Regents approve construction of new central plant on Stillwater campus and additional projects

Friday, January 23, 2015

The OSU/A&M Board of Regents today selected Flintco of Tulsa to serve as the construction manager for a new central thermal plant and associated distribution facility on the OSU Stillwater campus.  

The new facility will replace the current power plant, which was built in 1948 and cannot meet the needs of the growing campus.

“The Power Plant has served the Stillwater campus well for more than 65 years,” said James Rosner, Director of Utilities and Energy Management. “The World War II era equipment currently in use is less reliable and not as energy efficient as today’s high efficiency boilers and chillers planned for the new plant.”

The current project plan calls for the new facility to be built along Washington Street just east of the Monroe Street Parking Garage a few blocks north of the existing Power Plant. The university expects to break ground on the project by fall.

Rosner says that location will be the most cost effective way of replacing the facility.  

“Replacing the plant in the current location is cost prohibitive,” said Rosner. “The plan is to build the new facility and then connect the necessary chilled water, steam and electrical piping and distribution systems that support every building on the Stillwater campus.”

The estimated cost of the new plant is $75 million and will be funded through ongoing utility operations. The new facility will provide the steam and chilled water necessary to heat and cool the Stillwater campus. The facility will not produce electricity. The Cowboy Windfarm has supplied 70 percent of the power to campus since 2013 and the remaining electricity is supplied from conventional power sources.

In other action, members of the Board of Regents approved the bid process to begin to select architects and construction managers for two other projects on the Stillwater campus: expansion of the Fire Protection Publications Office (FPP) and renovation of the Dairy Center.

The expansion of the FPP in the College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology is necessary to allow room for needed staff consolidation and future growth.  The estimated cost of this project is between $2 and $2.5 million.

The $1.75 to $2.2 million renovation of the Dairy Center is being partially paid for through a $2 million gift from the Ferguson Family Foundation.  Currently the Dairy Center is located in the 1948 Dairy Barn last updated in 1987.  The renovations will give OSU a competitive edge in the dairy industry and include an improved free-stall barn and modernized dormitory for live-in students who care for the herd.

RENDERING: https://www.flickr.com/photos/ostatenews/sets/72157650433883811/

View other OSU/A&M Regents actions:
OSU/A&M Regents approve personnel actions