Local schools gear up for energy savings

When a homeowner turns off a few light bulbs and eases off on the air conditioning, it can save a few dollars a month. When a school system does the same, it can save millions. Like home consumers, local schools also have to consider energy conservation in their budget cutting strategies.

Facility teams in Orange and Seminole County are busy putting their conservation strategies in place for the new school year to ensure that every energy dollar is well spent.

“Building more energy efficient buildings is good for us, it’s good for the taxpayer and it generates less carbon dioxide, which is better for the environment,” said Orange County Public Schools Facilities Manager John Brennan.

Orange County

In Orange County, savings starts in the kitchen. Brennan said school kitchens are working on overhauling procedures to help reduce energy costs.

Kitchen workers are being provided with energy saving training and a spreadsheet tool to enable them to calculate their energy consumption. Based on this data, Brennan said, each school will formulate a new savings plan detailing how they will reduce energy usage in the kitchens, such as unplugging less frequently used equipment, working in batches or switching off lights.

Following the implementation of these new plans, the facilities department will do energy audits to help keep them on track. Over the next fiscal year, Brennan said Orange County Public Schools hopes to save $1 million using this strategy alone.

Energy costs can also cool off though centrally controlled thermostats. Thermostats in Orange County Schools are centrally controlled through the facilities department, requiring individual classrooms and buildings to operate at a fixed temperature range. In addition, Orange County Public Schools gets rebates from Duke Energy and the Orlando Utilities Commission for using more energy-efficient designs in new schools such as Walker Middle, Oakridge High, Edgewater High and Aloma Elementary School.

“We are aiming to increase our energy efficiency in Orange County schools by 2 percent this fiscal year,” Brennan said.

Seminole County

Seminole County Energy Manager Hector Barbosa said Seminole County Public Schools are shining light on several new ways for the county to save on electricity.

Starting with the basics, schools are switching from old, high wattage T8 lights to new, lower wattage T5 fluorescent blubs. And, in areas where light replacement is difficult, such as gyms, new LED lights may be installed over the next year.

And at the end of the day, schools will no longer look like cruise ships – all lit up in the night. Non-essential parking lot lights will go out after midnight.

New programmable thermostats are also being installed, which Barbosa said will be set at 77 during peak hours and 85 during off hours.

Like OCPS, Seminole County Public Schools also receive rebates from Duke Energy for things like installing reflective roofing material and programmable thermostats. Four schools currently have the reflective roofs installed, four more are under construction and an additional nine schools are planned. According to the Energy Conservation Task Force, the cumulative rebate dollars earned since 2007 is $338,123.47.

Also, the four-day work week instituted during summer break will continue during winter and spring breaks, allowing schools to save energy on the extra days when buildings are empty.

Both Brennan and Barbosa said that more than any individual programs, the cost saving measure that will be most effective is simple common sense.

“We’re just doing what anyone would do,” Barbosa said. “Switching off lights when you leave a room, turning off computers when you leave for the day, it’s all just common sense stuff that when you add it up, saves a lot of money.”