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Columbus City Schools to Share Best Practices at National Conference on Energy
February 27, 2023 -- Two Columbus City School Buildings and Grounds employees are sharing their energy-saving expertise with leading businesses and organizations nationwide at the 27th annual Ohio Energy Savings and Management Conference.
“We’ll specifically be talking about how to program your machinery to operate as efficiently as you can. We’ll show others what that actually looks like to program that equipment as opposed to the presentation being completely academic,” said CCS Energy Manager Jeff Roe.
Roe, Building Systems Integrator Matt Wolfe, and others from the Buildings and Grounds Department have spent years working to ensure the District saves energy and money through several mitigation strategies.
“About two-thirds of the District has switched from fluorescent lamps to LED lamps. We have another third or so to do,” Roe said. “Say a fixture uses about 55 watts before switching to LED; once switched, that fixture uses 20 watts. That also helps with disposal costs. As an institution, we have to treat waste appropriately. Fluorescent lamps are more expensive to throw away than regular trash because they have to go to a special landfill. LED lamps do not need to go to a special landfill.”
Roe explained that simple measures like changing bulbs add up and can reduce an energy bill by thousands of dollars. It’s an important step they have to take to keep up with constant policy changes, ever-evolving technology, and updates needed on existing buildings.
“Another thing CCS has done is added air conditioning to at least 50 buildings within the last five years,” Roe said. “But with careful management and installing better lighting, we haven’t seen a dramatic increase in our electric costs or gas costs.”
“Even though we’re adding double the electrical load by putting AC in that building, and we’ve done that across more than 50 buildings over the last few years, our electrical rates have largely stayed the same,” Wolfe said.
As large projects like adding AC to buildings continue, Wolfe explained that his primary responsibility is to check on existing equipment to ensure it operates smartly.
“That can be as simple as having an old building that has building automation. The controls for that HVAC equipment were put in 15- 20 years ago and by looking through that automation, we can identify a sensor that failed. That one sensor can create a massive spike in energy consumption,” Wolfe said.
Wolfe explained when those sensors fail, systems can bring in more outside air than needed, leading to equipment working harder to condition the excess air.
“On days where it’s 20 degrees or 90 degrees, that can make a huge difference. We have to condition that air back down or up so it’s ok when going into a building,” Wolfe said.
Wolfe makes it a point to review a building in detail daily to ensure that building-related equipment works correctly.
When replacements are needed, Wolfe, Roe, and others with Buildings and Grounds have several factors to consider when purchasing. First, they explain it’s important to find affordable, reliable technology that can help save money but can also be maintained over a long period.
“We keep our buildings for 100 years, so we have to be thinking long-term. What’s the best thing to do for the District?” Roe said.
In 2020, the team received an Energy Efficiency Champion Award for their work at CCS. Now they’re hoping to provide tips to other businesses and gain new insight on ways to continue to make Columbus City Schools a leader in energy efficiency.