An Eye on Energy: A Look at Fairfield's Energy and Resource Management

The last time you took a hot shower on one of these most recent cold mornings, did you consider the process that went into drawing the hot water to your shower head? Probably not, but in recent years, there has been much improvement around Fairfield University in the systems that help you get the most out of that hot shower with the lowest costs, both in the school budget and for the environment.

Starting in 1999, Fairfield University embarked on a new mission and series of energy conservation projects to improve the systems and processes that provide water, electricity, lighting, heating, and cooling (and all their interconnections) throughout campus. With rising energy demand and costs around the world, Fairfield's foresight in this arena has helped curb some of the problems by saving resources (both literally and financially) while helping to put us in the public eye for efficient engineering, something gaining more respect with each rogue heat wave or wild ice storm.

Below is an interactive map of the energy consumption as seen throughout the campus. Flash Player 8 required

The water conservation efforts around campus in both residential and academic buildings through the installation of high-efficiency plumbing, such as flushometers, toilets, urinals, shower heads, and valves, have helped save over 19 million gallons of water (1/3 of the Madison Square Garden's total volume) and $72,000 annually, according to the Fairfield Water Conservation Summary.

As a result, the reduced water waste has minimized sewer costs and the payback period for a full return of the plumbing cost also proves to be an efficient investment at less than 5 years according to a presentation by Ric Taylor, Associate Vice President for Campus Planning and Operations. The facts in the animation come from the Fairfield Academic & Residential Building Profile, Location Fixture Summary Breakout, and Water Conservation Summary.

Taylor presents us with the following information on how energy usage has been improved:

• 800 LED exit signs and 7,700 high-efficiency T8 lamps were installed to reduce electrical costs in lighting around campus, again, in both residential and academic buildings. For one drastic change, The LED exit sign bulbs have a 25 year lifespan; compare that to the old ones with a limiting 4 months. The exit light upgrade had a payback period of less than one year through savings in energy use and maintenance costs. The whole lighting upgrade, with the 7,700 lamps, cost $1 million dollars and saves $166,000 annually.

• A central Direct Digital Control system allows for fully automatic lighting timers further reducing costs and consumption through more effective usage.

• This Direct Digital Control system doubles to increase heating and cooling energy efficiency throughout 90% of our campus. The system also enables automatic heating/cooling adjustments and time-of-use settings to provide the heating/cooling results when and where necessary.

• Replacing two old boilers with three high-efficiency boilers allows for more on-demand reaction to campus heating needs and burns cleaner, low-sulfur and emissions #2 oil/natural gas as opposed to the #4 oil producing higher emissions.

• The new Cogeneration Plant at the Central Utilities Facility on campus was activated this past summer to create electricity via a turbine and use the excess heat instead of powering up the boilers. The byproduct of excess heat minimizes the role of the boilers (powered by fossil fuels) by 67 percent. The plant produces 4.5 Megawatts of power and fuels 99 percent of the campus' energy needs at its highest load. It saves the university a massive $1.2M annually, a big number on the 2007 fiscal budget just one year after losing a low-priced energy contract with the utility company.

• Students can breathe easier because the new power systems on campus release only 10 percent of the emissions previously released through the utility company for an equivalent amount of energy.

• On the same note, two new chillers and cooling towers have helped save $179,000 annually while using cleaner, non-toxic, non-ozone-depleting refrigerant.

• Heating and cooling rooms on campus is more efficient because energy is no longer transported from the Central Utilities Facility and other locations through aging 40-year-old piping systems. Replacing the old underground transport piping with new lines with higher insulation ratings and fewer leaks has lowered costs and transfer waste.

• Installation of a heat exchanger in the Bannow Science Center air ducts has allowed conservation and reuse of spent heating/cooling energy in the air that is vacated for health and safety reasons.

• Electrical costs have decreased by 11 percent since 1998-2002 and heating costs have been reduced 22 percent.

• Fostering an energy conscious attitude in our everyday lives will help prevent problems students will encounter if looming energy issues are ignored.

Being responsible for your actions, conscious of your surroundings, and understanding world problems has never been more beneficial for the individual and the community. Fostering an energy conscious attitude in our everyday lives will help prevent problems we are sure to come across if we ignore looming energy issues. As overplayed as it sounds, do your part.