Energy Hunt: Students on the Trail of Energy Savings Through Innovative New Course

Forget about the energy use of SUVs. 

It’s buildings that are the world’s biggest energy eaters, consuming nearly 40 percent of overall energy resources in the United States – more than transportation or industry. For instance, commercial and residential buildings guzzle 70 percent of all electricity in the U.S.

And that’s why a pioneering new course at the University of Cincinnati, offered in collaboration with the Green Partnership for Greater Cincinnati, is focusing on providing students with skills related to building energy audits while helping out local Cincinnati Public Schools at the same time.

The architecture and engineering students enrolled in

“Practical Aspects of Building and Energy Audits”

are team taught by UC faculty and staff. The students learn the basics of looking for energy losses in buildings. Then, they’ve visited buildings to view how structures’ energy systems are configured and to check for energy loss. Their visits have included Cincinnati Public Schools buildings.

This new UC course was first offered in spring 2008 and is now being offered for the second time during the current spring 2009 quarter. Local schools that past and current students in the course have visited or will visit in order to participate in energy audits are

• Rockdale Elementary (November 2008)
• Cheviot Elementary (March 29 and April 1, 2009)
• Midway Elementary (May 2009)
  

ALREADY MAKING A DIFFERENCE

The energy-related training and community service experience offered to the UC students enrolling in “Practical Aspects of Building and Energy Audits” have already made a difference, according to local professionals who lead the audits that the UC students and faculty are participating in. Brian Noel, Air and Water Compliance Leader for GE Energy, stated that the energy audit at Rockdale Elementary last fall identified about $25,000 per year in potential energy savings.

“Going out on audits gives the students good practical experience. They’ve been the workhorses of the audits and very valuable to the team in looking at utility use, suggesting alternatives to reduce energy use and identifying improvements. They get to stand in the role of an energy auditor in a practical sense,” explained Noel.

COURSE INSTRUCTORS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS INVOLVED

Leading the new “Practical Aspects of Building and Energy Audits” class are

• Eric Gruenstein, UC professor of molecular genetics and coordinator of Green Partnership for Greater Cincinnati

• Joe Harrell, executive director of UC’s utility services

• Dan Oerther, professor of civil and environmental engineering and director of the Center for Sustainable Urban Environments at UC

Gruenstein and Oerther also accompany the students and local professionals on energy audits within the local public schools. Also participating in the energy audits are

• Michael Albrecht, facilities administrator for the Cincinnati Public Schools

• Bob Knight, project manager with GBBN architects and sustainability design consultant for the Cincinnati Public Schools

• Brian Noel, Air and Water Compliance Leader for GE Energy

MORE ABOUT THE "PRACTICAL ASPECTS OF BUILDING AND ENERGY AUDITS" class

The home-base classroom for this unusual course is UC’s power plant.

When enrolled in that course in spring 2008, the 15 students who took the course received practical energy-related training in UC’s power plant and in other buildings around campus. And even though the formal course ended last June, they’ve participated in the energy audits in the local schools.

They are now being joined by the 12 current students – from UC’s College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (

DAAP

) and

College of Engineering

– enrolled in the new “Practical Aspects of Building and Energy Audits.”

One of those current students is

Liesbet Michiels

, 22, a mechanical engineering senior from Blue Ash, Ohio. She’s taking the course in preparation for continuing her education as a master’s student pursuing an advanced mechanical engineering degree but with a focus on energy. “I’m interested in energy and, specifically, renewable energy in terms of the engineering behind it.

It’s like a big puzzle to be solved

. I think this class will be very useful for that goal.”

According to UC’s Dan Oerther, the course benefits both students and the community. He explained, “We can have a big impact on the community with the course because buildings are the energy eaters. If we can cut down on energy consumption in buildings, the payback is rapid.”

“And,” he added, “We don’t have enough people trained in this area (energy auditing). So, it’s to the advantage of our students to help them get some experience in this area.”

For instance, chemical engineering student

Kevin Say

, 22, of Lima, Ohio, completed the first-ever “Practical Aspects of Building and Energy Audits” class in spring quarter 2008.

“

It’s a win-win-win

,” according to Say. “We students get experience with energy audits. The Cincinnati Public Schools get audits that will save energy and money, and the environment benefits too.”

And, for Say, he hopes that the experience will prove useful in his future work, which will relate to energy and efficiency applications in industry. He explained, “A one-hour cycle in a steel mill can use as much energy as 300 homes would use in a month. In industry, motors, air-intake vents or exhaust vents are also points where energy savings can be realized. Those are the kinds of environments where I’ll likely be working and where energy-related experience will be beneficial.”

Architecture student

Joe McGovern

, 24, of New Bremen, Ohio, will graduate in June and then plans to sit for the state’s Certified Energy Manager exam.

“For me,” stated McGovern, “

The class opened up a new set of career opportunities

. Via energy conservation, we can help institutions and companies save money. In the class and in the audits where we’ve been present, we’re able to attach a specific cost saving to a sustainable solution, and in the end, saving both energy and money. It’s the best way to sell sustainability.”

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