When students left the Syracuse University campus for Winter Break, the university brought down building temperatures to save energy and money.

Syracuse University’s Department of Energy Systems and Sustainability Management reduced the temperature in campus buildings from 68 degrees to 60 degrees when students vacated their residence halls by Dec. 17. Temperatures are not lowered further as pipes could freeze, said Nathan Prior, director of ESSM.

“It is a little deceptive with what people want to see with savings because we are not shutting campus down,” Prior said. “We are still maintaining it at a minimum temperature to prevent freeze-ups in the buildings.”

The school’s energy management system is run by a control system that modulates temperatures automatically. Prior said the system is switched to an “unoccupied mode” during Winter Break from Dec. 17 through Jan. 13. When students returned to campus, temperatures were adjusted to the occupied mode, between 68 and 70 degrees.

The machines automatically fluctuate based on the outside and indoor air temperatures, something that affects the amount of energy that the school conserves, Prior said.

Normally, because SU is one of the snowiest college campuses, climate influences the amount of energy the campus can save. Prior said he’s predicting that the school saved more energy within the past year compared to previous years because the winter has been relatively warm thus far.

There are no statistics available on the amount of energy saved this year yet because Winter Break overlaps between December and January, so the data goes over two billing cycles and is not analyzed until mid-February.

Prior said it’s important to have human eyes checking on the automated system even during the winter months in case of an error that needs human intervention to fix.

Prior added the system gets more automated each year, however, and the goal is to use technology “to be more effective.”

Over the winter months, efficacy is a focus for heating the buildings. Syracuse campus buildings are warmed by steam power, said Tom Reddinger, the director of steam operations.

SU operates an independent steam station, which also provides steam to the State University of New York Upstate Medical University, Crouse Hospital, Syracuse Veterans Affairs Medical Center and State University of New York College of Environmental and Forestry.

Steam is delivered to buildings in a similar manner as water and electricity, in which a meter keeps track of the amount used per building. The school has boilers fired by natural gas that produces steam, which is then distributed along seven miles of underground piping at 100 pounds per square inch and 550 degrees.

This high temperature ensures that neither mold nor mildew pose an issue despite the moisture, Reddinger said.

During the winter months, lower building temperatures mean less steam energy usage, which directly correlates with natural gas savings. Reddinger said that because 40 percent of the steam output continues unaffected at off-campus locations, the steam operations are similar over Winter Break to semester operations. Energy usage is also dependent on outside temperature.

Despite the recent warm weather, Reddinger said there’s still more time to go.

“Winter isn’t over yet,” he said. “Our prime production months are January, February and March.”

Published on January 16, 2017 at 7:38 pm