Nashville's own New Wind, LLC, a distributor of small-wind vertical-axis wind turbines and other sustainable energy products, just received more than $1 million dollars in a second round of venture capital funding.

Stuart Wiston, the company's president, said the funding came because investors looked at the phenomenal growth and potential of the company and felt not only is the timing perfect because of the growth of small-wind as a practical solution to helping the nation's energy crisis, but also because the company is in the process of expanding its product line after much research and development on practical, affordable, sustainable energy products.

"This funding is a big deal. It shows how much faith the investors have in us and our team here at New Wind. After seeing the growth of the company and in the industry as a whole, the investors have a great deal of confidence in the direction the industry and country are headed."

"The investors believe in the people we have working here, the products we have and are developing, and in the growth of the company," Wiston said. "Both sales and sales potential have grown dramatically verses last year."

According to a Sept. 30, 2011 report by Pike Research, the small wind market is to double in size to $634 million by 2015. "Small wind power provides cost-effective electricity on a highly localized level both in remote settings as well in conjunction with power from the utility grid," the report said.

"In the past six months, New Wind has almost doubled in staff, held dealer training here in Nashville where our dealers got hands-on time with our products, and have developed a new product with the Univerdant Consortium that provides a total energy solution for telecom through the combined use of wind, solar, and energy storage," Wiston said.

"This new product complements our Butterfly Series VAWTs that offer both on-grid and off-grid small-wind energy, plus our Firefly Series that is a turbine/solar hybrid lighting system that is 'plug and play' and is well suited for parking lots, dormitories, and street lighting."

New Wind has also garnered some interest from the military to help them with solutions to energy capability gaps. Wiston said, "It is such an exciting time for us and for sustainable energy across the board from homeowners, to businesses, to municipalities, and our own government that is committed to sustainable energy. We can make the world a better place and provide jobs and offer affordable products that greatly reduce our carbon footprint. Plus we get to work with great investors and the dynamic people here on the team, and also provide real, viable, dependable, and necessary products needed both now and in the future."