Jim Balzer, 2004 President's Quality Service Award Winner

The continued success of UC’s utility operations has not been without its challenges this year, as a $72 million electric generation facility has been worked into the university’s existing infrastructure. What could have been a difficult time has actually served to spotlight the commitment to excellence of Jim Balzer, the chief operating engineer for UC’s Central Utility Plant.

Across university departments involved in the project and even through outside vendors, Balzer has been repeatedly praised for his flexibility and cooperation in making the startup of the new facility a success.

"This addition to the plant has been a very complicated project, made more difficult by modifying the existing plant while keeping it operational," says Peter Luken, senior project manager in UC’s Construction Management office. "Jim has dependably kept me and the project team well informed of his needs to keep the plant running. When Jim recognized that the new combustion turbines, steam turbine generators and associated auxiliaries were unfamiliar to plant personnel, he took the initiative to familiarize himself and the other operators with the equipment. Subsequently, the project’s construction has proceeded with minimal impact to the plant’s operation and the construction schedule."

Adds Thomas Bender of contractor Peck Hannaford and Briggs, "I have worked on various job sites over the last 22 years and can’t remember when I received the cooperation from the owner as we have (at UC). It is very rare that you find an individual like Jim that cares as much as he does about a plant he keeps in operation. Jim has been an invaluable asset to our company on such a complicated endeavor."

This comes on top of the normal, significant contributions Balzer is known for with UC’s utilities. His supervisors credit him with leading an effort that has produced a $325,000 reduction in annual electric costs. His experience and knowledge also proved invaluable in emergency situations, such as one event in the cold of February when an unexpected loss of power meant a gas boiler needed to be restarted. Ordinarily, the process takes an hour, which would have meant the loss of steam heat on campus, but Balzer’s experience allowed him to get the boiler restarted in only 20 minutes.

Everett Wolverton, assistant vice president and director of Utilities and Technical Support, says Balzer deserves credit for both his technical ability and his leadership skill. "Jim’s very positive, upbeat, can-do attitude rubs off on other personnel and pushes them to do their best also," he says.