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Transport Martin Alain is located in Sayabec, in the Gaspésie region of Québec. A subsidiary of Groupe RPF, it specializes in excavation, bulk material transportation, snow removal and forest road construction.

“We have almost 9,000 ft2 of space. The main building has five garage doors and 20-foot ceilings,” explains Éric Trudel, Director, Business Development and Marketing. “In the winter, temperatures of -25 °C aren’t unusual. We often get deep freezes and strong winds. When our trucks return to the garage, it’s like parking blocks of ice. The doors are constantly being opened and closed, so we need a good heater to compensate for the cold temperatures. With our old systems, because of the type of building and insulation, it was hard to keep the temperature warm enough—let alone constant. But the Sequoia generator with Blue Sky technology has no problem compensating for the cold air.”

The energy generated by the Sequoia heating system comes from solid biomass (wood), a resource that’s abundant in the area, requires little processing and isn’t popular with other industries. This makes it one of the most affordable fuels out there.

The Blue Sky energy generator meets the highest safety standards and is certified for indoor installations. The bosses at Transport Martin Alain also built a biochamber, a structure where both the unit and the fuel are kept. This keeps the moisture level of the biomass down, resulting a more efficient energy source. It’s also a comfortable place to load the boiler.

“With all the cutting work we do at Transport Martin Alain, we obviously end up with a lot of wood for our Sequoia energy generator. The wood we use has been drying for 2 to 3 years. It’s lighter, making it easier to handle. It also burns really well, resulting in a pretty clear gain in energy efficiency,” adds Mr. Trudel.
The Sequoia energy generator is a hydronic boiler, more commonly known as a hot water heater. It burns wood, which heats a fluid that is then carried to fan coils. The Sequoia underground heating system can be used to heat multiple detached buildings. At Transport Martin Alain, a secondary 2,000-ft2 garage is also connected to and heated by the energy generator.

“The buildings at Transport Martin Alain were built in the early 1980s, according to the standards of the time, which didn’t include heated floors. To compensate for that, we use Dragon Vert fan coils with the Sequoia energy generator. A blower inside each unit distributes the heat carried by the fluid. With such powerful equipment, the vehicles come in frozen at night, and by the next morning, they’re de-iced, dry and warm. The Dragon Vert units can also dry out concrete. Slippery floors are now a thing of the past, making our garages much safer. Our Sequoia system has made our workplace much more comfortable, not to mention safer and a lot more productive,” concludes Éric Trudel.