Arkansas State University in Jonesboro has signed a $15 million energy performance contract that will advance the university’s sustainability initiatives by improving lighting, water conservation, waste management, energy management, HVAC and utility monitoring systems.
The university's contract with Johnson Controls comes on the heels of recent energy legislation that has enhanced the Arkansas Energy Performance Contracting program.
The contract calls for the company to use a financing mechanism to pay for energy efficiency improvements; the university pays for the improvements over 20 years through energy and operational savings resulting from the upgrades.
“The Arkansas State project is setting the standard by which other energy performance contracts will be measured in the state,” says Chet Howland, energy program manager for the Arkansas Energy Office. “We expect the project to have an economic impact of over $30 million with no upfront cost to Arkansas State, as guaranteed energy savings will pay for the project over the next two decades.”
Johnson Controls says the upgrades at Arkansas State will be completed by the end of November. They consist of:
- New LED lights and emergency lighting fixtures throughout campus.
- Upgraded water fixtures, toilets, urinals, aerators on lavatory faucets and kitchen sinks, and showerheads with water-efficient fixtures and systems.
- Four new industrial-grade trash compactions systems (at the Convocation Center, Facilities Management building, Education and Communications building, and Centennial Bank football stadium).
- Software, server, workstation and database improvements at more than a dozen campus facilities through campus.
- A new energy-efficient chiller at the IT Services building; new air-handling units at the Education and Communications building, and the Lab Sciences East building.
- New fume hood controls at the Arkansas Bioscience Institute building.
- Installation of an energy management platform to provide real-time monitoring of electric power demand and consumption.
