Kwantlen Polytechnic University

Tweak and improve┬áHow do you affordably sustain excellence in energy management? Continuous improvement and partnerships are the keys, Gary Toushek learns. In 2008, BC Hydro honored Kwantlen Polytechnic University of Surrey, British Columbia, with its Excellence in Energy Management Award. ÔÇ£It was like winning the Oscar for best picture, in this case for sustained leadership,ÔÇØ says director of facilities Karen Hearn. ÔÇ£In being congratulated by our peers, there were several institutions that asked about our sustainability program, in particular energy management. So it led me to analyze how weÔÇÖre accomplishing it. ÔÇ£Achievement didnÔÇÖt occur overnight or dramatically on a large scale,ÔÇØ she continues, ÔÇ£since we didnÔÇÖt have the resources. We began with small steps and continued to build on each success.ÔÇØHer team began with small, minimal or no-cost measures, such as ÔÇ£Turn off the lightsÔÇØ stickers. Low-flow aerators went on water taps, paid for from the departmentÔÇÖs operating funds. The payback was only four months, then those savings were re-invested in other small areas, including pilot projects with outside partners. Low-flow toilets and waterless urinals were tested in certain washrooms, and reactions and results noted. ÔÇ£When we discovered the results were favorable, we used them in new building projects and whenever replacements were required,ÔÇØ she says. ÔÇ£When you undertake a pilot project, the risks are small and calculated; just tweak and improve.ÔÇØ HearnÔÇÖs team measures and reports on successes, producing a Resource Management Action Plan for the administration that identifies potential opportunities and accomplishments. Success stories are also prepared, providing concise, single-page, energy-saving case studies that outline what was done, the rate of return on investment, greenhouse gases avoided, amount of energy saved and dollars saved. Targeted communication is essential, she says, and you should use the terminology of the administrators so they can easily relate to your proposal. ÔÇ£Use language that resonates and has meaning for them when you describe the benefits, and convert them to equivalent savings.ÔÇØ Make sure your organization is recognized externally for its leadership in energy savings efforts; it allows the administrators to see the attention garnered from outside the organizationÔÇöawards add emphasis. ÔÇ£ThatÔÇÖs the basic framework on how to achieve the authority and financing to engage in sustainable opportunities, but I must emphasize that partnerships are key to your success. If it all relied on just the facilities group at Kwantlen trying to accomplish sustainability, we wouldnÔÇÖt be nearly as successful.ÔÇØ She lists architects, engineers, mechanical maintenance, janitorial, security, material providers, commissioning agent, control systemsÔÇöall come together to help create the projects. ÔÇ£There must be mutual trust; if we have two competing companies sharing information between them, theyÔÇÖre ultimately providing a better service to us, their client. But both firms are also learning from the collaborative experience, which makes them more competitive in the future. ItÔÇÖs exciting when they build off each othersÔÇÖ knowledge and realize that they each have something different to provide. And every project has a different resource required, so one companyÔÇÖs service may be more appropriate than anotherÔÇÖs.ÔÇØ Even with no funding, you can still make changes in your building operations that will save up to15 percent of your utility costs. Simple things like reducing lighting in underused areas, instructing your janitors on what equipment they can turn off, staggering start times for equipment to avoid demand penaltiesÔÇöall these can add up. Other suggestions from Kwantlen include talking to different suppliers as well as repairmen to get the whole story on a new component. Choose your design team carefully, be clear about what you want to accomplish, and pick the right partners that share your vision. Use an integrated process that keeps everyone at the table for the entire project. If constructing a new facility, look at it in terms of total cost of ownership. Develop your interior spaces to be as flexible as possible. Learn from each partner and explore what you can do to be creative. Take an integrated approach to your challenges, and when you get stuck, ask a peer or a partner for help. Make every participant successful, and when the project is complete, celebrate. ÔÇ£When you use different techniques and materials for building construction, you can come up with very livable buildings that people enjoy being in.ÔÇØ  ÔÇô Editorial research by Vincent Kielty