group of earnest, middle-age folks is gathered in a conference room, looking at slides of wind turbines and charts about wasteful energy use. A full-bearded man, who looks as if he's just back from a nature walk, talks about his plans to build a home showcasing the latest in low-impact design. At the front of the room, the speaker asks, pep-rally style, "What's the most effective source of renewable energy today? Conservation!" But this isn't a meeting of Earth-loving Hippies Reunited. The speaker, Michael Ford... read more...

Photo gallery: Granholm in Muskegon to help launch wind-turbine business - October 27, 2008
(mlive.com) With Gov. Jennifer Granholm at his side, a forward-thinking West Michigan business leader inaugurated a next-generation alternative energy business Monday with a small wind turbine that sits atop the Frauenthal Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Muskegon. read more...

Cascade Engineering Launches SWIFT Wind Turbine System for Commercial and Residential Use - October 27, 2008
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Cascade Engineering today launched its SWIFT Wind Turbine in the United States and Canada. Quieter than a whisper, SWIFT provides businesses and homeowners in windy environments an effective solution to lower energy bills and reduce carbon emissions. Built on unique, patented technology, the SWIFT Wind Turbine is the most versatile wind turbine of its kind – silent enough to perch on a home, yet robust enough to secure to a skyscraper. Read more from Yahoo!, PR Newswire, Calibre and International Business Times

Quiet wind-turbine comes to U.S. homes - October 27, 2008
(CNET) A home wind turbine already installed at 250 sites in Scotland is now being sold across the pond. read more...

Quieter rooftop wind turbines - October 27, 2008
(Novogreen) Plastic parts maker Cascade Engineering is bringing a small rooftop wind turbine called the SWIFT for the North American market.The SWIFT is significantly quieter than traditional small wind turbines – less than 35 decibels, compared with 40 to 50 decibels for competing products. The tiny turbine is already available in the UK, Belgium, New Zealand and the Netherlands. read more...

Local engineers to tout new swift wind turbine - October 26, 2008
MUSKEGON, Mich. (WZZM) — A West Michigan engineering group will introduce a new type of alternative energy to the area Monday morning. read more...

Cascade Launches Oh-So-Quiet Rooftop Wind Turbine - October 26, 2008
(earth2tech) Plastic parts maker Cascade Engineering is bringing a small rooftop wind turbine called the SWIFT to North America. The company says the SWIFT is significantly quieter than traditional small wind turbines - less than 35 decibels, compared with 40 to 50 decibels for competing products. read more...

Granholm here to launch turbine on Frauenthal Center - October 24, 2008
WEST MICHIGAN (mlive.com) — Gov. Jennifer Granholm is expected to be at a national product launch Monday of a West Michigan wind turbine that has been installed on the Frauenthal Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Muskegon. read more...

SWIFT: Ultra Quiet Rooftop Wind Turbine - May 8, 2008
Love the idea of wind power, but can't imagine that a wind turbine on your property could ever be quiet or unobtrusive? Personal wind turbines are the next big thing in wind power technology, and the Swift Wind Turbine is sure to make a splash with its quiet and unobtrusive design. Coming to rooftops in July 2008, this unique design uses an outer ring to diffuse air flow from five blades, minimizing noise to a minute 35 decibels - less noise than generated by whisper conversation. With the capability to generate up to 2,000 kWh annually, Swift is making small scale wind power more aesthetically and acoustically appealing.read more...

Cascade Engineering is planning production on the Swift Wind Turbine - February 18, 2008
Early this summer, probably in June, the plastic products manufacturing company will begin production of blades and rotors for the Swift Rooftop Wind Energy System, which has been produced in Scotland for almost five years. read more...

Cascade Engineering and Swift - January 31, 2008
Cascade Engineering gears up to start making the Swift Wind Turbine blades. read more...

Clean Energy Discovering the Power of Wind - December 20, 2007
A Michigan State University report predicts that establishing a reasoned policy to promote renewable energy would spur hundreds of new windmill installations and lead to a substantial economic payoffs for Michigan. read more...

Governor Granhom visits Cascade Engineering - November 07, 2007
Gov. Jennifer Granholm talks with Cascade Engineering about injection-molding the Swift Wind Turbine blades. read more...