Hurricane Sandy forced the postponement of the Rockland Business Association’s Business-to-Business Expo on its initial date, Nov. 1.
The RBA finally held the expo Monday at the Pearl River Hilton, complete with a green aisle and presentations focused on ways businesses can save money and protect the environment.
"We have a green business section," said Joan Neumann, the RBA's Vice President for Administration. "Our seminars are all about saving money and going green. If you are going to be economically smart and ecology smart and use the tools available to you, in the long run, you will save money."
That is what drew Mark Sterancsak from OnForce Solar Energy Solutions.
"If there is a green-friendly conference, we want to be there to get our products in front of people and to gather knowledge," Sterancsak said. "The green industry right now is growing in leaps and bounds.
"This is my first conference here. I happen to like it a lot. It's not too crowded, but it's not too slow. You get to take your time with people."
The expo was rescheduled due to Hurricane Sandy, which may have brought the number of visitors down.
"We have very supportive members who came even with the change of venue," Neumann said.
In addition to smaller businesses, larger entities such as United Water and Orange & Rockland were vendors for the event. O&R ran a seminar focused on ways the company could help businesses save energy such as Lighten Up.
The Lighten Up program offers free surveys by O&R, which will then pay 70% of the costs of energy-saving upgrades. According to O&R, business owners can make back their investment within six months. More information is available at ligthenupnow.com.
There is also Saving Station. O&R will pay $50 and pick up a working refrigerator or freezer. Customers can also audit their own energy use online through the O&R website at www.oru.com.
