Limerick Generating Station Hosts Powerful Day for the Public
If you live in the northwestern suburbs of Philadelphia, your eyes are intimately familiar with an ever-present landmark–nay, two landmarks. People who live around Limerick Generating Station’s dual cooling towers often use them as geographic references when running around on backroads, cycling the region, or paddling the Schuylkill River, but not many residents understand what exactly happens on the property, now managed by Constellation Energy.
Limerick Generating Station (LGS) has been operational as a nuclear power plant since 1984 but the twin columns of steam are still a mysterious curiosity for most residents.
In fact, due to the combination of intense security and extremely extensive security measures, plant operations at Limerick (and every nuclear facility in the United States) are covert, but not clandestine. Leadership at Constellation’s Limerick facility recently took action to demystify operations by hosting a Community Day, for which VFC was retained to develop event branding, day-of communications, and event promotions.
Branding
The plant’s Limerick Community Day followed on the heels of Limerick Community Day sponsored by Limerick Township—so some initial confusion existed. After VFC redubbed the event “Limerick Community Day powered by Constellation,” we created a friendly event brand to inform all elements that can be repurposed year after year.
The event identity needed to speak to multiple audiences while defining an affable pleasant personality for the entire enigmatic plant. VFC borrowed from Constellation’s colors and incorporated a friendly illustration style to present conceptual identities to LGS leadership. In this first year after a several-year hiatus, the new Limerick Community Day identity was represented in wide-reaching promotions, in all event communications, on day-of messaging, and in an ambitious collection of swag—all of which was complimentary to attendees.
Promotions
After collaborating on organization and management, VFC planned a promotional social media effort for the event that included exhibit tables and representation from every division within the plant (Engineering, Chemistry, Security, Mechanical, etc.) as well as community partners like Schuylkill River Greenways, Tri-County Area Chamber, Pennsylvania State Police and more companies and organizations that support the mission of LGS.
Driving traffic to an event page on a single channel without the luxury of a web landing page was challenging, but VFC undertook a significant manual effort to deliver the event information to multiple community pages on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and X while geo-targeting boosted posts. Simultaneously, VFC distributed eye-catching event posters to every retail business surrounding LGS and leveraged consistent step-stake signage at every trailhead and major intersection.
VFC developed a robust press release that included all event details to inform a series of promotional posts and a media advisory distributed by the client.
The Event
On Wednesday, September 13, 2023 from 4:00pm to 7:00pm, several thousand members of the public (primarily families) attended Limerick Community Day powered by Constellation—a fun and educational outdoor exhibition where LGS team members were readily available to answer questions and explain all aspects of the nuclear power plant’s operations. As if that weren’t enough, LGS opened a control room simulation building where visitors could see firsthand how clean nuclear energy is generated right in Pottstown, Pennsylvania.
”VFC’s exceptional talent for content generation and promotion has truly illuminated Limerick Community Day, showcasing not only the power of Limerick Generating Station but also the bright future of clean energy. Their work is a beacon, guiding us towards a sustainable tomorrow. Without VFC’s support, we couldn’t have pulled off this event!
Shawn PinneyManager, Reactor Engineering, Limerick Generating Station
Beyond the primary theme of educating on the plant’s nuclear power operation, Limerick Community Day powered by Constellation included complimentary food trucks, family activities like touch-a-truck, and demonstrations from LGS’ Boston Dynamics agile mobile robot “dog.” This year’s event also featured an event-long appearance by the gracious Grace Stanke, Miss America 2023, a nuclear engineering student.
Event Partnering
Rigorous client requirements, an aggressive timeline, and a fluid event structure manifested the perfect storm of fast paced development that VFC’s full arsenal of creative capabilities was uniquely evolved to handle.
“Creative was a blank slate; there was a deadline and a goal,” recalled VFC Creative Director Todd Palmer, who can see the cooling tower steam from his home’s backyard. “That, and a cooperative partner, are all that VFC requires to hit the ball out of the park!”
Backed by years of solid agency experience,VFC is an innovative and energetic team of award-winning copywriters, designers, illustrators, photographers, videographers and programmers prepared to grow your brand and your business. VFC delivers strategic marketing, advertising and public relations campaigns for a diverse roster of clients from a 170-year-old, high-tech renovated farmhouse in the heart of Chester County, Pennsylvania. For more information call 877-GROW ART or visit VFC on the web at www.virtualfarm.com.
