The facilities group at Lowell Area Schools District was hearing from staff and students at Alto
Elementary School that there were uncomfortable temperature changes in parts of the building
over the winter months.
This, along with the potential for energy cost savings, led Greg Pratt, Director of Operations, to
question whether the building management system (BMS) and the systems it controlled were
working at the most efficient levels.
“In a 70,000-sf building we have multiple heating and cooling units, and they are all automated
to turn on and off, heat or cool to exact temperatures to ensure cost efficiencies and comfort
levels. To manage these complex systems to perform at the highest efficiency is a challenge,”
said Pratt.
Pratt also became aware of the Consumers Energy program that funds energy efficiency audits
to look for ways to adjust scheduled, sequence operations and/or upgrade equipment to be
more energy efficient. With tight school budgets the opportunity to have these evaluations paid
for made a clear decision to move forward.
Pratt hired the local, approved energy audit firm E3M Solutions to conduct an energy audit, with
focus on heating and cooling equipment and BMS control systems.
E3M started the work with a kick-off meeting that included the team from Lowell Area Schools
staff, E3M team and Consumers Energy representatives to review the overall timeline,
participation from team, and each phase deliverable.
E3M also completed a thorough review of existing mechanical, electrical, and temperature
control drawings and past 12-36 months of utility bills (natural gas and electric) to become
familiar with the existing building systems and controls.
The team then identified items for improvement during the site assessment and Building
Management System (BMS) review, both onsite and remote.
Upon completion of these steps, the E3M team compiled a list of potential improvements,
identifying low cost / no cost items and capital facility improvement measures with some basic
saving and cost calculations. Once the team reviewed the list, the school team identified what
they were interested in completing based on cost and return on investments (ROI) and E3M
performed more in-depth calculations for those next steps.
Based on that feedback and in more depth calculations, the list was updated, and
implementation preparations were made. The team again gathered to review the improvements
that could be implemented within the next 90 days. The remaining improvements would be
grouped as “to be completed when budget allowed” and “capital expenditures” and were slated
for potential completion 2-5 years out.
A total of sixteen (16) system improvements and fourteen (14) operations and maintenance
items were finalized for report. For the facilities team the training and preventative maintenance
plans were impactful. “We have a young facilities team and to receive this level of training and
have a plan created for maintenance on these complicated systems was invaluable to us,” said
Pratt.
E3M validated implementation of the improvements as they were completed by the school or
contractors. The school would notify E3M of completion, in turn E3M validated by either a site
visit or logging into the BMS system remotely to confirm implementation.
“Within days of implementation we saw more consistent temperatures and less work orders
related to temperature issues come across our systems,” said Pratt.
There were 10 improvements slated for completion within 90 days at a calculated cost of $3,375
and a calculated annual savings of $47,277 resulting in an ROI of 1 month. The school system
now plans to continue these audits at the middle school and high school to identify energy
savings and optimization in those buildings.
“E3M made a very complex task, simple. I enjoyed their ability to provide not only solutions to
problems but provide long term strategies for us as a district to save dollars and make a better
environment for our kids,” said Pratt.
