Western recognizes University of North Dakota's
energy-savings program
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| UND staff and Western Energy Services
representatives display the Administrator's Award at the
Dec. 15 award ceremony. (From left to right) UND Assistant
Director of Facilities Mark Johnson, Technology Advancement
Coordinator Randal Bohlman, Director of Facilities Larry
Zitzow, UND President Dr. Charles Kupchella, Western UGP
Regional Manager Bob Harris, North Dakota Field Representative
Jim Bach, UGP Energy Services Manager John Pankratz and
UND Communications Center Supervisor Pam Zimbelman. (photo
courtesy of Chuck Kimmerle, UND Office of University Relations) |
The harsh winters of the upper Great Plains hold
no fear for the University
of North Dakota, Grand Forks, first in its division in hockey
and first among educational facilities to receive Western's
Administrator's Award for customers with superior achievements
in energy efficiency or renewable energy.
Representatives from Western's Upper Great Plains
regional office braved eight inches of snow Dec. 15 to honor
UND and tour some of the campus projects that helped earn the
award. UGP Regional Manager Robert
Harris praised the university's staff for its top-down commitment
to providing a safe, quality, energy-efficient learning environment.
"It's a great example of what one customer can do to further
the country's goals of energy independence and a cleaner environment,"
he said.
Successful program evolves
from cost-saving efforts
Western provides more than 60 percent of UND's electrical energy
requirements. UND is a coeducational, state-supported institution
with an enrollment of more than 12,000 students. The campus
facilities department maintains 239 buildings covering more
than six million square feet.
The Administrator's Award recognizes the success
of UND's campuswide energy efficiency program, the innovative
program funding and the energy management team carrying out
the program. UND designed the program to affect every facet
of campus energy use, including electric, gas, oil, steam, water
and sewer systems. "When we first started back in the ‘70s,
we were really the only kids on the block doing energy efficiency,"
said Facilities Director Larry
Zitzow. "The program has evolved through decades of research
and experiments into something the entire university is very
proud of."
 |
| UGP Regional Manager Bob Harris presents
the Administrator's Award to UND President Dr. Charles Kupchella.
The University of North Dakota is the first educational
institute Western has honored for its energy efficiency
achievements. (photo courtesy of Chuck Kimmerle, UND Office
of University Relations) |
There were two reasons the university entered
the largely uncharted territory of facilities energy management
in those days, Zitzow recalled: "Money and manpower, which actually
comes down to the same thing," he said. "Hooking a few buildings
up to early building automation software allowed us to reduce
the workforce, because we no longer needed a person in every
building to tell us what was happening."
Equipment loan and corporate
partnership supply new technologies
Honeywell supplied the first automated monitoring systems through
a partnership with UND. "Initially, we didn't have a lot of
funding for our energy management program, so the university
applied to become a research and development site for Honeywell,"
explained Technology Advancement Coordinator Randal
Bohlman. "We've helped them develop new products, and our
buildings have been alpha and beta test sites for software programs."
Currently, 108 campus facilities are equipped
with state-of-the-art automated systems that monitor, adjust
and report on building energy use. The results are award winning,
to understate the case. In 1980, facilities department records
show that at peak load, the steam plant pumped 247,000 pounds
per hour to heat 3.1 million square feet. Today, the square
footage of campus buildings connected to the steam plant has
more than doubled, while the system's peak load has not gone
over 220,000 pounds per hour in the last three years. "That's
kind of a Cinderella story for a facilities department," said
Bohlman, who has been instrumental in the energy program's success.
Western's Energy Services equipment
loan program also contributes to the university's energy
savings and electric system reliability. The facilities department
borrows infrared cameras to perform regular
scans of the campus electrical system, both above and below
ground. Scanning, along with frequent quality tests on transformer
fluid, identify potential problems, allowing for scheduled maintenance
shutdowns. Scheduling is critical to a research institute like
UND, said Zitzow. "Nobody likes to lose power in their lab or
classroom, but they can plan around a scheduled outage," he
said. "If a research lab experiences an unexpected power loss,
it can destroy thousands of dollars worth of work."
Bond money finances additional
energy saving projects
Borrowing diagnostic equipment and partnering with product designers
helps to contain costs, but like any other effective program,
energy efficiency needs a funding source. UND uses bond funds
the 2002 North Dakota legislators established for institutions
to plan and implement energy-saving projects. Institutions borrowed
money from the fund for projects that would repay the loan through
savings on utility bills. "Projects that demonstrated prompt
payback got the funding," Zitzow said.
The state awarded the university $3.9 million
of that bond under its Facility Energy Improvement Program.
Zitzow attributed the large award to UND's documented energy
management success and having the technology and experienced
staff needed to carry out the projects. The award financed 11
projects that have generated an additional $640,000 in yearly
energy savings, providing a simple payback of 6.2 years.
One recently completed project involved heating
a building by capturing the kinetic energy from computer systems,
lighting and even building occupants. The automation system
determines where and when heat is needed and circulates it through
the existing air ducts. The 60-horsepower motor that drove the
building's fan has been replaced by a 40-horsepower motor that
circulates one-third more air using only 50 percent of its capacity.
"We reduced heat demand 60 to 80 percent by using the automation
system to its fullest extent. I haven't seen a heat valve open
all winter," said Bohlman, who designed the project.
Dedicated staff position continues to
improve energy management plan
As technical advancement coordinator, Bohlman is the energy
efficiency program's secret weapon. Trained in industrial engineering,
he joined the facilities department in 1975 as an electronics
technician. His job evolved over the years as he applied his
understanding of building controls to energy-saving strategies.
"Every campus wishes it had somebody like Randy," Zitzow observed.
"The state doesn't really have a classification for what he
does."
In simple terms, Bohlman makes sure the
university gets the most from its energy management technology.
Collecting data on all the factors that affect energy use, consulting
with engineering experts and developing computer models are
all part of Bohlman's work.
Western is not the first Federal agency
to recognize UND for its innovative efforts to lower its energy
consumption system-wide. In 1994, Secretary of Energy Hazel
O'Leary honored the university for measures that reduced its
steam plant's fuel use by 6.5 percent, with a payback of less
than five years.
Having become the first educational institute
to receive Western's Administrator's Award, UND has set its
sights on becoming an Energy
Star education partner. "We're just plowing the ground to
see what it leads to," Zitzow said.
Considering the UND facilities department's
knack for turning challenge into opportunity, it will probably
lead to more energy savings.