Ecmweb 8102 Electrical Sustainability And Technology 2
Ecmweb 8102 Electrical Sustainability And Technology 2
Ecmweb 8102 Electrical Sustainability And Technology 2
Ecmweb 8102 Electrical Sustainability And Technology 2
Ecmweb 8102 Electrical Sustainability And Technology 2

Sustainability and Technology Drive School Projects

March 18, 2016
Electrical contractors are equipping new and existing educational facilities with the latest energy-efficient and technology-driven features.

For years, electrical contractors faced intense competition in the education market, especially in the K-12 sector. Because most of the projects consisted of simple pipe, wire, and lighting systems, nearly every contractor had the capability and proficiency to complete an education project. Times have changed, says David Gralike, senior vice president for Guarantee Electrical Co., a St. Louis, Mo.-based firm with offices in Granite City, Ill.; Denver; and Benicia, Calif. Electrical contractors must not only be aware of the new IT-based systems being installed in today’s schools, but also be capable of installing and maintaining these rapidly developing interconnected technologies.

“The current trend in education has followed the renaissance of technology,” Gralike says. “Today’s education projects require the electrical contractor to be proficient in modeling, robotic station layout, prefabrication, and modularization.”

At Washington University, Sachs Electric was involved in the construction of four mixed-used buildings on a design-assist basis. Within the scope of the project, the contractor wired the retail spaces on the main floors that included a grocery store and diner. A main focus of this project was to integrate the new buildings while maintaining the eclectic look of the area, which incorporates many modern features into a historic backdrop. The contractor’s ability to use advanced lighting technologies meant achieving this look within budget (Photo courtesy of Sachs Electric).

For example, through a design-build renovation project, Guarantee Electrical Co. successfully leveraged its preconstruction capabilities to pre-plan, stage, and execute an accelerated schedule at St. Louis University. Within a tight time frame, the electrical contractor was able to modernize the electrical and data systems within two academic buildings to accommodate the unique demands of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) programs.

“All higher education institutions are racing to capture the new interest in STEM education,” Gralike says. “In order for colleges and universities to compete in this market, they will be required to invest heavily in new technologies and laboratories, which require robust electrical systems.”

Technology trends

Within the higher education market, technology is driving new work in classrooms, laboratories, and academic buildings nationwide. For example, many of today’s college classrooms feature smart boards and teleconferencing equipment, says Victor Salerno, CEO of Victor, N.Y.-based O’Connell Electric. Because all of these technologies are electrically driven in one way or another, it helps to increase the number of project opportunities for his company.

“The colleges and universities are all on the cutting edge, and the new buildings have the latest and greatest,” Salerno says. “Some of the schools are even dipping their toe in the water with online learning. In these situations, you can see things in both directions. Students can ask questions, and professors can make critiques. When it comes to communications technology — you name it, they have it.”

To ensure reliable mobile communications on a campus, electrical contracting companies must install reliable data and communications technology as well as distributed antenna systems, says Joseph Barnard, senior vice president for the St. Louis and Illinois regions of Sachs Electric, a St. Louis-based contractor that has both an electrical and systems division as well as in-house engineering expertise. The company has been serving the education market for the past 85 years, and over just the past decade, technology has grown by orders of magnitude, Barnard says.

At Framington State University, Wayne J. Griffin Electric was responsible for removing the existing 1,000A service within Hemenway Hall and replacing it with a 1,200A normal service and 1,000A emergency power source. Also, the contractor was tasked with renovating the site’s lighting and fire alarm system and providing new lighting and power to the six-level addition. Through the 58,000-sq-ft upgrade and addition, the building provides 16 new teaching laboratories and additional teaching space. As such, the building is now the largest academic building on the university campus (Photo courtesy of Wayne J. Griffin Electric).

“Smart boards, student devices, wireless access, and computer labs are standard in all levels of education, and having the electrical infrastructure to maintain these devices is imperative,” Barnard says. “Educational market projects provide a great opportunity to innovate and discover ways to find value, especially with new technologies. We understand the need to have a long-term vision for the facility’s ability to expand and grow as the technologies change.”

Due to the increased use of technology in the classroom, the amount of electrical work on an education project has increased by 40%, Gralike says. Case in point: Guarantee Electrical Co. was recently awarded a high school project in Mount Vernon, Ill. The 300,000-square-foot high school has a $14-million electrical package — and the technology portion of the project makes up about $4 million of that total.

“Laptops, in lieu of books, allow students to not only learn 21st century skills to complete assignments, but they also learn the new ways to communicate and collaborate,” Gralike says. “Education and interaction is dependent upon electrical systems that are reliable and incapable of failure. It is not uncommon to now see high schools with data centers as well as redundant power services of generators and uninterruptible power supplies.”

Going green

Beyond implementing a variety of new communications systems projects, educational facilities are also hiring electrical contractors to implement energy-efficient/renewable projects on their campuses. For example, Sachs Electric engineered and installed a photovoltaic system at John Burroughs School in Ladue, Mo., a private school for grades 7-12.

“It will help the school achieve its sustainability goals by generating clean energy and reducing the school’s dependence on fossil fuels,” Barnard says. “The system also serves as an educational tool for their environmental studies.”

The California branch of Facility Solutions Group recently performed a lighting retrofit for a community college, which is helping its client to conserve energy (Photo courtesy of Facility Solutions Group).

The project earned a Leadership for Energy Efficient Design (LEED) silver designation.

The energy-conservation trend extends across all levels of the higher education market. For example, Wayne J. Griffin Electric, a Holliston, Mass.-based electrical contracting company, recently wrapped up the on-site electrical installation work at Hemenway Hall and Annex at Framingham State University in Framingham, Mass.

The construction team anticipates earning a silver LEED designation for the upgrades it completed to the 50-year-old building, the site of the university’s Family and Consumer Sciences program. During the construction of the new Hemenway Laboratories, the workers used recycled and locally extracted materials, low-volatile organic compound building products, and low-mercury fluorescent lighting. In addition, the building features a storm-water collection system as well as a daylighting design to help promote renewable, clean energy.

In the Northeast, O’Connell Electric is also helping its higher education clients meet their sustainability and energy efficiency goals. The company recently wrapped up electrical work on the Rochester Institute of Technology’s new 84,000-square-foot building, the Golisano Institute for Sustainability, which features a state-of-the-art laboratory for scientific discovery and experiential learning. By continuously producing 400kW of electric power, as well as heat as a by-product, a fuel cell serves as the primary energy source for the new building. The building is equipped with energy-efficient lighting, a geothermal heating and cooling system, a rainwater collection system, and extensive glazing that reduces the amount of artificial light required inside the structure.

Over the years, the education market has comprised a significant portion of O’Connell Electric’s work load. Rochester, N.Y., which is only 20 miles away from the contractor’s headquarters in Victor, N.Y., has 18 community colleges, colleges, and universities, providing opportunities for both renovation and new construction. The contractor has successfully completed projects at the University of Rochester, the Rochester Institute of Technology, St. John Fisher College, and the State University of New York. Also, in Syracuse, the contractor recently wired the new Syracuse University School of Law building as well as new buildings for the school of science, business, and architecture along with a basketball training facility (Photo courtesy of O’Connell Electric).

In addition, O’Connell Electric installed a 40kW photovoltaic system on the roof and helped construct three vertical-axis windmills, which can each generate up to 1kW of electricity. In turn, the building’s microgrid system was designed to take variable power inputs from all energy sources including the windmills and solar panels. It then stores the energy in a battery bank to provide 50kW of power for some of the building’s lights and electrical outlets, as well as charging stations for the electric vehicles on campus.

To be able to handle these types of renewable projects for its higher education clients, O’Connell Electric recently purchased a small company that specialized in solar work. The contractor now has a solar division and can offer these services to all of its existing and potentially new customers.

To help the solar market to further heat up in New York, the New York Power Authority and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority have spearheaded the K-Solar program for K-12 schools. More than 300 school districts, representing 35% of the state, have shown interest in the program, which will provide free tools and expertise to bring solar energy to their facilities and reduce energy costs. These types of energy projects help the state’s plan to try to derive a substantial amount of electricity from green resources over the next 15 years.

In the Midwest, Guarantee Electrical Co. has found many of its sophisticated education customers have integrated renewable power sources, such as solar or wind, into their new projects. However, a surprisingly low number of school districts and institutions are investing in these technologies up front, Gralike says. Even so, the electrical contractor has seen a substantial number of districts take advantage of government and utility incentives to supplement their power with solar. The incentives, which are often offered per meter, work well for school districts with multiple facilities as they can receive multiple incentives.

Beyond renewable energy sources, O’Connell Electric is also looking at other technologies it can offer its clients to save energy. For example, the contractor plans to test a new system for peak load shaving, which allows an end-user to charge batteries during the night when peak demand rates are lower and then use those batteries during the day to offset peak load periods.

“We want to be one of the first ones to get into it and may try to beta test it at colleges or commercial office buildings where they have large electrical loads,” Salerno says.

Illuminating schools

To conserve energy and lower electricity costs in colleges and universities, electrical contractors are not only called upon to install energy-efficient equipment and control systems, but also high-efficiency LED lighting.

“LED technologies have advanced to the point that they are more reliable and affordable,” Gralike says. “We also see very complex lighting control schemes to sense if the space is occupied and harvest the natural light of the sun.”

In California, Facility Solutions Group (FSG) has also been involved in many energy-efficient lighting upgrade projects at educational facilities ranging in size from preschool facilities to universities, says Jared Johnson, director of California operations for FSG, an Austin, Texas-based company. This approach has shown to have benefits beyond just energy savings — student learning rates and lighting quality have a striking
correlation, according to recent research by the Heschong Mahone Group and other studies, Johnson says.

Recently, FSG upgraded the exterior and interior lighting systems at two different community colleges to LEDs and installed advanced lighting control (ALC) systems. During these projects, FSG specified, designed, installed, and commissioned the LED luminaires and retrofit kits as well as the ALC system. The system allows the client to tune or dim the interior luminaires to the appropriate lighting level, which provides additional savings. Also, the system uses wireless dimmer switches, wireless ceiling sensors, and wireless photocells, enabling quicker installation time. The electricians can install the equipment in any location — even on a teacher’s desk or a podium — and avoid undesirable areas, such as on an older school’s ceiling, which may contain asbestos.

FSG was able to help one of the community colleges near its headquarters reduce its annual lighting usage (kWh) by 83% and lighting demand (kW) by 78% — compared to the existing T8 fluorescent luminaires in the interior as well as the metal-halide, high-pressure sodium, and low-pressure sodium lamps.

With all the new technology and equipment being used in today’s classrooms, such as computers, televisions, and video screens, traditional lighting systems are not able to properly support the light levels required in these spaces.

“The only control is the switches, where your options are all on, half on/half off, or all off,” says Johnson. “Now with new wireless systems, we can dim the lighting to the appropriate light level based on what the class is doing.”

Upgrading the outdoor high- and low-pressure sodium-based luminaires to LEDs allows light to be distributed more evenly on the exterior of the building.

“Traditional HID sources provide a large blob of light below the fixture,” Johnson says. “With proper optics, LEDs can deliver a much more evenly lit area below the fixture and throughout the area.”

The new LED-based luminaires also help the client protect the environment.

“The environment is a concern for all,” Johnson says. “By upgrading the lighting system to LEDs, the fluorescent and HID lamps that contain mercury are eliminated from the campus.”

While energy prices may be down due to the price of oil and the low cost of electricity, Salerno of O’Connell Electric says his clients still want to be as energy efficient as possible. Likewise, other electrical contractors are also able to help their clients save energy, inspire students through the latest technology, and become more prepared for the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. 

Fischbach is a freelance writer based in Overland Park, Kan. She can be reached at [email protected].

SIDEBAR: Key Drivers in the Education Market

">

Just like any market sector, the education category offers a number of opportunities and challenges. Here are some of the key issues within the education market as noted by a construction economist and electrical contracting companies specializing in this market sector.

Lack of funding. Many districts and colleges are in need of expansion and/or modernization, but the funding isn’t available, says David Gralike, senior vice president for Guarantee Electrical Co.

“Gridlocked states like Illinois, and sluggish economies such as Missouri, prevent funding of necessary improvements,” Gralike says.

While there may be an upsurge in future school construction over the long-term, Ken Simonson, economist for the Associated General Contractors, says there is still not a sustained period of higher spending on the horizon as before the recession.

“Education construction used to be an extremely strong market, but now it is a recovering market, and I don’t expect sustained growth,” he says.

When the recession hit in 2007 and 2008, funding dried up in state legislatures, Simonson says. In turn, universities turned to alumni, corporations, joint ventures, and partnerships for funding support. Even so, colleges and universities are still facing an ongoing challenge — dropping enrollment. But there is a bit of good news on the horizon.

“While school construction is not moving at a fever pitch, many school bond issues were passed in 2014, and a limited amount was also approved in 2015,” Simonson says. “Due to the pickup in funding for school construction and at the K-12 level, property values have risen, and school districts now have more money available for construction or other purposes.”

Flat or declining enrollment. “College and university enrollment has been dropping for three years in a row, and it’s down 10% from its peak,” Simonson says. “More high school graduates are finding jobs right away, and they’re entering the workforce instead of going to college.”

Not only is this occurring in the higher-education market, but it’s also taking place in the K-12 sector. While pre-kindergarten through 12th grade enrollment isn’t shrinking, it’s flat, Simonson says.

“From 2002 to 2006,  some areas were opening up a new school every year,” Simonson says. “The number of children in each age cohort has stayed flat over the last few years, however, and it doesn’t look as if there is significant growth and demand for new schools.”

A few states, however, are an exception to this trend. For example, Florida, Texas, Nevada, Colorado, and Washington, D.C. are experiencing a surge in construction of new housing. Along with this growth in housing comes a bump in school construction.

An urban revival. Rather than flocking to the suburbs once they have children, more families are opting to live in urban areas, Simonson says. In turn, they are filling underused or charter schools. As a result, construction no longer matches population growth. To avoid overcrowding schools, developers are transforming previously shut down buildings into modern school buildings. Through the adaptive reuse approach, firms don’t need to invest in completely new ground-up construction. Instead, they are focusing on gutting the buildings, bringing them up to modern design and construction standards, and setting up temporary classroom trailers on the playgrounds.

For example, Simonson has seen these types of projects at the elementary, middle, and high school level in Washington, D.C. — where charter schools now account for 45% of public school enrollment. In some cases, schools may transform non-traditional buildings like warehouses into new schools, while in other situations, school districts may lease space in under-enrolled public or charter schools.

“There are all kinds of models happening out there rather than building from the ground up,” Simonson says. “It’s very hard to find a green field site where you can build a whole new school, and this is a way you can launch a school in a reasonable time frame.”

">
About the Author

Amy Florence Fischbach

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of EC&M, create an account today!

Sponsored Recommendations

Electrical Conduit Comparison Chart

CHAMPION FIBERGLASS electrical conduit is a lightweight, durable option that provides lasting savings when compared to other materials. Compare electrical conduit types including...

Fiberglass Electrical Conduit Chemical Resistance Chart

This information is provided solely as a guide since it is impossible to anticipate all individual site conditions. For specific applications which are not covered in this guide...

Considerations for Direct Burial Conduit

Installation type plays a key role in the type of conduit selected for electrical systems in industrial construction projects. Above ground, below ground, direct buried, encased...

How to Calculate Labor Costs

Most important to accurately estimating labor costs is knowing the approximate hours required for project completion. Learn how to calculate electrical labor cost.