Carving a wave of energy savings
by Robert Yang | Jan. 26, 2022
When you enter Jams World, it’s like you took a time machine back to the 1960s when fashion was best characterized by bright, vibrant colors and exciting, psychedelic designs. Dave Rochlen, founder of Jams World, created the iconic Jams (short for pajamas) surf shorts back in the ’60s when he saw a group of Russians swim in their pajamas on a TIME® Magazine cover. This inspired him to have his wife trim his Hawaiian-printed pajama pants into shorts for surfing. And that’s how it all started.
More recently, as with many other businesses, Jams World had to stop production during the pandemic. This reduced its energy usage significantly. Like Dave, current owners Pua (Dave’s son) and wife Heather used their ingenuity and transformed their unused inventory of fabrics into face coverings, which saved their business. As the world opened back up, Jams World production increased, which triggered a spike in energy use.
Hawaiian Electric keeps track of commercial customers’ energy usage and sorts them into profiles. When profile trends significantly change, they are flagged in the system and a “threshold letter” is sent out to alert customers. It sounds like bad news, but it’s not. Kathleen Freitas, who worked as a business management services (CBMS) consultant before taking a new position at Hawaiian Electric, contacted Heather regarding the company’s new usage trend.
“The goal is to make customers aware of their increased usage so they can get ahead of it and better manage their expenses, which hopefully will lead to some savings,” Kathleen said.
CBMS installed data loggers at Jams World’s warehouse facility. The loggers provided real-time data to the customer, narrowing down usage to minute intervals. CBMS used the data to help them apply for a commercial rate schedule that is more optimal for their use pattern. Jams World was already operating with an energy-conscious, sustainable mindset, so the rate change will help add to the savings.
“We used to pay $7,000 a month for electricity at our old space. That was a lot of energy and money. We had to be smart and create a space that was energy-efficient, comfortable and welcoming,” said Heather, one of the owners.
Jams World had already incorporated a wide variety of energy-saving changes into their business, which included: installing a rooftop solar system, putting in LED lights, using solar fans in busy rooms, utilizing skylights to welcome in natural sunlight, and incorporating spray foam onto the roof to keep temperatures cool. “Hawaiian Electric is now helping us decide on a battery system to further shave down our energy usage in addition to the wonderful things they’ve been helping us with so far.”
It can be a difficult time for local businesses to operate in Hawaii. If you receive a “threshold letter” from our CBMS team, just know that help is on the way! You can also contact Hawaii Energy for rebates and energy-saving tips.
True to this day, a Jams World original piece still begins as artwork that’s transferred onto fabric and carefully crafted into an aloha shirt, shorts, face covering or dress for you to proudly wear. Even the buttons are individually painted by hand, which seals in the Jams World authenticity. We should all support businesses like Jams World, which embraces energy-saving efforts so it can be sustainable as it creates vibrant, high-quality apparel for everyone.
Check out this video to see more about how we helped Jams World lower their energy usage rates.
Robert Yang is a digital communications and social media specialist at Hawaiian Electric.
