Energy Usage (Procedure)

Office of Origin: Facilities Management
Responsibility: Executive Director, Facilities Management
Original Date Adopted: 2-23-2021
Dates Reviewed: 2-23-2021
Last Date Approved: 3-10-2021

  1. Building heating and cooling schedules are managed based on occupied class and event schedules which are set each semester.
  2. Special events require revisions to standard schedules and can be made as needed with notification.
  3. Standard Setpoints:
    Cooling - Occupied Times 73°, Standby (if available) 74°, Unoccupied 80°
    Heating - Occupied Times 68°, Standby (if available) 66°, Unoccupied 62°
  4. Standby is an energy saving function based on occupancy sensors in the system. The following locations have that ability: Main building (VAV units), Mendel (AHU’s 1, 2, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12), Welch (VAV units), and Todd Center (pending new controls project).
  5. Personal space heaters are not allowed. Space heaters are inefficient, high energy consumption devices that disrupt building controls and the ability for Facilities to accurately troubleshoot real issues. Additionally, space heaters can pose a fire hazard, especially if not properly rated/listed appliances. Therefore, space heaters will only be supplied by Facilities when needed due to building system issues.
  6. Opening Windows. If you are warm or cold, before opening a window in an attempt to resolve, please contact Facilities first. Opening a window in the middle of the winter or in the summer will have other unintended impacts on the spaces and the mechanical system.
  7. Summer Hours Energy Savings. During planned summer hours when the College is closed Friday to Sunday each week, buildings will be programmed to “unoccupied” schedules for Fridays in addition to Saturdays and Sundays, except in the following locations. Activities in unoccupied areas of the campus should be limited to Security rounds, planned maintenance work, or brief individual work needs. Unoccupied schedule does not support ventilation for multiple workers on site.
  8. Exceptions (areas to run as “occupied” on Fridays):
    1. Main Building B-Wing AHU 12 to support KidZone
    2. Main Building L-Wing 1st Floor AHU 7 to support Facilities supervision & Security office, Bookstore temperatures for food items.
    3. Main Building Science Cadaver storage – utilizes stand-alone AC unit.
    4. Chocolate room - utilizes stand-alone AC unit.
    5. Various locations at Mendel Center to support temperature requirements for instruments.
    6. South Haven AHU 3 to support KidZone
  9. From time to time our gas utility provider issues high flow constraints, during this time we will inform the college community and ask that incidental natural gas usage is minimized and we will shift back unoccupied setpoints by several degrees. This means that warm up times in the morning may take longer than normal.