Since the University of Vermont established an energy policy in
1990, projects in energy efficiency and smarter energy use have avoided an
estimated $1.6 million in electricity costs in 2003 alone. UVM's Energy
Management Office in the Physical Plant Department oversees these projects.
Funding comes from a $125,000 revolving load fund established in 1992, from
bonds in 1995, 1998, and 2002 totaling $2.5million, and by taking longer
term and life cycle costs into account in new building construction.
The efficiency projects have been conducted with assistance from the Burlington
Electric Department (Under Efficiency Vermont) and Vermont Gas Systems, which
provide rebates and technical assistance for energy efficiency and conservation.
This page shows a summary of energy efficiency projects. For more
information, see the links below, or see Projects
in Progress at UVM, and
Summary of Completed Projects
(listed chronologically).
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Centralized Building
Controls
Most large campus buildings are tied into a centralized control system at
the campus heating plant. The temperature and ventilation on the buildings
are controlled through time and scheduling programs with specified set points.
What this means is that there is now a fail-safe for lights and thermometers
that are left on during non-use hours. Not only will this save energy
by eliminating human error, but it also provides a consistent way to control
the energy use of all major buildings. The program is migrating to an
ethernet backbone for control, and eventually it will be able to viewed from
anywhere, not just at the plant. Overall this gives the University a
new level of sophistication and organization for energy control. |
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Efficient Hockey
Rink
Even UVM's hockey rink has aspects of energy efficiency. The ice rink
technology contains an advanced filtration system that removes 95% of the
impurities in the water used to make the rink ice. The filtered water
allows for improvements over old ice systems. Pure ice is harder, and
our ice does not need to be as thick as conventional systems. Entire
ice thickness can be reduced to approximately .5" - 1", using less water
in ice formation and rink maintenance. The ice can also be maintained
at higher temperatures than ice formed with lower quality ice. Typically
UVM's ice pad can be kept 2 - 4 degrees warmer, with 1 degree representing
an energy savings in cooling of about 6%. |
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IPACTM
Cooling System
The UVM heating plant was retrofitted with a IPACTM cooling system
during the 2002-2003 academic year. This system was primarily established
to maintain a consistent cooling method for the boiler feedpumps, but the
added benefit is that it conserves water and electricity over the old system.
Waste water is no longer dumped "down the drain" after use; it is now recycled
and reused to cool the pumps. Overall, this system saves 690,900 cubic feet
of water and an estimated $40,000 per year over the previous technology. |
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Efficient Washing
Machines
In August of 2003 the Physical Plant, in coordination with Mac Gray Contractors,
replaced all of the laundry washing machines on campus with Maytag, Neptune
TM high-efficiency washers. These washers consume 50% less water
and 40% less electricity per load than the old ones.
They are Energy Star rated and each machine can save up to $150 per year. |
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Light Emitting Diode
(LED) Exit Signs
The emergency exit signs in every campus building were replaced during the
2003-2004 school year. Each emergency exit is now equipped with an
energy efficient LED sign. By code, the signs are required to run
24 hours a day, seven days a week. With a total of 3000 signs on campus,
and the old signs running at 40 - 100 watts, the new 2 watt LED signs are
providing a significant energy savings. Each sign cost around $50,
but with a rebate from the Burlington Electric Department of approximatly
$25 per sign, cost savings are significant as well. Currently, 1/4 watt
light panels will be used for all new construction, at about $100 a piece.
However the rebate will remain the same. |
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Campus Lighting
Upgrades
All major buildings on campus have had lighting upgrades to T-8 or
Compact Fluorescent light bulbs. Incandescent
lights are no longer installed on campus.
These lighting upgrades provide a notable savings over the old lights.
Currently, a new wave of upgrades to Ultra T-8 has occurred in Stafford Hall
and the Central Heating Plant. These ultra efficient bulbs offer 10-12
percent savings over the conventional T-8 models, and will be used for all
bulb replacements where applicable. Overall, energy management at UVM
is constantly looking for the most efficient and cost effective lighting
options on the market. here for compact
fluorescent, T-8, and ultra T-8 product information. |
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Energy Efficient
Mini- Fridges
The UVM Bookstore began offering energy efficient mini-fridges for sale to
students in September of 2003. Since refrigerators are the largest
energy using appliance in residence halls, the impact on overall energy use
could be significant. It is estimated that if all students switched
from conventional mini fridges to the efficient models being sold by the
bookstore, 75,000 kilowatt hours would be saved each year, and 67,000 thousand
fewer pounds of CO2 would be released into the atmosphere. |
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Motor Upgrades
The campus energy standard for new buildings
and major renovations to ventilation fans (like the ones used in campus bathrooms)
is to install high efficiency or premium motors for heating, cooling, and
ventilation. These efficient motors offer a energy savings of 25-33%
and the pay back is on average three to four years. |
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Occupancy Sensors
Lights and localized fan systems (those fans
not controlled by a buildings heating or cooling system) can be controlled
during office hours by sensors that monitor a room's occupancy. These
sensors detect the presence of people by either ultrasonic or infrared detection,
and are most useful in bathrooms, kitchens, break rooms, or in some classrooms
where occupancy is sparatic. They are yet another management strategy
utilized by UVM that can prevent wasted energy. One basic unit costs
$50-75 installed, and usually has a pay back of about five years. Currently
these sensors have been installed in the Physical Plant, and the major campus
buildings. |
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Sleep ModeTM
As part of
the "10% Challenge" campaign for the University, the UVM Environmental Council
and the Physical Plant are sponsoring a program to install the Sleep Mode
software on university and personal computers on campus. This software
automatically turns off a monitor, which significantly lowers the energy
use of a PC. This program is more effective than screen saver
programs, which don't actually shut off a monitor. Overall the programs
could save 1.6 million kWh per year if all 8,000 PC's on campus have the
program installed. |
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Thermostat
Setbacks
Campus buildings that are not controlled by the centralized environmental
control system were retrofitted with programmable thermostats in the fall
of 2003. These thermostats save energy by turning down heating and
cooling systems while buildings are not in use. UVM also has a standard
for environment control: 68 degrees during building use and 62 degrees when
the buildings are not in use. |
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Vending Miser
Campus vending machines received a recent energy
retrofit in 2003. All machines (that do not contain perishable foods)
now have built in motion sensors that power down the lighting and cooling
systems after 15 minutes of inactivity. In extended periods of non-use,
the machines periodically power on the refrigerating systems to keep the
refreshments cool. Annually, UVM's soda machines consume 299,447 kWh
at a cost of $20,961. Installation of VendingMisers™ will reduce the consumption
to 161,527 kWh the first year. Over five years, the savings will be $48,275.
One vending miser reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 2,200 pounds of CO2
each year. With eighty VendingMisers™ now on campus, UVM will prevent 176,000
pounds of CO2. |
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Used Motor
Oil Reuse
The UVM Physical Plant Automotive Shop now has a new heating system to help
it through the Vermont winters. An EPA approved "Clean Burn" used oil
heating furnace was purchased and now supplies the shop with heating needs.
It is fueled with the 600-1000 gallons of waste oil that the shop previously
disposed of every year. It takes waste engine oil, transmission fluid,
and hydraulic fluid; alleviating the costs of heating the shop and the removing
of fluids from University vehicles. |
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