NSU Horizons Winter 2008 - 2009

13 horizons W hen John Santulli is doing his job well, no one ever notices. And that is fine with him. As NSU’s vice president for facilities management, Santulli figures his role is to help keep tuition costs reasonable by “paying FPL as little as possible” for the energy required to air condition more than 2.5 million square feet of enclosed space on NSU’s main campus. His purview also extends to getting the biggest bang for the energy buck for an additional 300,000 square feet of space at five of NSU’s Student Educational Centers. Compared to his counterparts at longer-established citadels of learning around the country, Santulli has it easy. Many universities have buildings that date to the 19th century and are extremely hard to retrofit to today’s energy efficiency standards. By contrast, the very oldest building on NSU’s main campus, the Rosenthal Building, is barely 40 years old. The majority are newer buildings purposefully designed for energy-efficient operation. Santulli believes that an upfront investment in extra building quality will more than pay for itself in lower operating costs over a building’s 50- to 100-year lifetime. Given the dizzying pace of campus construction over his two- plus decades with the university, Santulli has had ample opportunity to put his beliefs to the test. South Florida’s strict building codes, keyed to hurricane protection, “push us in the right direction,” Santulli said. Nikolas Camejo, president of the Sustainable Economic Development Group, has worked with NSU as a consultant and commended the university’s vision to expand its energy conservation program. The university’s comprehensive approach includes exploring solar energy technologies and alternative fuels, as well as looking for ways to expand water conservation efforts and recycling/waste management. By extension, NSU’s use of green technologies that make economic sense has materialized itself in the design, con- struction, and operation of the university’s buildings. For example, NSU’s buildings include highly efficient and durable roofs, walls, windows, and doors and have increased energy services’ reli- ability and redundancy with the use of generators and power monitoring—“all of which improve the health, safety, comfort, and productivity of the learning and working environments at NSU,” Camejo said. NSU also has a complex energy management system that includes everything from room sensors and high-efficiency lighting to extremely energy-efficient air conditioners and thermal energy storage systems. Last year, FPL rewarded NSU with a $599,000 incentive for participating in its thermal storage program. The university replaced multiple chillers from several campus buildings with a single, high- efficiency central chiller plant. It produces and stores ice at night, when power is less expensive, and uses it to cool buildings effi- ciently during the day, when rates are higher. The results are a reduction in on-peak electricity use and lower electric bills. NSU is now saving $300,000 annually through this technique. The $599,000 incentive was the second largest FPL had ever awarded and represented NSU’s second incentive payment. The first, six years ago, was for more than $200,000. NSU also participates in FPL’s load control program whereby the utility company gives lower rates in return for authorization to limit energy use at peak periods. “Load control doesn’t keep us from the business of education because we have generators that kick in. No one ever knows we’re on load control,” Santulli said. The energy management system works to cool buildings to 72–75 degrees Fahrenheit. At lower temperatures, air quality suffers because air conditioning units would not operate long enough to remove sufficient moisture from the air, which can encourage mold and mildew growth. When energy usage in a particular building rises, Santulli has his people look for the cause. Typically, the reason is increased use. “Our classes run from early in the morning to late at night,” he said. In August, NSU’s electric bill was $657,000. Without the most recent in a long series of energy management improvements, a consultant estimated that it would have been 18 percent higher. Santulli said NSU will continue its quest to keep tweaking the energy management system to produce continual energy savings. How successful is the university? “We are able to buffer most of the FPL rate hikes as they come along,” he boasted. NSU’s proactive embrace of technology and its team problem- solving approach have led to productive relationships with utilities and public and private organizations. The university continues to seek out and engage in new ideas, systems, and behaviors that can improve the health, safety, comfort, and productivity of NSU’s learning and working environments. n When Energy Costs Rise, NSU Keeps Its Cool