Energy Conservation Services
Federal agencies are required to meet a number of energy and water management goals mandated through Executive Orders, legislation and other requirements addressing energy conservation. The Heartland Region has strategic energy management programs that reduce utility costs and energy consumption by promoting optimal energy use without impacting tenant comfort.
Helping Federal Agencies Meet Their Energy Needs
Federal and non-federal customers look to GSA's energy program to procure green and non-green power that is cost effective and environmentally responsible. GSA partners with investor-owned utility companies, national associations, and nonprofit environmental organizations to disseminate information on energy-related issues. In the Heartland Region, GSA:
- Provides guidance on the use of GSA's area-wide contracts with utility companies;
- Studies energy usage and energy data when contracted to do so; and
- Provides advocacy at the regional level with other federal agencies.
Energy in the Heartland
GSA’s Heartland Region:
- Has decreased energy usage by 20.2 percent since 2003.
- Has received $395,000 in utility rebates since 2007 by leveraging partnerships with utility companies.
- Installed 110 advanced utility meters across 17 buildings and is currently reporting and analyzing real-time utility usage data, with another seven buildings in-process.
- Completed 19 EnergyPlus building energy simulation models.
- Received or has applied for the ENERGY STAR certification for 15 facilities with ratings of 75 or higher on the EPA’s 100-point scale.
- Completed 13 retro-commissioning studies, tests and reports, and has six more in-process.
- Purchased 12 percent of the region’s electricity from renewable sources in FY 2012.
- Since 2007, has partnered with the Energy Department to conduct eight DOE-funded Energy Efficiency Expert Evaluations, or E4 audits, and to assess the resulting low- and no-cost recommended actions to reduce overall building energy consumption.
Additionally:
- The Iowa Field Office in Des Moines, Iowa, and its director, Doug Papineau, received the prestigious ENERGY STAR® Leader/Top Performer designation because of high energy efficiency at GSA facilities throughout the state.
- Four of the 12 finalist buildings in the 2013 National Better Buildings Federal Award competition are facilities in GSA’s Heartland Region. The Richard Bolling Federal Building; U.S. Courthouse in Wichita, Kan.; Charles Evans Whittaker U.S. Courthouse; and the Robert V. Denney Federal Building are competing to be recognized as the federal government's highest-performing building based on reduction in annual energy use intensity (Btu/gsf) on a year-over-year basis.
- In the 2012 National Better Buildings competition, the Neal Smith Federal Building placed third and the Frank Carlson Federal Building placed.
What you can do to save energy
Federal and private sector employees can help lower energy consumption by turning off computers and other equipment at the conclusion of the workday, configuring computer equipment to enter power save mode after 10 minutes of inactivity, using task and office lighting purposefully, and reducing plug load (eliminating space heaters, personal refrigerators, and other such equipment).
The Department of Energy’s Federal Energy Management Program offers an energy saving checklist for the office, and a facility energy checklist to reduce fuel costs.
