Austin, Texas-based HelioVolt Corp. will open its first factory for manufacturing high-performance thin-film solar energy products. The 122,400 square-foot LEED-certified, sustainable facility marks the first commercial implementation of the company's proprietary FASST reactive transfer printing process for solar thin film production.

Fenton, Mo.-based Kaiser Electric is providing electrical design and installation for Dave Mungenast Lexus, St. Louis, marking what could be the first LEED-certified car dealership in Missouri. Construction on the estimated $16-million facility is underway and is expected to be completed in the summer of 2009.

Horizon Solutions, Holyoke, Mass., a distributor of electrical and industrial products and services in the Northeast, recently acquired Lighting Resource Management, a Newburyport, Mass.-based energy services company (ESCO). According to Horizon, its entrance in the Energy Services market is a natural expansion of its core competencies and commitment to delivering exceptional value to its customers, together with the products that it supplies.