Supercharged

A new picnic table with a green and white umbrella provided shade from the Indian summer sunshine, but it’s the juice from the table that will really entice you to sit for a spell.

The Solar Power-Dok is a solar-powered table that provides electricity to outlets (4 110 vac GFCI and 4 USB) at the table. Solar panels are affixed on the umbrella panels sending current through a conduit to a battery at the base of the table.

“I could order a burger and Diet Coke and plug in while I wait for my order” from the Waterfront Bar & Grill, said Peter Lark, general manager of the Board of Water & Light.

The Power-Dok was created by Lansing company, EnerFusion. It was sponsored by BWL and the Live Green Lansing Initiative, which promotes the adoption of green technologies and green practices throughout the city.

The station cost $9,000 to build, according to BWL spokesman Steve Sarkaian.

“We want people to come down here and say this is a great city,” said Lark. He added that more Solar Power-Doks will be installed in the future but had no specific locations or numbers as yet.

The Power-Dok joins the solar charging car port system installed at the City Market by BWL last year.

“This is a great example of Michigan ingenuity and forward thinking,” said Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero.

EnerFusion, located at 2305 N. High St. in Lansing, was founded in 2006 and has six employees, according to company president Joe Kobus.

The company has two other solar-powered stations – the Radiance and the Solstice.

The Radiance is a solar-powered station for cell phones and other devices. It can also serve as a WIFI hot spot with a 200-foot radius. The Solstice is similar to the Power-Dok, but it’s a vertical stand-up station.

Kobus said the Power-Dok has been installed in Hope College in Holland and the Bay City State Recreation Area. It´s also on more than 30 college campuses, he said. The Power-Dok is made of recycled plastics and no solvents were used in the paints, according to Kobus.