Energy Savings at the UVM Medical Center
As part of our commitment to environmental responsibility, The University of Vermont Medical Center looks for opportunities to reduce energy consumption. To offset energy consumption from high-powered medical equipment to lights, computers and other devices, we invest in energy efficiency projects.
Leaner Energy
Each year, the UVM Medical Center strives to decrease its energy use and tackle major efficiency projects. Between 2015 and 2017, we accomplished the following:
Fanny Allen Campus
We drastically improved our Energy Star score (an energy performance rating from 0–100) from 16 at the end of 2015, to 67 at the end of 2017. The median energy performance score for similar facilities across the country is 50.
We achieved this incredible 51-point increase by completing two big facilities projects:
- Replacing our chiller with a more efficient system
- Upgrading and optimizing our building management system (which controls our HVAC systems)
Other recent improvements include replacing an inefficient hot water system and ongoing LED lighting upgrades.
We look forward to further reducing energy consumption at the Fanny Allen Campus and working towards achieving an Energy Star score of 75, which indicates a top performing facility.
Main Campus
The UV Medical Center has completed a variety of efficiency projects in the past few years. A few of our major facility upgrades include:
- HVAC setbacks (reducing nighttime temperatures and airflow in unoccupied areas) in the Ambulatory Care Center
- Improving our chiller plant (the hospital's cooling system)
- LED lighting upgrades throughout the facility
With these three projects alone, we have reduced our annual energy usage by estimated 2.3 million kilowatt hours. That's enough energy to power 493 Burlington homes for a year!
Our Facilities Management team has also entwined sustainability into its general maintenance practices, replacing pumps, motors, and other equipment as needed with models that are more efficient.
Energy Partnerships
The UVM Medical Center collaborates with the following community partners to identify energy-saving opportunities:
- Burlington Electric Department
- Efficiency Vermont
- Vermont Gas