The problem: UW staff had to implement an energy conservation program, and be able to demonstrate their accomplishments in reducing their use of electricity.

John Leaden, maintenance coordinator for the UW, came out of retirement to support the university’s new program. “We implemented several projects to meet Seattle City Light’s requirements to reduce energy consumption,” said Leaden. Renovation projects included replacing T-12 fluorescent lamps and magnetic ballasts with T-8 lamps and energy efficient electronic ballasts. They also installed adjustable speed drives on pumps and motors in major ventilation systems, as well as making HVAC control upgrades.

The university then had to verify that they had installed the projects they’d committed to, and more importantly, that they had saved the electricity they’d predicted. “Early in the program,” said Leaden, “we used almost everything in DENT Instruments’ product line to verify savings in lighting applications.” The university continues to use DENT’s ElitePro to monitor electrical consumption of various lighting and motor applications.

“What DENT provides is a very easy-to-use recording medium,” explained Leaden. “All we have to do is download the data into an Excel spreadsheet to see the consumption profile.” That profile allows Leaden to compare actual consumption with operating schedules to detect variations and recommend changes to control programs or upgrades of equipment or maintenance procedures.

The pay off: The university’s ongoing electric use had been dramatically reduced, along with the associated energy costs. And, as an added bonus, Seattle City Light rebated $6.5 million to the university for their conservation projects.

Come and see us at the West Coast Energy Management Congress (EMC) in San Diego, June 28-29 booth # 229!