Retrofitting the campus with Rooftop Solar - Final step
Associated Project(s):
Attached Files:
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Projects Updates for place: Physical Plant Service Building
March 2017 Sustainability Council Recommendations Approved
Associated Project(s):Interim Provost Wilkin, on behalf of Chancellor Jones, approved moving forward with the recommendations discussed at the March 2017 Sustainability Council meeting. See attached file.
See iWG follow-up on the March 2017 Sustainability Council meeting here.
See Transmittal of EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards here.
See iWG Assessment for SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standard here.
See SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards here.
See Transmittal of EGen003 PPA term to the Sustainability Council here.
See iWG Assessment of EGen003 PPA Term here.
See SWATeam recommendation EGen003 PPA Term here.
See Transmittal of ECONS003 Conservation Budget to the Provost Office here.
See iWG Assessment of ECONS003 Conservation Budget here.
See SWATeam Recommendation of ECONS003 Conservation Budget here.
Attached Files:Revolving Loan Fund projects approved
Associated Project(s):The Revolving Loan Fund selection committee has approved funding for all the viable RLF projects. See attached image for list.
March 2017 Sustainability Council Recommendations & Next Steps
Associated Project(s):Director of iSEE, Evan DeLucia, summarized three recommendations presented at the March 2017 Sustainability Council meeting: EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standard, EGen003 Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) Timeline, and ECons003 Conservation Budget, as well as the next steps, for Chancellor Jones’ approval.
We followed up with the Sustainability Council on April 25, 2017, with the attached file.
See Transmittal of EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards here.
See iWG Assessment for SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standard here.
See SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards here.
See Transmittal of EGen003 PPA term to the Sustainability Council here.
See iWG Assessment of EGen003 PPA Term here.
See SWATeam recommendation EGen003 PPA Term here.
See Transmittal of ECONS003 Conservation Budget to the Provost Office
See iWG Assessment of ECONS003 Conservation Budget
ee SWATeam Recommendation of ECONS003 Conservation Budget
Attached Files:Weekly Update
Associated Project(s):All, Happy Monday! Last week was a steady busy one. We routinely had peaks of busyness and fallow valleys. We had 97 visitors through the doors, including staff. We grossed $951.50. We sold two bikes for $335; one build-a-bike for $61; and 4 memberships for $120.
Overall, last week I was met with a little more enthusiasm for the space than I regularly receive upon explaining the cost structure and mission of the CBC to new visitors. That was nice. Our for-sale bike count after last week sits at 14 for-sale bikes. I keep trying to grow that number up into the 20s but people keep buying them. That’s not a bad thing, I suppose.
Additionally, the two Departmental Share bikes need parts that are on-order so that project will be delayed, unfortunately.
Our numbers for B-a-Bs last year was quite low and as such I will begin photographing—with permission—all those who complete build-a-bikes and posting them on social media, which will serve two important functions: advertising for CBC and its most education-intensive program; and having a picture of owner and bicycle in the event of a stolen or lost bike.
This week I am going to cull a few more unbuiildable bikes from the pile and concentrate heavily on ramping up the for-sale numbers since this week of cold, snowy weather should keep the shoppers at bay. I will additionally focus on drop-bar bicycles, since I’ve noticed people requesting and looking for those more than the about-town cruisers and flat-bar bikes we have for sale, irrespective of how well-suited they are to campus riding.Sincerely,
Jake Benjamin
Campus Bike Center Manager
EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards recommendation - Transmittal
Associated Project(s):Following the completion of iWG assessment, the SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards was transmitted to the Sustainability Council on March 6, 2017.
See iWG Assessment for SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standard here.
See SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards here.
EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards recommendation - Assessment with all comments
Associated Project(s):The iCAP Working Group (iWG) met on February 23, 2017, to discuss the SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards. The official recommendation from the iWG was:
"Rooftop solar should be included in the Facility Standards, with guidance developed by F&S staff, in order to maximize the effectiveness of solar installations. This should apply to new construction, major renovations, and roof improvement projects. Project scopes should include rooftop solar, as applicable, based on the guidance to be developed according to roof orientation, nearby shading, potential solar capacity, and roof construction type (e.g., gypsum would be an inappropriate roof decking for retrofitting with solar PVs). Exceptions should require a variance during the capital design review process."
See attached the assessment form complete with official comments from all the iWG members.
See SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards here.
Attached Files:iWG meeting agenda February 23, 2017
Associated Project(s):see file
Attached Files:iWG meeting minutes February 23, 2017
Associated Project(s):see file
Attached Files:EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards recommendation - Submittal
Associated Project(s):The eGen SWATeam submitted a recommendation to the iWG stating, "Incorporate a building design standard into the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Facilities Standards that requires all new buildings on-campus to include a rooftop solar array covering the majority of rooftop surface area."
See attached the SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards complete with comments from all the eGen SWATeam members.
Attached Files:special vote requested
Associated Project(s):Revolving Loan Fund Selection Committee,
The time is almost here to select another round of projects for the Revolving Loan Fund. For this upcoming selection we have approximately $1,000,000 to allocate. However, due to a timing issue I am appealing to the committee to decide on a Retro-Commissioning project in advance of the formal selection meeting. The reason for requesting Retro-Commissioning at Memorial Stadium early is due to a deadline associated with the availability of DCEO grant dollars. If expenditures and savings are realized prior to May 31, 2017, DIA could receive $100,000 in grant money from DCEO. Our meeting for project selection is targeted for the first week of May 2017 which does not give us enough time to qualify for the grant.
Below is project specific information that would normally be presented at the project selection meeting. We don’t necessarily need to score this project, all we need is a majority decision (yes or no) to approve this project. If accepted, the committee would be considering $800,000 for allocation at the targeted May selection meeting.
Project Name: Memorial Stadium Retro-Commissioning
Project type: Retro-Commissioning
Buildings: Memorial Stadium
Energy Cost Savings: $300,000 /year
Funding Request: $200,000
Project Cost: $500,000 (DIA will contribute $200,000 and DCEO grant contribution will be $100,000)
Payback Period: Approximately 2 Years
General Description of Work:
Provide temperature control upgrades & retro-commissioning services for the west and north portions of the stadium. During preliminary work, many noteworthy items have been identified. Several HVAC equipment scheduling improvements have been made already.
Project Owners: Brett Stillwell (Athletics) / Karl Helmink (F&S)
Project Execution Contact: Brett Stillwell (Athletics) / Karl Helmink (F&S)
Criteria:
1- Payback Period: The payback period is approximately 2 years.
2- Reduction of Greenhouse Gas: Greenhouse gases will be reduced by 3,491,227 lbs due to conservation of electricity, chilled water, and steam.
3- Fund Size Impact: While grant dollars are available for this particular submission, the grant will not be used to increase the Revolving Loan Fund balance.
4- Visibility: Memorial Stadium is an iconic building for Athletics on campus. The energy savings could be indirectly visible in that it could pay for other items that Athletics desires. There is a large amount of diversity in the usage of the space.
5- Project Coordination: Coordination items need to be considered as the south end zone & east grandstand project approaches. There are temporary plans to be considered prior to the arrival of this particular project.
Other Pertinent Information:
It is proposed that Athletics provide $200k for this project. Eileen Westervelt, via DCEO funding, has provided a building energy study which has identified large energy savings in this building of over $300,000 per year. It is suggested that to secure the $100K DCEO grant, $150K needs to be spent by May 31, 2017 and evidence will need to be presented that the indicated energy is being saved.
The campus has realized a significant amount of utility savings due to the efforts made by the Retro-Commissioning teams and the expectation would be no different at Memorial Stadium. The data the Retro-Commissioning group has provided for this application predicts a very positive outcome which is consistent with most of their projects throughout campus.
The reason for the expedited decision is to take advantage of the possible DCEO funds that will likely not be available in the future. Thanks again for your participation in this selection process and please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.
I ask that you please reply with your individual yes or no votes before February 10, 2017.
Thanks again,
Josh Whitson
RLF projects approved
Associated Project(s):There were nine projects approved by the Revolving Loan Fund selection committee, see attached image.
Attached Files:EGEN SWATeam Meeting (1.20.17)
Associated Project(s):The EGEN SWATeam held their first meeting for the Spring 2017 semester. Topics covered include:
- Review draft recommendations for 1) on-campus solar and 2) petascale offsets
- An update from Morgan Johnston on the Associate Director of Campus Sustainability position
- Updating iCAP portal project pages for EGEN objectives
- Clean Energy PPA
- Potential for future solar farm
- Asking for feedback from EGEN team members regarding recommendation proces
Attached Files:Final Report by Logan Ebling
Associated Project(s):Logan’s final paper. Pretty fun.
Highlights:
- “[Bicycle fleets] promotes positive social interactions.”
- “..I think most of these worries go away [about bike fleets]… one issue that I saw coming up almost every time a discussion …was money. While totally understandable, it is also frustrating that there is a lack of desire to spend even a low amount of money to purchase one bicycle for employee use.”
- “…If they [departments] truly don’t have the money to spend, then perhaps the University as a whole should be assigning a sustainability budget specifically to each department that they can spend at their discretion in the name of sustainability.”
- “Bicycling on campus is the fastest mode of transportation; however, that would not be the case if the bikes are not located conveniently right outside your door or at least at a building next door. For bike sharing dock-style to match the convenience of a dedicated bicycle at the department’s building, the docks would have to be ubiquitous across campus, quite literally outside every building. Financially and logistically, I don’t think that is possible. To me, departmental bicycle fleets would be entirely more convenient for staff needing to get around campus quickly and efficiently.”
And, lastly, “In my opinion, the benefits are so numerous [for bike fleets] that the University should be aggressively funding and initiating bicycle fleets on campus.”
~per Lily Wilcock
Attached Files:EGEN SWATeam Meeting (12.2.16)
Associated Project(s):The EGEN SWATeam held their final meeting for the Fall 2016 semester. Topics covered include:
- Guest presentation by Niharika Kishore regarding rooftop solar on campus
- Potential recommendations to Working Group
- Potential solar: greenspace vs. rooftop vs. parking lot cover
Attached Files:Update as of 11/16/16
Associated Project(s):The past couple weeks have been productive and busy. Follow up emails were sent to those people who filled out our enrollment form but did not reply back after the initial email and already some good responses have come of that. A couple people said they misunderstood and didn't realize that their department would have to purchase the bicycles so they said they weren't interested. A couple said they received the info and were talking to the appropriate people within their departments. A couple others had meetings setup with myself due to the follow up emails.
This week I met with Illini Emergency Medical Services who have a bicycle fleet that they use during University events to ensure rapid medical response times. We discussed what was going well for them and what could be improved. They said they would like more publicity so I said that they should absolutely try and get the word out more about their efforts.
This week I also met with the Student Planning Organization, the RSO that manages Urban Planning department bicycle fleet. They have 3 bikes that I got to see. We discussed the potential of encouraging more faculty and visiting people's use of the bikes as well as branding for their bikes in an attempt to differentiate them from private bikes.
I have also been working on an infographic on "Why Bikes" that details the benefits of cycling on campus. I am hoping this can be passed around with other bicycle fleet documentation we send out. There are a couple drafts still and they are attached to this update as a private file.
EGEN SWATeam Meeting (11.9.16)
Associated Project(s):The EGEN SWATeam held their fourth meeting for the Fall 2016 semester. Topics covered include:
- Guest presentation by Yu-Feng Forrest Lin to discuss his work on investigating campus geothermal properties
- View draft recommendation for Petascale offsets
- Review draft recommendation for on-campus solar
Attached Files:Analysis of Existing Bicycle Fleet Survey Responses
Associated Project(s):After receiving responses from four different active bicycle fleets on campus after about 3 weeks of having our survey active, we wrote up an analysis of the responses. This analysis is attached to this post as a .pdf file.
This past week we continued reaching out to people that we have either met in person about potentially starting bicycle fleets on campus. Doug Wolters, Director of Operations for ACES, was able to reach out to the business managers of ACES to share information that we sent him. I also sent emails to a couple people that took our survey requesting a short meeting so we can further discuss their program's success as well as any ways we can improve their bicycle fleets.
Attached Files:Update on Bicycle Fleet Progress from August to October 2016
Associated Project(s):Here is an update of what Lily Wilcock and myself (Logan Ebeling) have accomplished concerning departmental bicycle fleets on campus from late August to late October.
We began with a goal of assessing the health and status of current departmental bicycle fleets on campus. Offhand, Lily knew of the following programs:
- Kinesiology department
- Living Learning Community in LAR
- Urban Planning department
- Building Operations and Maintenance
- Center for Innovation in Teaching and Learning
In an attempt to reach out to those programs and other ones that we potentially did not know about, we developed a survey for people involved with those programs to take. A link to that survey was sent out in an E-Week advertisement on October 2nd. A screenshot of that blurb in the E-Week is attached to this post. We are still waiting on responses from that survey (so far we have about 3 responses).
Another goal was to advertise to departments that starting a bicycle fleet was even a possibility. Anecdotally, it seems that many people are unaware that the University is encouraging bicycle use for employees. To address this, we developed a short enrollment form that people could fill out if they wanted more information on starting a departmental bicycle fleet. A link to this enrollment form was also sent out in the October 2nd E-Week advertisement. We had around 10 replies to this enrollment form and sent out an email to the respondents with more information and an offer to meet and discuss possibilities for a bicycle fleet for their department.
One goal of mine was to develop two checklists to have available to people to aid in sending out information to people. These two checklists are completed and we have been sending them out to people where appropriate. The two checklists are attached to this post and they are:
- A checklist for maintaining existing bicycle fleets
- A checklist for starting a bicycle fleet
These checklists drew heavily off of information in the Departmental Bike Sharing Manual from 2014 (attached to this project's main page).
EGEN SWATeam Meeting notes (10.12.16)
Associated Project(s):The EGEN SWATeam held their third meeting for the Fall 2016 semester. Topics covered include:
- Development of formal SWATeam recommendatino to the working group regarding offsets for Petascale
- RECs - does this get us to our goal?
- Potential recommendations for rooftop solar
Attached Files:
