About
Two decades building projects, then running them.
I'm Isaiah Hilferty, the founder of odya (OH-dyah). I work with the people who develop, build and operate solar, battery energy storage and C&I facilities, and I bring the view from the field and the view from the executive team to the same problem.
Background
From the field to the executive team.
I started as a carpenter's apprentice in my family's remodeling and home building business and worked up to managing partner, running jobs, crews and eventually the business itself. That's where I learned that a schedule only means something if the crew in the field believes it, and that someone has to own the result.
From there I moved into solar and battery energy storage, delivering and operating utility-scale, community, C&I and distributed projects across several U.S. and Canadian grid regions, both standalone storage and solar-plus-storage. Over about twelve years in energy I moved from project manager to operations and maintenance manager, and then into executive responsibility for project delivery and operations at a battery energy storage and solar developer and owner. All told, that's about two decades in construction, the first several years in residential and commercial building.
On the owner/operator side I managed emergency response planning for an operating PV and BESS fleet and led the response when critical incidents happened. That work taught me what a plan has to look like to hold up in practice.
I started odya to give owners that perspective without adding headcount: someone who will walk the site, read the contracts, talk to the technicians and give leadership a clear, prioritized path forward.
Why odya
What I bring.
I lead every engagement personally, start to finish, and bring in a vetted network of specialists when the work calls for it. I stay accountable for the result.
EPC and owner experience
I've built projects as the contractor and owned the results as the operator, so I know where the handoffs break.
Field to executive
I'm as comfortable walking a site with a technician as briefing leadership or a lender.
Lean operations
Lean methods: observe the work firsthand, standardize what works and correct root causes.
On the owner's side
I work for the owner. You get clear, candid findings in writing. Integrity, accountability and ownership of results.
At a glance
Experience.
- Carpenter's apprentice to managing partner of a family building business, then solar and storage
- PV and BESS delivery and operations across NYISO, PJM, ISO-NE, CAISO and IESO (Ontario)
- Projects in NY, MA, FL, NC, SC, GA, MD, DE, PA and CA
- Utility-scale, community solar, C&I and distributed generation
- Standalone and solar-plus-storage BESS for peak shaving, load shifting and demand response
- Delivered projects under NY-Sun, VDER (Value of Distributed Energy Resources), non-wires alternatives and solutions (NWA/NWS) and Con Edison's ADLM program
- Tradesman to project manager, O&M manager and project delivery and operations executive
- Emergency response planning and critical incident response on the BESS owner/operator side
Beyond the job
Service.
I'm a volunteer firefighter with my local volunteer fire department. It gives me the responder's side of the conversation when I'm coordinating a site's plan with the local fire department and AHJ.