CASE STUDY
CLIENT: US Department of Veterans Affairs
The 10 medical centers in 3 states undergo Energy Audits – to learn which energy efficiency improvements will significantly reduce costs.
CHALLENGE
The project involved Energy Audits and Assessments at 10 hospital campuses in 3 states across the southeast: Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina.
Totaling 8 million square feet, the primary goals were to:
- identify which specific energy efficiency improvements at each facility would be the most cost-effective at reducing annual expenses
- learn if implementing similar improvements across the group of facilities would help reduce the total cost investment
RESULTS
Alares Architects and Engineers identified many strategies and upgrades that would create a significant increase in the operational efficiency at each facility, provide greater comfort for building users, and lower costs.
Nearly $6 million were projected as total potential savings through energy efficiency improvements.
Improvement and upgrades recommended across all 10 facilities included:
- Lighting Upgrades and New Controls
- Water Usage and Sewage Reductions
- Optimization of Electric Motors
- Building Automation Systems (BAS)
- Energy Management Control Systems
- Cost-Benefit to client by using a Single Contract Provider
The process of using one provider for such a comprehensive project – 10 Energy Audits across 10 facilities – was, in itself, an efficient process. One contract was more cost-effective than 10 separate contracts.
As a single service provider, Alares Architects and Engineers was, also, able to identify more “economy-of-scale” benefits and faster payback periods through its Energy Audit recommendations.
STRATEGIES
Alares Architects and Engineers managed the complex coordination with the facilities’ staff at each of the 10 campuses. The audits and final analysis were completed within seven months, which enabled the client to make timely decisions for the start of energy-saving projects.
Potential savings and results:
The primary benefits that the Energy Audit recommendations would provide included:
- Energy and water use reduction
- Increased equipment efficiency and reliability
- Improved lighting and ambient controls for comfort of occupants, contributing to improved productivity
- Lower costs for electricity and utilities
- Better building controls and ease of operations for the facilities management team