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MacDill energy savings project reaches halfway point

  • Published
  • By Nick Stubbs
  • Thunderbolt editor
MACDILL AFB, Fla. --  If you've noticed work crews on step ladders changing light fixtures, installing new thermostat controls or monkeying with the plumbing or late, there's a good chance it is more than routine maintenance. MacDill is about halfway through a retrofitting
process designed to save energy and conserve water -- a $12 million project that in the long run will more than pay for itself, said Bill Gregg, the base resource efficiency manger. 

Assigned the task of overseeing the upgrades and working with the 6th Civil Engineer
Squadron, Gregg will be seeing the project through completion in January 2009. The effort is part of an overall conservation policy throughout the Air Force and DoD to save energy and net considerable savings. 

While it will take a few months before "real savings" are realized, the projection for MacDill is that once fully implemented, the new technology and retrofitting of existing air conditioning, electrical and water supply equipment will net MacDill $1.1 million a year in savings. 

"A lot is based on the rising cost of energy, and as it keeps going up, the savings could be even greater," said Mr. Gregg. 

So far the work is progressing well, with little or no disruption, he said. Workers are hopping from building to building, swapping out fixtures, switches and controls. That work is ongoing, and retrofitting base air conditioners with equipment to recover heat from chillers will be the next major round of updates. 

Those devices will capture heat generated in the cooling process and utilize
it to make hot water. Putting the heat to work rather than just allowing it to dissipate is part of the strategy of maximizing efficiencies to let as little as possible go to waste. Water-saving flush valves that use less water to flush toilets are being installed in the same spirit. 

"It's an overall strategy to address savings on several fronts," said Mr. Gregg. "It all adds up." The contract, which is part of the Department of Energy's Southeast Region Super Energy Savings Performance Contract, will target a total of more than half of the square footage of the facilities on base, according to contract documentation related to the project. 

The documents detail expected savings, noting that 59.5 million BTUs of energy will be saved each year, with water savings of 13.8 million gallons a year. 

The project also is expected to reduce greenhouse gases by 18.7 million
pounds per year, along with a reduction in volatile organic compounds of 569 pounds per year. Other savings include reductions in nitrogen oxides of 38, 500 pounds per year, carbon monoxide by 3,350 pounds per year and sulfur dioxide by 63,900 pounds per year.