APRIL 7, 2023 – Two important Army installations are using a tool provided by the U.S. Army Engineering and Support Center, Huntsville to support the Army’s Installation Energy and Water Resilience Policy.
The tool is the Energy Savings and Performance Contracts (ESPC) program administered by Huntsville Center. ESPCs utilize private capital to make infrastructure improvements and new efficiencies without tapping into the capital budget to support and enable the warfighter and meet energy and environmental mandates.
Considered the Army’s expert in ESPCs, Huntsville Center implemented the contracts to assist the installations in supporting the Army Climate Strategy by providing energy resilience and energy cybersecurity and reducing energy and water use (as well as carbon and greenhouse gas emissions) to improve readiness and save taxpayers money.
At Army Garrison Carlisle Barracks, Penn., the ESPC project there is in its fifth year of the performance period and has exceeded the guaranteed savings by $62,973. The home to the U.S. Army War College, Carlisle Barracks is the nation’s second-oldest active military base.
The project at Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, is in year six of the performance period and has exceeded the guaranteed savings amount by $325,100. Fort McCoy is a 60,000-acre Army Reserve installation and home to the 88th Regional Support Command, a Total Force training center responsible for enhancing readiness for more than 100,000 military personnel annually.
Hannah Niedergeses, Energy Division Project Manager, said energy conservation measures for these projects include lighting upgrades, energy monitoring and control system upgrades, which will optimize the operation of HVAC systems throughout the buildings.
“There are other organizations that award ESPCs, but the thing that makes Huntsville Center stand out from the others is that we have a centralized project management ‘one-stop-shop,’” Niedergeses said.
“The long-term partnership between the Huntsville Center’s Energy Division, the garrisons, energy savings contractors and other Army stakeholders requires a high degree of commitment and work in good faith to enable successful outcomes.”
Niedergeses said the advantages of implementing ESPC projects through Huntsville Center include the program’s experience with ESPC project execution. She said the programs centralized project management enables a standardized and streamlined process by a dedicated and experienced project development team.
“We provide comprehensive program support including engineering technical expertise, project management expertise, cost analysis, legal review, and measurement and verification services through a third-party,” Niedergeses said.
“We also ensure compliance with all Department of Defense policies and regulations of third-party financing.”
Huntsville Center ESPC program support provides a tremendous value, said Richard McCoy, Carlisle Barracks energy manager.
“Since the inception of our (ESPC) contract six years ago, the contractor has been monitoring our energy usage and HVAC operations in five buildings. This has resulted in reduced energy costs each year and assists the garrison in keeping our HVAC equipment running efficiently.”
Story by William Farrow
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Engineering and Support Center, Huntsville