Infineon Raceway's Solar-Powered Drive to Accelerate Sustainability

In partnership with Panasonic, Northern California's Infineon Raceway is boosting its sustainability drive with a solar power system that now supplies 41 percent of the facility's electricity.

Completion of the installation is the latest development in the raceway's Accelerating Sustainable Performance program and will rival another component of the green campaign -- the sheep that crop the facility's grasslands -- as an attention-grabbing visual signature for Infineon's environmental efforts.

The 1,652 panels for the 353-kilowatt solar power system roost atop five sites at the 1,600-acre facility -- the main grandstand; the sound wall at Turn 10 of the twisting 2.5-mile track; the facility's main office; the Tech Center of the Jim Russell Racing Drivers School, (which includes modular structures by green building innovators Project FROG); and the Raceway Cafe.

The 3,000 sheep, which are supplied by Rocky Mountain Wooly Weeders, graze on slopes above the raceway. They've lived on the property since 2008, when the facility added "green mowing" and other eco-friendly measures to activities that included comprehensive recycling, an effort begun in 2004.

To site the solar arrays, facility operators chose the locations that were best for capturing the sun's rays and people's attention, said Steve Page, Infineon Raceway's president and general manager. "We consciously set about identifying the most visible places on the property," said Page in a news conference on Saturday to announce that the solar energy system is on line and delivering power.

The announcement by Page and Jim Doyle, president of Panasonic Enterprise Solutions Company, came on the weekend that NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series came to Infineon.

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, like other major pro sports in North America, is working to ease the environmental impacts its operations and push a green message out to its 70 million fans.

At Infineon, a 43-year-old facility that hosts a variety motor sports events 340 days a year, Page acknowledged that the intersection of environmental concerns and the racing industry may be difficult for some people to fathom.

"The idea of a motor racing facility launching a sustainability initiative may seem a bit counter-intuitive to a lot of people and I want to make sure I articulate the spirit of what we are doing," Page said. "It's very important for us to demonstrate that are options in the sustainable world where you don't have to compromise performance.

"The point we're trying to make is whatever assumptions you might have about someone in our industry, we have a very strong belief in operating as a sustainable business. It's something we want to wear very prominently and set an example to the folks who come out and use this facility."

The efforts at Infineon are being watched by its fans as well as others in the sports industry, said Doyle. He conceded, though, that when he first heard about the green vision for the facility, his initial thought was "it's kind of ironic when you think of a racetrack."

"But then I looked out the window and saw 1,000 sheep mowing the lawn," Doyle said. "That's real. These guys really mean it here."

Panasonic, the sponsor of the raceway's technology center, also provided a two-sided LED video board for the facility. With a display board that's almost 6 feet high and 17½ feet wide, the sign is visible from a nearby highway. It's made up of 57,600 LEDs, draws its power from a solar tracker and uses half the energy of its predecessor, which contained about 7,000 traditional bulbs.

The raceway and Panasonic estimate that the solar installation, not including the new sign, will save 34,000 barrels of oil over a 30-year period.