Electronics manufacturer OEM Controls announced Tuesday morning a partnership with energy services company Budderfly to overhaul its manufacturing facility’s energy infrastructure, a project expected to reduce annual energy consumption by more than 30%.
Electronics manufacturer OEM Controls announced Tuesday morning a partnership with energy services company Budderfly to overhaul its manufacturing facility's energy infrastructure, a project expected to reduce annual energy consumption by more than 30%.
The agreement will bring a 230-kilowatt rooftop solar system, 18 new HVAC units and LED lighting upgrades to the company's 75,000-square-foot Shelton facility.
Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.
Budderfly, also based in Shelton, provides an energy-as-a-service model that allows companies like OEM Controls to implement clean energy infrastructure with no upfront capital costs.
The project comes as Connecticut manufacturers face mounting energy expenses. The state's average commercial electricity rate reached 23.34 cents per kilowatt-hour in May, up 20.2% from 19.42 cents the previous year — among the steepest increases in the nation.
"Aging infrastructure and rising energy costs are common challenges in manufacturing, and partnering with Budderfly is helping us address both head-on," said Keith Simons, co-president of OEM Controls.
The installation will include real-time energy monitoring software, allowing OEM Controls to track energy savings and document emissions reductions for customer sustainability reporting requirements.
Manufacturing remains one of the most difficult sectors to decarbonize due to energy-intensive operations, long equipment replacement cycles and the cost of system upgrades, according to the announcement.
Budderfly's model eliminates the upfront investment barrier by installing and managing energy equipment in exchange for a share of the resulting savings.
Founded in 1966, OEM Controls manufactures custom electrohydraulic controllers for construction, agriculture and industrial equipment. The Shelton-based company is family-owned and serves original equipment manufacturers across North America.
Budderfly operates nearly 8,000 customer sites nationwide and has been recognized on Inc. magazine's fastest-growing companies list from 2021 to 2025. The company said it has helped customers avoid more than 200,000 metric tons of carbon emissions.
