ANAHEIM, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN) today announced that its wholly owned subsidiary Willdan Energy Solutions' ("Willdan") customer Torrance Memorial Medical Center (TMMC) was awarded The Climate Registry's 2014 Cool Planet Award for Healthcare. The award recognizes business customers for demonstrating exemplary leadership in energy and carbon management within a specific business size and industry sector. The award was presented at an event held in Santa Monica, California.

Founded in 1925, TMMC is a locally governed, 401-bed, non-profit medical center established to provide quality healthcare services, predominantly to residents of the South Bay, Peninsula and Harbor communities of Los Angeles County. Working with Willdan and Emcor Mesa Energy Systems, TMMC recently upgraded its central chiller plant with a top-down central plant controls optimization system and installed new flowmeters, temperature sensors, and integrated the controls. TMMC also retro-commissioned the air-side economizer on the large main air-handling unit. These two projects are expected to provide nearly two million kWh annual savings.

TMMC has utilized Southern California Edison's (SCE) Express Solutions for lighting upgrades and since 2010 has been enrolled in the SCE Healthcare Energy Efficiency Program (HEEP), a program administered by Willdan. As a result of the HEEP projects at TMMC, SCE has recognized more than 1.6 million kWh in annual energy savings with an estimated additional 400,000 kWh currently being installed. TMMC also has conducted numerous energy audits working with Willdan to identify additional energy savings opportunities and participated in SCE's Demand Bidding Program.

Cool Planet Award nominees are evaluated using a point-based system focusing on an organization's participation in a variety of SCE integrated demand-side management strategies. These include instituting energy management and demand response programs, and conducting energy audits. Additionally, nominees are evaluated on their carbon management strategies, such as publicly available energy management and climate action plans, and the measurement and level of greenhouse gas emissions and carbon footprint.

"While the nations of the world grapple with the challenges of global climate change, Cool Planet Award recipients are taking meaningful action every day as they strive to make their organizations more energy efficient, cost effective and competitive," said David Rosenheim, Executive Director of The Climate Registry.

About Southern California Edison

An Edison International (NYSE:EIX) company, Southern California Edison is one of the nation's largest electric utilities, serving a population of nearly 14 million via 4.9 million customer accounts in a 50,000-square-mile service area within Central, Coastal and Southern California.

Description of The Climate Registry

The Climate Registry (TCR) is a nonprofit collaboration between North American states, provinces, territories and Native Sovereign Nations. TCR empowers governments and businesses across the globe to operate more efficiently, sustainably and competitively by helping them measure and manage their carbon emissions consistently and with integrity. www.theclimateregistry.org

About Willdan Energy Solutions

Willdan Energy Solutions is a leading national provider of specialized energy, water, and resource management services to a growing list of clients that includes utilities, local and federal governments, hospitals, schools and private enterprises. Our integrated portfolio of services comprises marketing and engineering, program management and implementation of energy efficiency and water conservation programs and development and implementation of information systems for the energy industry. Additional areas of expertise include hardware retrofits, commissioning and retro-commissioning, demonstrations of new technologies, energy efficiency education/outreach, sustainability strategy, and local government partnerships.

About Willdan Group, Inc.

Celebrating its 50th year of business, Willdan provides outsourced professional technical and consulting services to public agencies, public and private utilities, and commercial and industrial firms throughout the United States. Willdan benefits from well-established relationships, industry-leading expertise and a solid reputation for delivering projects on time and on budget. The company's service offerings span a broad set of complementary disciplines that include engineering and planning, energy efficiency and sustainability, financial and economic consulting, and national preparedness. Willdan has crafted this set of integrated services so that, in the face of an evolving environment—whether economic, natural, or built—Willdan can continue to extend the reach and resources of its clients. For additional information, visit Willdan's website at www.willdan.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release that are not purely historical, including statements regarding Willdan's intentions, hopes, beliefs, expectations, representations, projections, estimates, plans or predictions of the future are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to our ability to expand our service offerings and geographic reach, continue to win new contracts and locate and successfully complete acquisition opportunities. It is important to note that Willdan's actual results could differ materially from those in any such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include, but are not limited to, a slowdown in the local and regional economies of the states where Willdan conducts business and the loss of or inability to hire additional qualified professionals. Willdan's business could be affected by a number of other factors, including the risk factors listed from time to time in Willdan's SEC reports including, but not limited to, the Annual Report on Form 10-K filed for the year ended December 27, 2013. Willdan cautions investors not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Willdan disclaims any obligation to, and does not undertake to, update or revise any forward-looking statements in this press release.

Willdan Group, Inc.
Stacy McLaughlin, 714-940-6300
Chief Financial Officer
smclaughlin@willdan.com
or
Investor/Media Contact
Financial Profiles, Inc.
310-478-2700
Moira Conlon, mconlon@finprofiles.com
Jody Cain, jcain@finprofiles.com

Source: Willdan Group, Inc.

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