The roof over northwest Atlanta-based Advantage Laser Products Inc. on Marietta Boulevard is working as hard as its employees to make the world a greener place.

Last week the company installed a 22-kilowatt grid of 130 photovoltaic panels, made by Fremont, Calif.-based Solyndra Inc., to convert the sun’s rays into electricity.

“We’re a recycling company. We recycle toner cartridges for laser printers, so we try to be as green as we can,” said Marvin Masson, vice president of operations.

The installation is the latest in a series of energy conservation efforts utilizing the 15,000-square-foot structure’s roof.

“We put in a white roof, which we then insulated. It was like night and day,” Masson said. “We just put in new high-efficiency heating and cooling units.”

The environmentalism of the green movement will go hand-in-hand with saving greenbacks, according to Tom Tomoka, director of clean technology for Decatur-based installer Empower Energy.

“We worked with Marvin on estimating the financial benefits,” Tomoka said about the $140,000 project. “We expect it to pay for itself in five years.”

Not only will federal stimulus funds and state tax credits bankroll 65 percent of the cost, but his client’s Georgia Power bill will begin to drop next week when the grid goes online, Tomoka said.

“This will supply approximately one-quarter of the electrical consumption at Advantage,” he said.

Masson, whose Toner Blog on the company Web site (www.advlaser.com) chronicled the installation, said ultimately two more grids will be added to generate 70 percent of its power consumption.

“Our long-term goal is to be power-neutral, where we produce everything we need on our roof,” he said.

The two companies may unite on another project involving light-emitting diodes.

“The big project we may do in the future is LED lighting. LEDs use so much less power than incandescent or fluorescent lighting. That will pay off in three to four years,” Masson said.

Other local efforts to save money and reduce carbon footprints include the city of Sandy Springs, which received an $851,900 federal grant to install solar panels at two fire stations and replace bulbs in traffic signals with LED lights.

Christopher Miller, assistant director of community development, said the solar panels will reduce energy costs by 60 percent, while the traffic lights will reduce energy cost per signal by 90 to 95 percent.

— Staff Writer Laura Braddick contributed to this report