By Craig Hannah, PE and LEED® Green Associate, Johnson Controls
It’s tough to be in local government today. Those in public utilities have the responsibility of providing clean, safe drinking water—and possibly reliable natural gas and electrical service, too—at very affordable rates. The citizens demand that their utility bills be accurate and on time, and there had better be a friendly, knowledgeable, and compassionate person to talk to at the billing office!
The bad economy, however, has caused many cities to severely cut expenditures. The pool of skilled, experienced utility workers seems to be retiring in droves. The water and wastewater distribution systems are in dire need of repair or replacement but there are no funds available. The poor economy also renders traditional funding methods, such as raising taxes and user fees, increasing utility rates, or selling revenue bonds politically unacceptable.
Many cities are choosing performance contracting as a way of funding infrastructure improvements. While the enabling legislation varies by state, performance contracting basically provides a way for governmental entities to implement resource efficiency improvements with minimal initial investment. The benefits from reducing utility expenditures, from increasing billable consumption, and from reducing operations and maintenance expenses are used to fund the project over time. The performance contract provider must financially guarantee that the calculated benefits will be realized, and the benefits must be measured and verified according to recognized standards.
Performance contracting has proven to be an ideal way to fund water loss optimization projects. Some commonly implemented measures include: automated leak detection systems, pressure management projects, transient pressure analysis, SCADA system enhancements, AMR/AMI system installation, and water meter typing, repair and replacement. Performance contracting is not limited to the water utility, and the enabling legislation also allows local governments to fund such things as renewable energy technologies, energy conservation measures, and improvements to the building envelope.
Olathe, Kansas City Hall
One such innovative leader who rose to meet the challenges is the City of Olathe, Kansas. Last year, the city selected Johnson Controls to develop and implement a fully self-funded performance contract that would conserve energy, reduce apparent water loss, increase billable water usage, install a state-of-the-art Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) system for the water utility, and provide for renewable energy. Olathe is the first city in Kansas to undertake a large-scale energy efficiency project under the Kansas Facility Conservation Improvement Program (FCIP).
The scope of work for this pioneering project included replacing inefficient pump motors, installing variable frequency drives (VFD’S) to select pump motors, and installing energy-efficient heating systems. Most all city facilities received new building control systems, a lighting retrofit, and a re-commissioning of existing building systems. Johnson Controls also installed a solar hot water heater for the car wash at the city garage, and the city’s welding shop will now stay warm thanks to a heater that burns waste oil.
The city will further benefit from a comprehensive program that reduces nonrevenue water loss by improving the accuracy of all water meters. The program also provides each customer with the correct type of water meter for the application. Meter inaccuracies currently cost the city approximately $240,000 annually. Both customers and the city will benefit greatly from the AMI system, which provides the utility with hourly consumption data and provides customer-side leak detection. Lastly, Johnson Controls negotiated an interruptible electric rate program that is guaranteed to save the city nearly $70,000 annually. The total guaranteed annual savings for the project exceeded $1.15 million, and the project will pay for itself in less than twelve years.
Olathe, Kansas Municipal Services Center
Merv Gleason, deputy director of the municipal services department, commented that now “was a good time to take on the project because it aligns with one of the City Council’s priorities [of] making Olathe economically stable through energy efficiencies.”
I look at Olathe and I see a role model for communities that need to improve services to citizens, eliminate waste, repair deteriorating infrastructure and improve their efficiency – but, in this challenging economic climate, must do so in a fiscally responsible way.
What do you see? How are your challenges similar to – or different from – Olathe’s? How are you coping?
Waste removal is a worldwide foremost matter of interest . Rubbish disposed improperly is one of the contended reasons of Global Warming. Government agencies and other institutions have been researching and implementing ways on the proper disposal of rubbish. Anywhere garbage can be found even inside our homes . Thus, if there is a place where proper disposal should start, it is inside our houses and residences . Garbage are classified either as biodegradable or non-biodegradable.