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State Energy Savings Plan
for the State Finance Commission Building,
2601 North Lamar,
Austin, Texas
Prepared by:
Vance Ivie
Texas Department of Banking (DOB)
Staff Services Officer
March 20, 2005
- document in pdf format -
UPDATE for the period 12/1/05 - 2/28/06
Table of Contents
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- Overview of the State Energy Savings Plan Update
- Implementation Measures for Cost Reduction
- Savings Monitoring and Evaluation
- Utility Awareness
- State Finance Commission Energy Savings Plan and Updates
- Fleet Fuel Management Plan and Updates
- Contact Information
1. Overview of the State Energy Savings Plan Update
By April 14, 2006, each agency shall submit an Update to its Energy Conservation Plan to the Office of the Governor and Legislative Budget Board. This update shall, at a minimum, provide the following information:
- The extent to which the agency has met the percentage goal it established for reducing its usage of electricity, gasoline, and natural gas;
- The steps the agency may take to increase the percentage goal for reducing its usage of electricity, gasoline, and natural gas;
- Any additional ideas the agency has for reducing energy expenditures relating to facilities;
- Any additional ideas the agency has to minimize fuel usage in all vehicles and equipment used by the agency.
2. Implementation Measures for Cost Reduction
In March 2005, a major renovation was performed on the HVAC equipment that services a portion of the State Finance Commission (SFC) Building. Outdated and inefficient equipment was replaced with a high efficiency, multi-zone system. In addition to replacing major components of the systems, programmable thermostats were also installed. The reasons for the renovation were twofold. First and foremost, the new equipment allowed us to take advantage of advanced technologies to gain more energy efficiency and to reduce energy usage in times the building is not occupied. Secondly, the new equipment was designed to provide back-up in the event of a failure within the main unit. Built-in redundancy allows the system to continue heating /cooling while avoiding a total re-conditioning of the building climate and subsequent spike in energy usage.
In addition to replacing the major HVAC components mentioned above, programmable thermostats were installed and integrated with the system that serves the remainder of the SFC Building in February 2006. These thermostats will also allow us to reduce energy usage in non-occupied periods of time. While we anticipate a decrease in energy consumption related to this installation, the equipment has not been in use for a long enough period of time to collect comparative data.
The following are additional ideas the SFC agencies have for reducing energy expenditures relating to facilities:
- Replacement of the SFC Building roof with a product containing better insulating qualities (Capital Improvement)
- Replacement of T-12 fluorescent lighting with more efficient T-8 model (Capital Improvement)
- Retrofit exit signs with energy efficient light sources
3 . Savings Monitoring and Evaluation
In the original State Energy Savings Plan, the SFC Building agencies, by identifying and implementing measures to reduce energy consumption, planned to subsequently reduce energy costs by 3-5 %. After collecting and analyzing data for the 12 month periods before and after the HVAC renovation, electricity consumption has been reduced by 8%, gas consumption has been reduced by 40%, and water consumption has been reduced by 4%. While we are optimistic that the new equipment has made a difference in energy consumption, we also realize the past fall and winter seasons have been very mild and are partially responsible for lower energy usage.
4. Utility Awareness
The SFC agencies have initially delivered energy savings information to agency personnel through staff meetings. All staff has been made aware of the State Energy Savings Plan and has been encouraged to review and become familiar with its contents. In particular, the following are energy saving actions that may be implemented by all to make an immediate impact on consumption.
- Keep blinds or curtains drawn during a hot summer day; open them during the sunny part of a winter day
- Make sure floor or wall vents are not blocked by furniture or other obstructions
- Use daylight instead of electric light whenever possible
- Turn out lights when you leave your office for more than a few minutes
- Avoid using space heaters
- Turn off office machines overnight
- Share printers and fax machines
- Turn off water taps when water is not being used; report all leaks promptly
- Leave thermostats at pre-set temperatures
Utility awareness will ultimately be the best method for reducing energy costs. After all major equipment and facility energy savings measures have been implemented, it will become imperative that agency personnel stay vigilant and committed to practicing energy savings actions. In the future, surveys, focus groups, interviews, and incentive programs will be implemented to increase employee awareness and participation.
5. State Finance Commission Energy Savings Plan and Updates
As ordered by the governor, state agencies are required to implement an energy savings program. This order requires each agency to develop a plan for conserving energy and set a percentage goal for reducing its usage of electricity, gasoline, and natural gas. As occupants of the SFC Building , DOB, OCCC, and SML have developed this plan and subsequent updates as a group and will jointly evaluate, implement, and monitor the energy savings measures that are identified.
It should be noted that effective March 1, 2006, the SFC Building is now managed by the Texas Building and Procurement Commission.
6. Fleet Fuel Management Plan and Updates
None of the Finance Commission agencies own or operate vehicles. Therefore, there are no updates on Fleet Fuel Management.
7. Contact Information
State Energy Savings Implementation Team
- Department of Banking
- Department of Savings and Mortgage Lending
- Office of Consumer Credit Commissioner
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