https://www.americancityandcounty.com/wp-content/themes/acc_child/assets/images/logo/footer-logo.png
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcast
    • Latest videos
    • Product Guides
  • Resources & Events
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • Municipal Cost Index – Archive
    • Equipment Watch Page
    • American City & County Awards
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Statement
    • Terms of Service
American City and County
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcasts
    • Latest videos
    • Product Guides
  • Resources/Events
    • Back
    • Webinars
    • White Papers/eBooks
    • IWCE Expo
    • Calendar of Events
    • How to Contribute
    • American City & County Awards
    • Municipal Cost Index
    • Equipment Watch Page
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Stament
    • Terms of Service
  • newsletter
  • Administration
  • Economy & Finance
  • Procurement
  • Public Safety
  • Public Works & Utilities
  • Smart Cities & Technology
  • Magazine
acc.com

Smart Cities & Technology


Texas-sized energy savings in Abilene

Texas-sized energy savings in Abilene

Abilene, Texas, is implementing a second series of energy efficiency upgrades to city buildings. The project's value is more than $1 million, and will be paid for entirely with Energy Efficiency Conservation Block Grants as part of ARRA.
  • Written by Michael Keating
  • 18th December 2009

Abilene, Texas, is implementing a second series of energy efficiency upgrades to city buildings. The project’s value is more than $1 million dollars, and will be paid for entirely with Energy Efficiency Conservation Block Grants as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The facility enhancements are designed to improve operations, comfort and efficiency at 11 city buildings. In addition, project plans call for installing solar photovoltaic panels on the city’s Civic Center.

Schneider Electric, a Palatine, Ill.-based company that specializes in energy management, will complete the work under a performance contract with the city. As part of the deal, the company guarantees that Abilene will reduce its utility costs by more than $28,000 annually when the project is completed in November 2010.

Earlier this year, the company completed a $9 million performance contract for Abilene that aimed to improve operations, security and efficiency at 34 city buildings and will save the city $12 million in utility costs during the next 15 years. The second series of energy efficiency upgrades aims to provide additional efficiency and savings for the city and targets failing equipment.

“Our second performance contract with Schneider Electric will provide the city with much-needed mechanical upgrades to the heating, ventilating and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems at several of our buildings, such as the zoo and the animal control building,” said Odis Dolton, assistant director of finance for the city. “Furthermore, with the addition of solar panels at the Civic Center, the city is taking its first step into using renewable energy sources for city buildings.”

Through the performance contract, the company guarantees the amount of savings the city will achieve and agrees to pay the difference if that amount is not realized. The city may achieve long-term benefits, such as improved facility efficiency, occupant comfort, financial management and environmental protection. Typically, new, more efficient equipment and upgraded facility automation systems boost energy efficiency and generate utility savings.

Some of the energy conservation measures that the company will employ on Abilene’s second-phase project include retrofitting fixtures with LED lights, installing lighting occupancy sensors throughout primary city buildings, replacing HVAC units and installing a new cooling tower at the Civic Center facility.

“This second performance contract enables the city of Abilene to continue to achieve its facility enhancement goals, which include maximizing utility savings, standardizing equipment, reducing deferred maintenance and capital needs replacement, and implementing renewable energy,” said Shon Anderson, vice president, sales, at the Energy Solutions group of Schneider Electric. “Thanks to the government stimulus funding for this project, the city gets to meet these objectives without any additional costs to the citizens of Abilene.”

Tags: Administration News Public Works & Utilities Smart Cities & Technology

Most Recent


  • Boston pilot to support green energy retrofit of smaller, owner-occupied multi-family buildings
    With a historic amount of climate-related funding available from the federal government  through initiatives like the Inflation Reduction Act, communities across the United States are experimenting with the best ways to drive down carbon emissions. The latest pilot program in Boston, which has notably launched a number of initiatives to reduce building emissions this year, […]
  • EPA makes available $4.6B for cities, counties and Tribes to reduce climate pollution
    To combat rising climate pollution levels, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Wednesday $4.6 billion in competitive grants available to cities, counties, territories and Tribal governments. The grants, which are a part of the EPA’s $5 billion Climate Pollution Grants program, are funded through the Inflation Reduction Act. They’re intended to spark community-driven environmental solutions, […]
  • materials
    Public buyers have several options to keep problem materials out of the waste stream
    Cities and counties are taking multiple steps towards sustainability, says Curran Hughes, co-founder and president of Renegade Plastics, a fabric product manufacturer that offers an alternative to PVC (polyvinyl chloride)-coated fabrics. Its low carbon coated fabrics curtail plastic waste and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to the company. “Local governments are doing a nice job […]
  • Data modeling tool can project energy, efficiency savings for residential, commercial buildings
    Projecting the impact of a building’s transition to clean energy is a complicated process that involves complex data—one that might be difficult to translate for an audience of constituents at an annual town meeting or public forum. A new data set published by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) could help administrators better quantify the […]

Leave a comment Cancel reply

-or-

Log in with your American City and County account

Alternatively, post a comment by completing the form below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • North Texas alliance partners with Marketplace.city on smart government solutions
  • Harris County deploys next-generation security in 150 public buildings
  • Prioritizing rapid restore leads to stronger ransomware attack recovery
  • Today’s infrastructure needs greater than roads and bridges - It’s time to face our digital connectiveness

White papers


7 Resources to Level-up Your Federal Grants Administration and Compliance

5th September 2023

Elevator Phone Line Replacement Strategy | A Guide to Reliable, Code-Compliant Solutions

29th August 2023

2023 State of Public Sourcing Report: The Bright Future of Public Procurement

23rd August 2023
view all

Webinars


Grant Preparedness: Unlocking Funding Opportunities for Your Success

10th August 2023

2023 State of Public Sourcing: Taking Local Governments into a Bright Future

1st August 2023

Stop Playing with Fire: How to Manage Infrastructure Asset Risk So You Know You’re Covered

20th June 2023
view all

PODCAST


Young Leaders Episode 4 – Cyril Jefferson – City Councilman, High Point, North Carolina

13th October 2020

Young Leaders Episode 3 – Shannon Hardin – City Council President, Columbus, Ohio

27th July 2020

Young Leaders Episode 2 – Christian Williams – Development Services Planner, Goodyear, Ariz.

1st July 2020
view all

GALLERIES


Gallery: Hottest temperatures recorded in American cities during July

12th September 2023

The top 10 Asthma Capitals for 2023

7th September 2023

U.S. cities with the cleanest air from latest “State of the Air” report

5th September 2023
view all

Twitter


Newsletters

Sign up for American City & County’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about local governments.

Resale Insights Dashboard

The Resale Insights Dashboard provides model-level data for the entire used equipment market to help you save time and money.

Municipal Cost Index

Updated monthly since 1978, our exclusive Municipal Cost Index shows the effects of inflation on the cost of providing municipal services

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital audience? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • IWCE’s Urgent Communications
  • IWCE Expo

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us

FOLLOW American City and County ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2023 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.