Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Sustainable Solutions LED (SSL), and World Business Chicago (WBC) announced today that the company has moved its offices and showroom from Hinsdale to downtown Chicago in order to support continued expansion in the market. The company has moved 15 jobs to the new location at 910 West Van Buren. SSL plans to add an additional 20 technical, engineering, sales and project management jobs over the next two years.
“I welcome SSL to Chicago and I’m excited about the new jobs that will be created through their move,” said Mayor Emanuel. “Their facility will be a great showcase for the value of sustainable business practices in the city.”
“For the past two years Sustainable Solutions has been leading the charge to transform our economy’s energy consumption patterns by adopting energy-efficient lighting”, said Bill Ryan, CEO of Sustainable Solutions LED. “We’ve learned a lot in that time and our industry has advanced significantly; sharpening our ability to reduce building maintenance and operating costs for our customers. Being headquartered in Chicago places us in the epicenter of the greatest concentration of sustainability-conscious businesses and organizations.”
Ryan noted that the City’s commitment to sustainable buildings and access to highly-skilled talent were key reasons the company chose to relocate in Chicago.
In addition to the showroom and office, SSL will bring a Building Systems Clean Technology Center to Chicago. This center will act as a catalyst for new ideas as well as a showcase for emerging technology and an educational center for institutions offering CleanTech programs.
As a part of its plan, SSL will hire skilled workers to deliver solutions to its core market categories including industrial, commercial and hospitality clients. Chicago’s diverse economy makes it a leader in each of these industries.
“By locating in Chicago, Sustainable Solutions will find the skilled talent it needs to lead its innovative approach to energy efficient building systems,” said World Business Chicago President & CEO Jeff Malehorn. “We welcome SSL’s employees to the new Chicago office and showroom, and look forward to working with them as they implement their forward-thinking plans.”
Fostering innovation and supporting industries such as CleanTech are key components of the city’s Plan for Economic Growth and Jobs, called for by Mayor Emanuel and currently being implemented by World Business Chicago (WBC). Also part of the Plan, WBC’s ChicagoNEXT council seeks to accelerate growth and expansion of technology companies in Chicago, with a particular emphasis on CleanTech.
The City’s commitment to sustainability is demonstrated in its Sustainable Chicago Action Agenda, which offers concrete initiatives, metrics, and strategies aimed at advancing Chicago’s goal of becoming the most sustainable city in the country. The action plan offers a comprehensive roadmap, from improving citywide energy efficiency and promoting diversified transit options, to launching citywide recycling. The action agenda calls for Chicago to be innovative, building lasting companies, such as SSL, and filling the jobs that these investments will create.
In conjunction with its move to Chicago, SSL will develop partnerships with City Colleges, other regional community colleges and high schools within Chicago to bring sustainability education as well as energy management and power generation technology training to the future employees needed within the CleanTech and manufacturing industries.
Using the most conservative energy use reduction estimates (50%) and energy costs ($0.08/kWh), SSL estimates that implementing LED solutions across the commercial buildings in the region will result in annual energy cost savings of at least $925 million. From an environmental impact perspective, such changes will result in a reduction in Chicago’s carbon footprint totaling more than 7 million metric tons, the equivalent of removing nearly 1,500,000 cars from the road each year.
As business, governmental and institutional entities implement sustainability initiatives and embrace the concepts of energy optimization, Chicago is poised to embrace companies such as SSL, which are positioned to be at the forefront of the shift toward sustainable practices.