A day in the life of an energy manager

Friday, April 18, 2008

(April 18, 2008   Stillwater, OK) - With a diverse set of buildings and facilities across the OSU campuses, the energy managers are required to continually re-assess energy needs. The following is a look at a day in the life of OSU energy manager Patrick Wheeler, one of five energy managers for the Stillwater campus.

Wednesday:

4:45 a.m. – Arrive at office. Check Oklahoma Mesonet for accurate outside temperatures and humidity, and write down weather information on audit forms. Begin unoccupied energy audits within facilities.

5:00 - Morrill Hall. Take stairs to top floor and work down, checking classrooms for lights left on overnight. Check offices for computers, monitors, speakers, printers, etc., left on. Find only three computers left on in fourth floor graduate student offices, much better than previous week of finding 12 computers left on.

5:20 - For the umpteenth time, find the same projector left on again in 102 Morrill, illuminating a blank screen. Shut off projector. Check mechanical room to ensure air handler is off until 6 a.m. as scheduled.

5:30 - Leave copy of audit form on administrative assistant’s desk.

5:35 – Bartlett Center. Check mechanical room and find steam/condensate pump leaking steady drip. Make note on audit form to contact Power Plant for repair.

5:45 - Take stairs to top floor and work down. Find lights on and one open window in fourth floor computer lab. Seven of 20 computers in third floor computer lab are not in sleep mode. Make note to email IT department about enabling sleep mode after 15 minutes.

6:00 - Unintentionally startle student wearing iPod working in oil painting studio. Briefly discuss legitimacy of Baroque period vs. Roman Catholic influence. While explaining presence as energy manager for facilities, ask student to make a difference by shutting off his computer, monitors, speakers, printers, etc., when leaving for class or going home for the weekend. Ask student to please turn off lights when leaving.

6:15 - Stop briefly to record space temperature in Gardiner Art gallery with temp gun while appreciating “America 101” exhibit. Leave copy of audit form on administrative assistant’s desk.

6:30 - OSU Library. Climb stairs and check mechanical room on fifth floor to ensure air handler serving the bell tower is off per time of day schedule agreed upon with library administration. Work down floor by floor. All lights and computers are off, thanks to library administration’s own aggressive energy conservation campaign.

7:30 – Enter library basement. All lights off.  Check mechanical rooms to ensure air handlers are off as scheduled. Make way back up to library office to leave audit form.

7:45 - Work in office answering email, filing audit forms. Review Athletic Center time of day schedules. Thank Gallagher-Iba staff for keeping hallways to safe passage/egress lighting and unnecessary air handlers off during the day. Begin inputting facilities utility usage and meter readings into database for cost avoidance/savings progress over last month.

9:00 - Attend weekly meeting with other energy managers. Discuss upcoming Earth Day plans and develop opportunities/plans to shut down and manage vacant apartments for summer conservation following students’ departure.

10:00 - Return to office, log on to SIS and pull up summer class schedules. Work on strategic plans for time-of-day scheduling of facilities’ HVAC systems during summer semester/sessions. Continue inputting utility usage/meter readings into database.

12:00 p.m. - Lunch.

1:00 - Conduct occupied energy audits in Physical Science and Life Science East. Take stairs to fifth floor and check for empty classrooms with lights left on and/or windows open. Check all mechanical rooms. On first floor, find two unoccupied classrooms with lights left on. Post reminder note on classroom door, light switch and podium for instructors to turn off lights after class.

2:00 - Walk to Colvin Center to discuss with facilities manager past and upcoming seasonal indoor and outdoor pool maintenance. Discuss facilities control of humidity to maintain integrity of the many different surfaces within the Colvin Center.

3:00 - Attend custodial safety meeting to address new and current custodians on energy conservation practices. Thank custodial staff for shutting off lights when instructors forget and closing windows left open.

4:00 - Return to office. Continue with summer schedules. Gather 12 Hobo data loggers to place in University Health Services after hours and set “launch” time at 6 p.m. Leave campus to attend to family errands.

5:45 – Return to campus. Walk to University Health Services to audit facility and set out loggers in offices and waiting rooms. Will take temperature, humidity and dew point readings over a three-day period to capture indoor environmental conditions. Information will be used to assess how humidity acts within facility once air handlers cycle off, and if outside humidity affects inside environment.

7:00 - Finish setting out loggers. Chat with night custodian, who informs of weather stripping in need of repair at base of north entry door. Note on audit form for Physical Plant to replace. Make way down to mechanical room and see two of the three air handlers shut off as scheduled. Third air handler, which also serves the pharmacy, is required to remain on 24/7 due to sensitive, expensive pharmaceuticals.

7:15 - Make way back to office. Fill out time sheet. Practicing what I preach  and log off and turn off my computer, monitor, speakers and printer. Head home.