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For immediate release

September 6, 2011

Sun powers new energy efficient fans at the Canada Agriculture Museum

OTTAWA – A coalition of private sector companies have donated and installed a system of solar panels powering energy-efficient fans in the horse and cattle barn at the Canada Agriculture Museum.

This installation was made possible through the generous support of Big Ass Fans Co., Arntjen North America, and iSolara. They responded to a call from the Canada Agriculture Museum to partner with companies to implement and showcase leading-edge energy efficient practices in daily farm operations.

“The installation of these panels and fans allows for better air circulation with very low energy consumption and noise for the visitors and animals in the barn,” says Kerry-Leigh Burchill, Director General at the Canada Agriculture Museum. “As we launch the new exhibition Energy Park: Nature at Work, the Museum is pleased to be able to showcase renewable energy and contemporary technology to the public.”

“Arntjen North America is a company working in the animal industry as specialists in natural ventilation, air circulation, and animal comfort,” says Glen Garner of Arntjen North America. “As the distributor for the Big Ass Fans Company in Canada we are very pleased to be co-sponsors of the installation of the Big Ass Fans at the Canada Agricultural Museum.”

“Being a part of the Energy Park exhibition at the Canada Agriculture Museum is the perfect partnership for our company,” says Carey Smith, president and CEO of Big Ass Fans of Lexington, Kentucky. “From the beginning, our fans were created for the agricultural community. Big Ass Fans continue to design and manufacture products that today’s farmers need.”

“We are proud to be working with the Canada Agriculture Museum to demonstrate the viability of solar power being utilized in our communities,” says Warren Abar, President of iSolara Canada.

The Museum is always looking to establish new partnerships with leading companies and institutions interested in bolstering their corporate social responsibility by showcasing technologies, knowledge and practices that will have improve Canada’s energy mix and efficiency as well as reducing environmental impacts.

Museum visitors can see the four solar panels on the roof of the barn, and learn more about renewable energy in the nearby exhibition Energy Park: Nature at Work or at the other Let’s Talk Energy exhibitions at the Canada Science and Technology Museum or the Canada Aviation and Space Museum.

The Canada Agriculture Museum is a national institution, one of three museums within the Canada Science and Technology Museums Corporation in Ottawa. The Museum is a unique facility combining a demonstration farm located in the heart of the nation’s capital with the highest calibre of exhibitions and interpretation. The Museum’s facilities are located on the Central Experimental Farm: a national historic site which continues to carry out agricultural research and policy under Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. The Corporation and its three Museums—the Canada Agriculture Museum, the Canada Aviation and Space Museum, and the Canada Science and Technology Museum—tell the stories of Canadian ingenuity and achievement in science and technology, and demonstrate how these accomplishments have contributed to the building of our country.

General information:

For more information, please visit our Visitor Information page or call 613-991-3053.

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Media contact:
Kelly Ray
613-998-5342

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