The University of Michigan has avoided millions of dollars in energy costs for the seventh consecutive year as the result of ongoing efforts by the Planet Blue Operations Team and Plant Engineering on the Ann Arbor campus.

Energy conservation measures applied in 137 general fund buildings continue to result in an 8 percent reduction in energy use and an avoidance of $3.6 million in utility costs for fiscal year 2014.

The avoided energy is equivalent to the amount needed to power, heat and cool nearly 2,600 average homes annually in the United States. The campus also avoided more than 17,400 metric tons of carbon emissions, similar to removing 3,500 vehicles from the roads.

“Eliminating energy waste not only saves money, but it is a key component of our support of the university’s sustainability goals,” said Kevin Morgan, manager of the Planet Blue Operations Team.

“Our energy projects leverage the latest technology to change the way we control building systems, saving energy year upon year for the life of the project.”

Buildings with notable energy consumption reduction percentages include:

• Tappan Hall (68 percent)

• William W. Cook Legal Research Library (64 percent)

• Shapiro Library (45 percent)

Decommissioning certain building chillers and connecting those buildings to a larger regional chiller plant for heating and cooling needs was significant to the reduction of energy use this past year.

“Chiller replacement projects and regional chiller plant projects allow us to cool buildings more efficiently,” said Eric Albert, manager of plant mechanical engineering and energy management.

“Cooling is usually a building’s largest energy-use component. The relatively quick payback and high potential savings make these projects very attractive.”

The Chemistry Building experienced the largest energy cost avoidance of $833,000. The largest contributing factor was replacement of steam chillers with electric chillers that produce chilled water more efficiently.

Other cost-savings upgrades in general fund buildings include replacement of old HVAC controls with newer digital controls allowing for more efficient heating and cooling, and the ability to adjust fan schedules to match building usage.

Additionally, monitoring steam waste and the replacement of failed steam traps provide major cost savings in campus buildings that use steam for heating and cooling.

“There wasn’t as much emphasis placed on energy programs when the William Cook Legal Research building was built in 1931 as there is today,” said Lois Harden, the building’s facility manager.

“We’ve undergone several changes to the lighting systems and the HVAC systems. During the steam valve and trap replacement upgrades, the steamfitters unearthed steam traps that they suspected hadn’t been changed in over 50 years.”

All energy conservation projects in general fund buildings were completed by Utilities and Plant Engineering, the Planet Blue Operations Team and Architectural Engineering and Construction.

Launched in 2008, the program began as a four-year effort to promote energy conservation in 30 buildings per year. It initially targeted behavioral adjustments such as encouraging building occupants to set thermostats to appropriate temperatures and to turn off lights and equipment when not in use.

The program has maintained an average 8 percent per year cost avoidance against baseline levels established in 2008. It is now a permanent program on campus with regional energy managers who continuously monitor energy consumption in general fund buildings. 

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• Planet Blue