Energy Infrastructure & Efficiency Fund

OOS partnered with the Department of Public Health to purchase and install hydration stations in City buildings, focusing specifically on designated cooling center locations. This pilot program was geared towards:

• Improving:
  • Access to tap water
  • Appeal of tap water
  • Hydration and personal well-being
• Lowering:
  • Purchasing of bottled water
  • Use of plastic bottles
  • Carbon emissions

Before this program, the City sought to learn about the effects of hydration stations. To do this, the Department of Public Health and Philadelphia Parks & Recreation performed a  hydration study . This study assessed the impact of improving tap water access and appeal in recreation centers. They found people drank double the amount of water after installing hydration stations. These stations also reduce departmental maintenance issues compared to traditional water fountains.

"Philadelphia has great tap water - we need to make sure all Philadelphians have appealing access to it: at home, at work or school, and in public." - Mica Root, Philadelphia Department of Public Health

You can visit  PHLASK's website  to find the list of accessible places to fill water bottles.

The African American Museum in Philadelphia (AAMP) was opened in 1976 and was built to honor the heritage of African Americans. As the first municipally funded and constructed museum of its kind, the AAMP is a unique and valuable cultural and historic resource of Philadelphia.

To increase occupancy comfort and energy efficiency, the African American Museum in Philadelphia had renovations completed in March of 2021.

"Tremendous job done by the workers - it's night and day. It's so much brighter and has a happier feeling." - Kirk Dorset, Facility Manager

The infrastructural updates included:

BAS is made up of software and hardware installed to manage and control electrical and mechanical building systems such as heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC), lighting, and security. The BAS in the museum allows for more efficient use of energy and a resulting lower cost by monitoring the energy consumption. In fact, estimated potential savings are about $6,724 annually.

This update offered unique renovations that allowed for the temperature and humidity to be adjusted for the special requirements of the art storage area.

Thanks to PECO’s Direct Install program, lighting in the gallery and auditorium of the building was converted to LEDs, which use less energy and last longer, thereby saving money. The windows in the museum have also been renovated to include glazing that helps reduce the summertime heat in the building and protects the museum’s art from ultraviolet (UV) rays.

The improvements made to the museum have helped preserve the building that houses such rich and important stories. Facility Manager Kirk Dorset says the improvements to the HVAC system were the first since the building opened almost 50 years ago.

“When you turn on the AC unit, you feel a better cool breeze coming through. It's protecting the artwork better now that everything’s been changed over.” - Kirk Dorset, Facility Manager

Kirk added that the lighting updates have made a big impact on staff members of the museum, who have said the space is now much brighter and more comfortable.

“The lighting update is a tremendous difference from what it used to be; even the staff have noticed how bright the administrative floor is compared to what is used to be. It's a big difference throughout the museum. Also, with the auditorium the new LED lights that we put in you get a nice warm feeling of the auditorium.” - Kirk Dorset, Facility Manager

To learn more about the AAMP visit  https://www.aampmuseum.org/ .

The Philadelphia Fire Department’s Fire Administration Building (FAB), a 3-story, 48,000-square-foot facility built in 1975, received a holistic energy efficiency retrofit, funded both by the EIEF and the Department of Public Property. With an  ENERGY STAR  score of 20 prior to the improvements, it became clear that this critical facility was in need of investment not only to its energy performance, but also long-term occupancy comfort and well-being. Completed in 2021, this project tackled a plethora of needed HVAC upgrades and lighting improvements, as well as upgrades to the existing water pump system and water fountains. The building's ENERGY STAR score increased nearly 40 points after construction as a result of the retrofit project.

• Improved efficiency - The new cooling tower, chiller, boiler, hot-water heater, and air handlers installed will reduce energy use and demand, contributing to lower energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions.
• Better operational control - The new controls systems, which include variable frequency drives (VFDs), will ensure that HVAC equipment is being used strategically and only as needed.
• Improved indoor air quality and occupant comfort - The new air cleaners, along with the other HVAC upgrades, will provide improved occupant comfort, indoor air quality, and productivity.

733 total interior and exterior LED lighting fixtures were installed, delivering an estimated 140,000 kWh in energy savings per year and an estimated payback period of only 5 years.

The failing domestic water pump booster system, responsible for maintaining desired water pressure levels throughout the building’s fixtures and faucets, was replaced with a new booster pump system. Additionally, three existing water fountains were replaced with two new hydration stations on the most populated floor of the building.

As mentioned above, building automation systems (BAS), a software that controls heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment, provide opportunities for increased occupant comfort and operational energy savings. The Stout Center for Criminal Justice (SCCJ), one of the City’s three largest downtown buildings, received critical upgrades to its BAS in 2015 as part of a larger-scale energy efficiency and HVAC improvement project. The upgrade to the BAS operating system allows building operators the ability to more accurately measure the performance of the building’s HVAC systems and make needed adjustments in real time.

Building off of the upgrade done in 2015, ongoing work aims to optimize the performance of the chiller plant serving SCCJ, City Hall, and the Municipal Services Building. As planned equipment upgrades are implemented in the plant and along the chilled loop, such as the addition of variable-frequency drives (VFDs) and economizers, the BAS will continue to serve as a critical central hub for monitoring and controlling all parts of the complex system, both large and small.

SCCJ, along with the City's other downtown buildings, is also a part of the City’s Building Monitoring Program (BMP). The BMP is a program run by the Municipal Energy Office that aims to expand and enhance the use of building automation systems in City-owned buildings while identifying operational improvements for facilities using data collected from the facilities' BASs. This BAS upgrade supports BMP goals to standardize and centralize the City’s BASs to open-framework platforms and achieve energy and cost savings.