Energy Workshop at A-B Tech
Workshop presenter Roger Ebbage of Lane Community College and David Todd (on ladder) from UNCA are using a datalogger to log occupancy and lighting data to see if the lighting was energized when someone was actually in the room.
A-B Tech hosted and co-sponsored two energy savings workshops at its Enka Site Nov. 10 and 11. These sessions were funded through a competitive award from the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (DOE-EERE), facilitated by U.S. Rep. Charles Taylor, and through support from DOE-EERE's Rebuild America Program.
Experts Bob Baugh and Terry Sharp from Oak Ridge National Laboratory presented a workshop on the topic of Performance Contracting. Performance contracting is an alternative financing program that enables colleges, school districts, government and industry to finance energy-saving building retrofits from the resulting energy cost savings. Larry Shirley and Vince Throop of the North Carolina State Energy Office addressed the requirements and methods for performance contracting in North Carolina.
A second concurrent workshop on energy audits was conducted by Roger Ebbage of Lane Community College in Eugene, OR. Ebbage teaches energy audit workshops across the United States and in Argentina, Cyprus, and Beirut. Facilities managers learned how to conduct a basic walk-through audit and calculate potential savings.
Engineering Support Services employees conducted energy audits on the Enka Site. The ESS representatives were former employees of American Enka and BASF, where the campus is housed. After the initial audit, it was determined that significant energy cost savings could be achieved without having to spend a lot of money retrofitting building system, according to Max Queen, Vice President of Continuing Education. "In the process of the audit, we've learned the buildings were not meant for energy efficiency," he said. Large amounts of steam used to be produced in the buildings that needed to be released. "It was to their advantage to lose heat. We don't want that. After seeing large utility bills come across your desk, it doesn't take long to want to find ways to do things better." The Energy Savings Workshops for Colleges and Schools was also the kickoff for A-B Tech's Enka Site to improve its energy costs.
The Enka campus is comprised of two different sets of buildings, the Haynes Center and the Incubator Building. In the Haynes Center, converting the current light fixtures from older mechanical ballasts to an electronic ballast adds up to $3,500 a year in savings. The largest savings in one area would be in reworking the controls on HVAC. Between the Haynes Center and the Incubator Building, electricity can potentially be saved annually by reducing the flow of the chillers or turning them off completely at night.
About 30 participants from A-B Tech, Cherokee County Schools, S.C., Southwestern Community College, Henderson County Schools, Polk County Schools, Engineering Support Services, Buncombe County Schools, Mars Hill College, Waste Reduction Partners and Wake Tech in Raleigh took advantage of the energy audit course.
The workshops were co-sponsored by the Education and Research Consortium of the Western Carolinas, the State of North Carolina Energy Office, DOE-EERE/Rebuild America Program, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and A-B Tech.
Legislators Honored at Trustees Meeting
State Reps. Susan Fisher, Bruce Goforth, Ray Rapp and Wilma Sherrill hold awards presented to them by A-B Tech President K. Ray Bailey on behalf of the N.C. Community College Presidents Association. They are joined by Kaye Myers, (left) chair of A-B Tech's Board of Trustees.
The N.C. Community College Presidents Association recognized North Carolina Legislators for their outstanding work during the 2004 session of the General Assembly. A-B Tech President K. Ray Bailey, on behalf of the Presidents Association, presented plaques to Reps. Susan Fisher, Bruce Goforth, Ray Rapp and Wilma Sherrill during A-B Tech's Board of Trustees meeting Nov. 1. Sen. Martin Nesbitt was honored for his work in the session, which ended in July, during the A-B Tech Foundation's annual scholarship luncheon in October.
Legislative action that benefited state community colleges included more than $88.2 million in new funds recognizing the importance of community colleges in rebuilding the economy. Community college faculty and staff were given salary increases and the General Assembly wrote a commitment into the law to move salaries toward national averages over the next five years.
The General Assembly also increased the recurring appropriation for instructional equipment from $15.3 million to $21.3 million. There are 59 institutions in the North Carolina Community College System with an enrollment of more than 800,000 adults.
Industry Appreciation Day
Dave Million (left), VP/general manager of Volvo Construction Equipment, accepts a $500 scholarship for a Volvo employee or family member to attend A-B Tech from Max Queen (right), Vice President of Continuing Education. Volvo received the Manufacturing Leadership Award for Best Practice at the Industry Appreciation Event. Also pictured is Jeff Slosman of National Wiper Alliance and a member of the event's steering committee. Michael McCarthy, Executive Director of Corporate and Economic Development, received a letter of thanks from the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce for his work with the event. "It is impossible to quantify or express how much we appreciate your contribution to the annual Industry Appreciation Event and to the strength of local manufacturing," wrote Sharon Willen, Director of Business and Industry Services for the Chamber. McCarthy coordinates the application and judging process for the Manufacturing Leadership Awards. Doug Jones, Coordinator of the Productivity Institute, also was recognized for his "organization and designwork on the 2004 Manufacturing Leadership Awards."