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Project Updates for collection: 2010 iCAP Projects

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  1. The Impact of School Buildings on Student Health and Performance: A Call for Research

    Associated Project(s): 
    Facility Standards

    In "The Impact of School Buildings on Student Health and Performance: A Call for Research" by Lindsay Baker and Harvey Bernstein (2012), authors note research results and needs about green schools.

    What do we know today?   In some areas, we have strong evidence to support the notion that school buildings impact student health and their ability to learn, and we know exactly how to ensure that the impacts are positive. For example, we know how to build classrooms that minimize background noise and allow voices to be heard clearly, which will allow students to hear their teachers and protect their aural health. We have clear evidence that certain aspects of school buildings have an impact on student health and learning, such as:

    • When deprived of natural light, studies have shown that children’s melatonin cycles are disrupted, thus likely having an impact on their alertness during school (Figueiro & Rea, 2010).
    • Teachers report higher levels of comfort in their classrooms when they have access to thermal controls like thermostats or operable windows (Heschong, 2003, and Lackney, 2001).
    • According to researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories, when ventilation rates are at or below minimum standards (roughly 15 cfm per student), an associated decrease of 5%–10% occurs in certain aspects of student performance tests (LBNL IAQ Resource Bank).
    • In recent studies, when ventilation rates were lowered from 17 cfm/person to 10 cfm/person researchers saw a 15% increase in symptom prevalence for Sick Building Syndrome (ibid).

    What do we need to find out?   While there have been studies on the impact of environments on children—and the benefits of green buildings more broadly—more research is needed. Some of the larger research questions are:

    • When prioritization is necessary, which building projects can be expected to have larger impacts on facility quality and student health?
    • What are the impacts of high-performance school buildings, above and beyond an adequate (and potentially new) school building?
    • How do high-performance design features interact with each other? Relationships such as those between daylighting and acoustical design are understood less in terms of how they interact than in isolation.

  2. How to Make Your Campus Green presentations

    Associated Project(s): 
    Sustainability Engagement and Outreach

    Morgan Johnston met with a delegation from Mumbai, India, to tell them how we are making our campus more sustainable. 

    Jack Dempsey has been asked to speak to two different delegations this June about the same topic.    The first group is from  a group of private universities in India, sponsored by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), and is coming on a program promoted by Pradeep Khanna and his staff in Corporate Relations.  The second group is from a group of institutions in Pakistan with whom we have had a longstanding relationship:  COMSATS Institutes of Information Technology. 

  4. NCPD conceptualization mtg

    Associated Project(s): 
    Install Solar PVs on NCPD

    Today’s meeting covered LED fixture questions and concerns:

    They presented data and layout with luminescence patterns for 2 fixtures one costing $400. 00/fixture and another $1000.00/fixture. It was mentioned that we need dimming features but no specifics on how or the criteria for that.

    Also covered were:

    • different configurations for trusses and rows of PV modules, scaffolding, and height and spacing requirements for same.
    • The module size and efficiency requirements needed to create 1600(Mwh) of power annually, along with quantities per different sq/ft
    • Drainage for the snow and rain off of the modules, along with snow removal equipment in the bay areas
    • Shading impact due to elevator towers, and overlapping rays during the winter months effecting production and how to handle these issues
    • Central inverter scheme being the most effective and the optional layouts and wiring for same.
    • DC combiner boxes layout scheme and wiring to reduce the effects of shading on power production

  7. No-Mow Signage

    Associated Project(s): 
    Sustainable Landscapes Plan

    The University campus has designated several different areas as No-Mow Zones. There is signage at these locations that explains that the area is a no-mow zone and the benefits of no-mow zones.

  9. LEED Building Signs

    Associated Project(s): 
    LEED Certification

    Each LEED certified building on campus has signage that highlights the green features of that building. All new renovation or construction provides signage with information about the green features.

    For example, the Business Instructional Facility (BIF) has a large electronic, interactive monitor that allows visitors to review each of the green features of the building.

  11. Racquetball Court Energy Reduction Project

    Associated Project(s): 
    Occupancy and Daylight Sensors

    Twelve racquetball and three squash courts at the Activities and Recreation Center (ARC) were retrofit with 193 fluorescent and 96 mercury vapor light fixtures. The project was funded by the Student Sustainability Committee through an interest-free loan of $75,000.

    Once the lighting retrofits were completed, occupancy sensors were installed in all 15 courts.

    The overall cost of the project ended up at $61,203.69 -- $13,796.31 less than the original quote. Campus Recreation requested that the remaining balance stay with the division and be used to further fund energy reduction projects within their facilities.

    The total average reduction in power consumption is 129,226 kWh. This is a 75.7 percent decrease in consumption, which translates to an annual savings of $9,020. The simple payback for this project is 6.78 years.

  12. RLF Occupancy Sensors FY12

    Associated Project(s): 
    Occupancy and Daylight Sensors

    Ten buildings on the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus were selected to receive RLF funding for occupancy sensors in FY12. In order from top priority to lowest priority, the buildings that received funding are Gregory Hall, the Foreign Languages Building, the Agriculture Engineering Sciences Building, Newmark Laboratory, the Rehabilitation Education Center, the Education Building, the Law Building, the Water Survey Buildings, Noyes Laboratory, and Freer Hall. The University will now proceed to implementation of occupancy sensors in all of the above buildings.

    Gregory Hall, the Foreign Languages Building, Newmark Laboratory, the Rehabilitation Education Center, Noyes Laboratory, and Freer Hall have also been selected to receive HVAC occupancy sensors.

  14. Illinois Business Consulting report - economic analysis

    Associated Project(s): 
    Biomass co-firing pilot at Abbott Power Plant

    The central question posed to Illinois Business Consulting (IBC) is as follows: what would be the economic impact of replacing 10% of the university’s coal intake with wood chips?  After extensive research, analysis, and calculation it is the opinion of IBC that the cogeneration of energy with coal and wood chips is not economically feasible.  The initiative has been deemed not economically feasible because wood chips are more expensive on the basis of energy content, transportation costs will increase due to biomass, and infrastructure modification expenses necessary for the operational changes are significant.

    Attached Files: 

  16. Illinois Business Consulting report - carbon impact

    Associated Project(s): 
    Biomass co-firing pilot at Abbott Power Plant

    In 2012, F&S hired Illinois Business Consulting to evaluate the following question for Abbott Power Plant: "Can the overall carbon footprint be decreased by using 10% of biomass in place of 10% of coal?"  The report and executive summary are attached here.

    Attached Files: 

  17. Final Bike Sharing Feasibility Study Submitted to SSC

    Associated Project(s): 
    Bike Sharing Feasibility Study
    Bike Sharing

    The final report for the Bike Sharing Feasibility Study was submitted to SSC. The study recommends the following three tiered approach to bicycle sharing on the Urbana-Champaign campus: 

    1. Bikes available for employees – The small existing program at Kinesiology and Community Health should be replicated at departments throughout campus. The program needs to be approved by Legal Counsel, Risk Management, Purchasing, and interested Colleges.  Then it should be promoted to departments, to encourage them to invest in bicycles for their employees and provide them with a simple support system for maintenance and tracking.
       
    2. Bikes available for short-term rentals – As an interim solution until the campus can handle a large-scale bike sharing program, the small existing program at Campus Recreation should be expanded with support from the Student Sustainability Committee.  They should increase the number of bicycles available, make the program self-sufficient financially, and market the program to visitors, conference attendees, faculty, staff, and students. A similar program could be investigated for the Illini Union. 
       
    3. Bike solutions for students and the public – Before this campus is ready to pursue a public bike sharing system, we must first address the issues regarding degraded infrastructure and the need for more bike safety education. Once these issues have been resolved, the campus should renew consideration of several options for bike sharing, such as bicycle libraries, kiosk systems, and GPS-enabled community bikes.  

     

    Attached Files: 

  20. payments to RSOs

    Associated Project(s): 
    Weatherization of Small Campus Buildings

    From: Hanson, Claudine
    Sent: Thursday, September 20, 2012 10:10 AM
    To: Johnston, Morgan B; Beverage, McKenzie
    Cc: Jones, John D
    Subject: RE: RSO Weatherization Payments

    Here you go.

    The full CFOAP for deposits into an RSO fund is  1-90xxxx-389005-307900-199000

    The fund numbers are as follows:

    Hong Kong Student Association     901645

    Chinese Undergraduate Student Association    902108

    Horticulture Club     901887

    Students for Environmental Concerns   901758

    American Society of Civil Engineers   901270

    Let me know if you have questions.

    Claudine

     

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