Black Hills State University worked with GenPro to place several solar panels on Bordeaux and Thomas Halls in the summer of 2018 and 2019 in order to use renewable energy instead of electricity.

The solar panels were built so that the school will not have to rely as heavily on grid power. According to Randy Culver, vice president of Facilities and Sustainability, the solar panels are only one step in the school’s plan to lessen their carbon footprint.

BHSU has installed two rooftops worth of solar panels. The first was on Bordeaux Hall in the summer of 2018, the second was on Thomas Hall in the summer of 2019. According to GenPro, a company that specializes in sustainable energy solutions, the solar panels should provide 20 percent of the entire building’s energy.

According to Molly Brown, vice president of Energy Production, the installation process began with putting together the hardware that holds the panels and setting up the wiring. After this they could install the actual panels and inverters, which convert the energy collected into usable energy.

The installation continues by making sure that the mounts and wires are set up to be long-lasting, while also looking clean and professional. The school has not said if it plans to install more solar panels.

Facilities and Sustainability said that they are still talking to different companies about the most efficient ways to continue to lessen their carbon footprint.