John's Incredible Pizza Company Flips the Switch With Rooftop Solar Farm

Online, March 6, 2013 (Newswire.com) - Sunup to sundown three hundred and sixty five days a year, John's Incredible Pizza Company is busy farming the energy of the sun with 216 solar panels installed on the rooftop of its 53,000 square foot facility in Fresno. The harvest will generate 350,000 kilowatt-hours and shave about 25% off the popular buffet & family entertainment center's electric bill over the next year. Over a 30-year period, the solar array installed by Stellar Energy is expected to generate the equivalent energy needed to bake 58 million 14-inch pizzas! "58 million pizzas lined up next to each other would cover the same distance as a round trip flight between Los Angeles and Rome, Italy!" said John's Senior Store Director, Hidalgo Rivera, "Installation took a month, but was well worth the time."

The project started when a former employee contacted John Parlet, owner and founder of John's Incredible Pizza Company, to explain the benefits of the clean power source. Solar cells are made of semiconductor materials that produce a photoelectric effect when exposed to sunlight, a phenomenon that occurs when the light knocks electrons loose from their atoms. The electrons then travel along a circuit built into the solar cell, creating a current of electricity.

"It's all part of an ongoing initiative to save energy and reduce costs," explains John's Incredible Pizza Company Vice President of Operations, Lori Stowe. "We have implemented many changes in all our stores such as switching to LED lights, and testing equipment like the Dyson hand dryer to reduce paper waste. Our guests now have the option to choose electronic redemption tickets and we have switched to recycled paper tickets. We're also testing items such as a hood management system that will power down when food isn't being made," Stowe concludes, "We plan on making more energy efficient and eco-friendly changes as technology advances ....it's exciting!"

To celebrate, John's Incredible Pizza Company is offering a 10 Free Fun World credits coupon to guests who visit before the end of the month. For details and to print the coupon visit the company website.

John's Incredible Pizza Company in Fresno is located at located at 7095 N. Cedar Avenue.