Crockett Facilities Services and Boland developed a real-time energy management dashboard customized for the customer
Going green and saving energy continues to be the focus for government agencies committed to promoting environmental stewardship and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Their goal is to minimize energy consumption without sacrificing building performance, and to achieve ENERGY STAR certification by meeting strict energy performance standards set by the EPA.
A 50-year-old, 500,000+ square foot federal building in Washington DC recently achieved ENERGY STAR certification, with the help of Crockett Facilities Services, Inc. (CFSI).
ENERGY STAR Certification Obstacles
- Obsolete mechanical equipment; replacement parts were not available
- HVAC equipment not networked; operated manually
- Thermostats adjusted by tenants; varying temperatures
- HVAC systems running in unoccupied building
- Chillers, cooling towers, water pumps running at full capacity when unnecessary
- Garage exhaust fans and lights running 100% of the time.
Crockett Facilities Services’ Measures to Achieve ENERGY STAR Certification
CFSI partnered with Boland, a Washington DC based energy services company, as well as a local Trane representative, to create a comprehensive, innovative building energy management system for energy efficiency. Energy simulation software was used to identify energy conservation measures and to prioritize them based on energy savings.
- 1,050 fan coil thermostats were connected to the BEMS, with temperature set points programmed for all thermostats, resulting in a 50% decrease in customer HVAC service calls.
- Variable frequency drives (VFDs) were installed on the chillers, cooling towers, and hot water pumps. The hot water system was networked to the BEMS. Energy consumption decreased by approximately 45%, and the units’ life expectancy increased by around 30%.
- The garage exhaust fans and lighting controls were networked and programmed with the BEMS. A light measuring sensor was installed and garage fans were programmed to operate with CO sensors. Equipment run time has reduced, decreasing kWh per year by 280,000.
- CFSI and Boland customized the real-time energy management dashboard and monitoring system, which networks the HVAC equipment, lighting, and the electric and gas meters. The building’s energy consumption and ENERGY STAR score can be viewed, monitored, and analyzed in real time. The system generates an alarm when energy consumption is above the normal levels.
The Result: ENERGY STAR Certification and Savings: Beyond Expectations
All of these proactive measures have paid off, with the government facility receiving its ENERGY STAR certification one year ahead of its goal. Its rating increased from 52 in April 2012 to 82 in December 2013, far surpassing its goal of 76, indicating that the building performs better than at least 82% of similar buildings.
As a result of these energy developments, CFSI has decreased the Washington DC federal building’s overall energy usage by 1,919,042 Kwh annually, an energy savings of 17.7%.
To learn more about ENERGY STAR Certification and how Crockett Facilities Services can help you with your Facilities Maintenance in Maryland, DC and Virginia, please contact us by calling 202.600.2787 or email sales@crockett-facilities.com. Find out how our MSCA GreenSTAR certified service technicians can improve your HVAC performance and energy efficiency. You can also follow CFSI on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Google+.