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Success Story: YWCA of White Plains, New York

Partner Information

Located in White Plains, New York
96,000 sq. ft.
Annual Cash Savings: $66,799
Prevented 112,000 lbs. of pollution

Service and Product Provider

Johnson Controls

“Not-for-profits that own buildings should have a current short- and long-term plan for energy use, equipment, and buildings. It is generally less expensive to fix things early rather than to wait until there is complete failure.“

—Rita A. Brown
Chief Executive Officer

The Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) of White Plains and Central Westchester in New York has been serving its community for 70 years. In 1966, it opened the Lila Wallace Activities Center in White Plains, a 96,000 sq. ft. facility that includes a swimming pool, gymnasium, meeting and activity rooms, dance studio, classrooms, and outdoor play areas. The aging building was wasting large amounts of energy and thereby diverting funds that could have gone into serving the community. Therefore, the YWCA embarked upon a comprehensive energy saving plan.

All Exits Lead to High Efficiency

All the lights in the building were replaced with high-efficiency lighting. Standard T-12 fluorescent lamps were replaced with T-8 lamps. All exit signs were replaced with energy efficient LED signs. In the pool area, metal halide fixtures were installed to dramatically improve light levels.

Pooling Efficient Resources

Two oil-fired boilers were installed to heat the water for the facility’s swimming pool. These boilers operate independently of the building’s main boilers, which provides savings in the summer since the main boilers don’t have to be operating just to heat the pool.

In addition, the existing steam hot water heater was removed and replaced with a gas-fired unit with a 500-gallon storage tank.

New System Creates Cool Air, Cooler Savings

The current constant volume systems with terminal reheat were replaced with variable air volume systems, which provides improved heating and cooling control and greater efficiency. The building’s nine major air-handling systems were refurbished with new coils, and six new variable speed drives were installed.

A new 250-ton McQuay water-cooled, dual compressor screw chiller was installed to replace an aging absorption unit.

Controlling Energy Costs

Much of the building’s lighting, heating, and cooling are controlled from a new Johnson Controls Metasys Energy Management System (EMS). This new system allows instantaneous monitoring and control of all systems from an operator workstation. The EMS allows allows remote control through a modem.

More Opportunities

A number of smaller steps were also taken to make the facility as energy efficient as possible. Low-emissivity (low-e) glass, which has a special surface coating to reduce heat transfer, was installed in the pool area to limit solar heating. Low-e glass reflects 40% to 70% of the heat that is normally transmitted through clear glass, while allowing the full amount of light to pass through.

In addition, new pipe insulation was installed on pipes leading to the updated pool heaters, the domestic hot water tank, and the high-efficiency chiller.

A Contract for Great Performance

The YWCA of White Plains and Central Westchester entered into an energy performance contract (EPC) with Johnson Controls, Inc., the manufacturer of the EMS the facility had installed. Through the EPC, Johnson Controls, Inc., had all the energy efficiency measures in the facility installed at no charge to the YWCA. In addition, the YWCA was guaranteed annual savings of $66,799 for the next ten years. Now that is a good deal!