by Shane Henson — November 7, 2011—The University of Central Florida (UCF) proved itself to be an energy-saving champion through winning the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 2011 Energy Star National Building Competition: Battle of the Buildings.
In its second year, the competition featured teams from 245 buildings across the country in a head-to-head battle to save energy, reduce costs, and protect people’s health and the environment. UCF’s winning building was a parking garage on the university’s main campus, where energy use was decreased by 63.2%.
The energy efficiency improvements achieved by UCF demonstrate that significant opportunities exist to save energy even in buildings that are not typically associated with sizeable energy use. Lighting accounts for the majority of energy consumed by an above-ground parking structure, therefore UCF focused their efforts to improve the quality and efficiency of the garage lighting. Improvements included upgrading the main garage to high performance T-5 fluorescent lights, retrofitting the top deck with light emitting diode (LEDs) fixtures, and adding motion sensors in the storage areas. In addition to cutting their energy use by 63%, UCF reduced their lighting bill for the parking garage by more than half due to improvements made during the competition. UCF is now spreading their successful strategies, as well as savings, to other buildings across the campus.
Other institutions, businesses, and organizations who participated in the competition also dramatically decreased their buildings’ energy use while educating others in the process. From improvements in operations and maintenance to upgrades in equipment and technology, the competitors saved a combined total of more than 240 million kBtus of energy and $5.2 million on utility bills annually. Competitors reduced annual greenhouse gas emissions equal to the electricity used by more than 3,600 homes. In addition to UCF, the top overall finishers and their percent-based reductions in energy use are:
- Twinsburg High School and Sports Complex, Twinsburg, OH—46.3%
- Polaris Career Center, Middleburg Heights, OH—43.4%
- Hartman Elementary School, Wylie, TX—43.2%
- Scientific Instruments, West Palm Beach, FL—42.2%
- Fannie Mae Office Building, 3939 Wisconsin Ave., Washington, DC—34.6%
- Office Depot, Plano, TX—34.1%
- North Suburban Medical Office Building, Thornton, CO—33.7%
- Office Depot, Raleigh, NC—33.1%
- Kokomo High School, Kokomo, IN—32.3%
