2016 is a Year for Celebrations!
Three local companies have been in business a combined 330 years!

By Michael Watson, DREMC President and CEO
 
This issue of Duck River EMC's C&I Pulse newsletter focuses on anniversaries. Why? Longevity is among the many measures of success by which companies, large and small, are judged.
 
So many new enterprises fail in their infancy, even those with innovative products and services. If they survive 10 years, they've done several things right, probably handling a major market fluctuation and perhaps one economic downturn. Reaching the 20-year mark shows that companies have developed a business culture aimed at managing risks and opportunities.
Duck River EMC Celebrates 80 Years of Light!
Can you imagine life without electricity? Sometimes it is easy to flip the light switch without thinking about the work that goes on behind the scenes. Duck River Electric Membership Corporation (DREMC) has been working to make the lights come on across southern Middle Tennessee since 1936.
 
Plans are underway to celebrate this remarkable milestone called "80 years of Light." The DREMC 80th anniversary logo will be used throughout 2016 as we commemorate the past, celebrate the present and look to the future.
 
In the Spirit of Jack... Adding Flavor to Moore County for 150 Years!
By Teresa Sampson, Duck River EMC Key Accounts Coordinator
 
Established in Lynchburg, Tenn. in 1866, Jack Daniel Distillery has forever branded the community with its culture. The trademark of Old No. 7 can be found in many places throughout the small town, located in Southern Middle Tennessee. Our earliest records indicate that Duck River EMC provided electricity to the distillery in March of 1940 or possibly sooner. In 1956, Jack Daniel Distillery was acquired by Brown-Forman in Louisville, Ky. Brown-Forman was established in 1870 and also has a long, successful history in the spirit business.  

 

Read more!
Writing History for 100 Years!
By Teresa Sampson, Duck River EMC Key Accounts Coordinator
Established in 1916, Musgrave Pencil Company in Shelbyville, Tenn. is owned by the Hulan family. This year marks the company's 100th anniversary in Bedford County. Although the pencil company is not on Duck River EMC power lines, the Hulan family has been DREMC members for decades. The company also employs DREMC members from the surrounding communities.
 
How it all started
 
At the company's inception, Colonel James Raford Musgrave began trading, bartering, or buying old cedar rail fences from farmers that were being replaced by wire fencing. These cedar rails were already weathered and ready to be transformed into pencil slats. In 1919, the formation of the Pencil Makers Association, the availability of different raw materials and new technology transformed the emerging pencil mill into a more efficient business.
 
Programs & Services
TVA Increases Electric Forklift Incentive Effective March 8, 2016
 
The incentive will increase to $5,000 for the replacement of internal combustion Class 4 and Class 5 forklifts with electric-powered Class 1 or Class 2 forklifts for applications received March 8, 2016, through August 31, 2016.
 
This new incentive is designed to increase participation and further reduce the gap between the cost of internal combustion and electric forklifts.
 
During the same period, a $3,000 incentive will be extended for the purchase of new Class 1 and Class 2 electric forklifts.
 
DREMC Introduces New Commercial & Industrial Programs Brochure

To better serve our commercial and industrial members, DREMC has designed a new Commercial & Industrial Programs brochure. The document briefly describes programs and services that are available to our commercial and industrial members. An electronic version of the brochure is available on our website in the commercial section.
 
If you would like a hard copy mailed to you or to find out how these programs may help your business with an expansion or energy efficiency project, please contact Teresa Sampson today at 931-680-5882 or tsampson@dremc.com.

Seeking Businesses to Participate in DREMC's Co-op Connections Card Program
  
Business owners and operators are invited to join DREMC's Co-op Connections card program. This program gives retailers and service providers the opportunity to offer our cooperative members valuable discounts.
 
In exchange for your participation, we promote your business and discount offers to our members at no cost to you. The program is designed to benefit your business and our members.
 
DREMC Solar Farm - Powered by the Sun
  
Duck River EMC's community solar farm offers homeowners, renters and businesses access to renewable energy generation without high upfront costs or excessively long payback periods. This is because a premium price credit is paid each month for output from the solar farm.
 
Community solar - an approach to renewable energy that spreads the costs and rewards among like-minded individuals - has grown in popularity across the nation, but especially in Tennessee where several utilities are considering projects. DREMC's community solar farm was commissioned in 2012. It was the first in the region and the first built through the Tennessee Valley Authority's Generation Partners program.
 
Resources
DREMC Has a New Mascot...
Introducing E. L. Duck

Duck River EMC is excited to introduce Electric Lineman Duck or E.L. Duck. He debuts in a 12-page guide to energy and safety for kids in the form of a coloring book. E.L. Duck is the main character throughout the guide.   
 
"This guide is a great resource for our younger audiences," says DREMC Safety Coordinator Steven Hopkins. "Electrical safety is so important, and it's our responsibility to educate the youth in our service area."

Explore Tennessee

Read The Tennessee Magazine each month to find out what's happening on the local front.  The current and previous issues are available on the DREMC website.

Teresa Sampson | Duck River Electric Membership Corporation | 931-680-5882 | tsampson@dremc.com | www.dremc.com
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