The Challenge
Howard University, one of the area's largest academic institutions in the Washington, DC area was in the middle of evaluating their annual operating budget when they realized an enormous amount of money was spent on utility expenses. Like most institutions, Howard struggled with tight budgets and increasingly inefficient facilities that are costly to operate and maintain. Over the years, university expansions had created a wide variety of maintenance problems at different facilities throughout the campus. Virtually all buildings and housing units were constructed at different times in the university's history, creating enormous maintenance and repair challenges. They needed an energy solution to reduce annual fuel expenditures campus-wide, but with minimum impact on the day-to-day university operations. Howard's Facilities Managers soon realized that they needed the insight and guidance of Pepco Energy's experts to assess their current system and make recommendations for the best possible solution.

The Solution

Pepco Energy Services recommended a major infrastructure overhaul of the university's heating, ventilation and air conditioning system in five buildings, replacement of several chiller units and a special financing plan to minimize capital investment.

Pepco engineers conducted an exhaustive evaluation of all campus facilities, including the university's main water plant, chillers, condensers, cooling tower and the air handling units. During the assessment, engineers discovered that most of the HVAC equipment did not meet code requirements for ventilation and that in some instances, previous repairs had rendered some units completely inoperable. In addition, years of neglect made it more difficult and more expensive to operate failing equipment. With the recommended changes in place, students could continue to learn in a comfortable, high quality environment and Howard University saved significant dollars in the process.

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