News/Press

Sunday, January 30, 2007 By HERB WOERPEL A partnership between Energy Education Inc. and Byron Center Public Schools has saved the district over $200,000 in energy costs over the last 16 months. Between August 2005 and November 2006, the Byron Center School district is expected to spend $1,323,599 on energy costs. With the help of Energy Education, they actually spent $1,114,764, saving $208,835. Through the program's 10-year duration, the district could save up to $2 million. "Energy Education Inc. appoints an expert that works with us to put policies and procedures into place that helps us become more efficient," said Director of Facilities and Technology Bob Bird. "They work with us to help us better control our heating and air conditioning and teach us how to make more efficient use of our lighting services. It helps us work with people and resident staff to change some of their behaviors." Energy Education Inc. develops and implements customized energy conservation programs that enable educational institutions and large churches to preserve energy dollars for educational opportunities and resources. "They gave us advice on how to better manage computers which control our heating, cooling and lighting. It is as simple as making recommendations on how to turn off all computers at night and that is something that we didn't do before," Bird said. "We've always heard that if you are gonna be out of the room for only a few moments, don't turn the lights off, but that is not the case anymore. If the room is not occupied, it is best to turn the lights off." The money saved will be deposited into the district's general fund and will help with student's educational expenses. The program costs $65,000 a year for the first five years to start, but school board officials have already received a profitable return. "We had to pay a contractual fee with Energy Education Inc. to start the program. Through this fee, Energy Education guarantees that the energy savings will exceed the fees and costs that we pay them," Bird said. "At the end of the five year period, we will continue to get their support. At that point we will experience a 100 percent savings." The program's success balances on the teamwork of all district personnel, on-site training, comprehensive facility audits and expert identification of energy conservation opportunities throughout district facilities. "When I was a superintendent and looked at Energy Education, I kept looking for a hook in their program," said Dr. Paul Houston, Executive Director of the American Association of School Administrators. "We didn't really know what to do and didn't have the discipline to do it. There's nothing wrong with somebody coming in and saying, In this particular area, we've studied this a lot longer and harder than you have the time to do.' It's a win-win situation all the way around."   ©2007 Advance Newspapers © 2007 Michigan Live. All Rights Reserved.