Job Name: GE Fitness Center - Solar Water Heater
Scope of Work: Design-Build
Location: Pewaukee, WI
GE Healthcare is one of the most environmentally conscious employers in southeast Wisconsin. Through the “ecomagination” initiative, GE is actively pursuing innovative and profitable solutions to environmental problems. Since 2004, the program has resulted in a greater than 22% decrease in greenhouse gas emissions, with the goal of a 25% decrease by 2015. GE has also reduced water usage by over 30% since 2006, surpassing the original goal of a 20% reduction by 2012.
The business need
In order to reduce energy usage at their US headquarters in Waukesha, Wisconsin, GE Healthcare’s Global Facilities Manager, Mark Colannanni, initiated a program to augment the employee fitness center’s gas-fired water heaters with a solar hot water system. GE Healthcare’s Project Engineer, Chris Jurik, contracted with Jim Leuzinger of Pewaukee-based TOTAL Mechanical and Aaron Adler of Milwaukee-based Hot Water Products to design and install the system.
Engineers from TOTAL Mechanical designed the system and determined the best location for the solar panels, hot water piping, controls, and related equipment. Representatives from Hot Water Products assisted with the site evaluation, RetScreen software simulation, conceptual design, product procurement and delivery. Mike Westfahl, a Journeyman plumber from TOTAL Mechanical, then installed the system and filled it with Dowfrost, a propylene glycol-based heat transfer fluid that contains food-grade corrosion inhibitors. The system was leak-tested, insulated, valve-tagged, and labeled prior to bringing it on-line.
The system consists of 16 Solar Skies SS-40 panels with a total area of 637.22 ft2, two 260-gal storage tanks, an HTP drain-back tank, and solar controls made by IMC Instruments. It is capable of generating up to 39 kilowatts of energy, which is equal to 116,100 BTU – enough to provide hot water to as many as three homes.
Key opportunities/challenges
It may seem that a solar water heater would not be as effective in Wisconsin as it would be in a warmer, sunnier climate. However, Wisconsin has as many sunny days as southern Texas, and the efficiency of a solar water heater is not significantly affected by the ambient air temperature. GE’s solar array faces south, at an angle of 43 degrees from horizontal. This maximizes the amount of direct sunlight captured during the winter, when the sun is at its lowest in the sky. In the summer, the energy lost to indirect sun exposure is made up for by the longer periods of daylight.
Benefit to GE Healthcare
The system is expected to contribute between 20% and 100% of the fitness center’s hot water, with an annual average of 48%. By reducing GE’s dependence on non-renewable energy, the system also insulates GE against rising fossil fuel costs. With an anticipated lifespan of at least 30 years, the system will ultimately save GE nearly $180,000. Over that period, it will have reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 281 tons, which is the equivalent of 648 barrels of crude oil. In addition to the savings realized by reducing natural gas consumption, the solar hot water system also reduces the maintenance requirements of the existing natural gas water heaters. Since the solar system is able to reduce demand on the gas burners, the burners will require less frequent maintenance, and should last longer than if they were to continue as the only source of hot water for the facility.
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Job Name: St. Joseph Outpatient Center
Scope of Work: Plan & Specification
Location: 201 N. Mayfair Rd., Wauwatosa, WI 53226
General Contractor: Hunzinger Construction Company
Project hours: Over 35,000 hours
The following is a summary of equipment installed at this facility:
- Five (5) Mammoth Heating/Cooling Roof Top Units
- One (1) York Air Handling Unit and Air Cooled Condensing Unit
- Two (2) Leibert Equipment Room Cooling Units and Drycooler
- Five (5) Patterson Kelley Process Hot Water Boilers
- Three (3) Fulton Humidification and Sterilization Steam Boilers
- 194 Price Variable Air Volume Boxes
- 21 Power Roof Ventilators, Exhaust Fans & Ceiling Exhaust Fans
- Rittling Convectors, Unit Heaters & Fin Tube
Project Summary:
St. Joseph’s Outpatient Center is a 210,000 square foot, state-of-the-art ambulatory care center. The five-story building includes 60 office spaces for physicians along with a 5-story parking structure. In addition, four acres of land have been purchased north of the building in anticipation of future expansion.
TOTAL Mechanical acted as the primary coordinator for the mechanical, electrical and plumbing throughout the entire duration of the project. They successfully managed to stay on track with the challenging construction schedule. The on-site project management staff coordinated all equipment and material deliveries to ensure that heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems were operating for the finishing trades. TOTAL Mechanical also coordinated temperature control installation and had the entire building commissioned and owner training completed prior to owner occupancy.
TOTAL Mechanical installed 5.35 miles of piping, 700 valves, 3000 hangers, 20,000 pipe fittings and 170 tons of sheet metal ductwork. The crew size peaked at 50 mechanics. Cooperation among all involved resulted in the on-time completion for the ten month project.
The St. Joseph Outpatient Center is featured in the 2004 May issue of Wisconsin Builder as one of the Top 20 projects completed in Wisconsin for 2003. Hunzinger Construction also received Midwest Construction Magazine’s Award for 2003 Project of the Year in the Health Care Category for this project!
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Job Name: Lynde and Harry Bradley School of Technology and Trade
Scope of Work: Design-Assist Mechanical Contractor responsible for HVAC installation
Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53205
General Contractor: Hunzinger Construction Company
Project hours: 37,000 hours
The following is a summary of HVAC equipment installed at this facility:
- Baltimore Air Cooling Tower, 400 Ton Capacity
- Two Carrier Centrifugal Chillers, 200 Ton Capacity each
- Ten Carrier Air Handling Units, Located in Three Mechanical Rooms
- One Rankin Custom Built Air Handling Unit
- Five Carrier Heat Recovery Units
- One Carrier Energy Recovery Ventilator
- Two Hundred Supply and Exhaust VAV Boxes
- Twenty Four Exhaust Fans
- One Leibert Computer Room Unit
- One AAF Self-Contained Dust Collector, 2,300 ACFM @ 7.5 W.G. External Pressure
Project summary:
The Lynde and Harry Bradley School of Technology and Trade is a progressive facility designed to promote Milwaukee Public Schools’ science and technology high school curriculum. In October of 2002 faculty and students moved into the new facility; the new building has been designed to provide flexibility for future technologies and curriculum updates. A significant portion of the facility’s flexibility comes from the exposed ductwork system running through the technology labs, and the HVAC equipment supporting these areas.
As a design-assist construction partner TOTAL Mechanical of Wisconsin volunteered to take the lead role in the coordination for the Lynde and Harry Bradley School of Technology and Trade. The design-assist process helped to identify building questions and installation conflicts prior to work crews beginning installation, and before the project schedule was negatively impacted.
The Lynde and Harry Bradley School of Technology and Trade is a fully air conditioned facility, with process and domestic hot water generated using City of Milwaukee distributed high pressure steam.
TOTAL Mechanical’s responsibilities for this project included coordinating over $1,500,000 worth of owner purchased equipment, materials, and services in addition to the HVAC contract work. From start to finish over 37,000 hours of labor were invested in fabrication and installation.
Job Name: GE Fitness Center - Solar Water Heater
Scope of Work: Design-Build
Location: Pewaukee, WI
GE Healthcare is one of the most environmentally conscious employers in southeast Wisconsin. Through the “ecomagination” initiative, GE is actively pursuing innovative and profitable solutions to environmental problems. Since 2004, the program has resulted in a greater than 22% decrease in greenhouse gas emissions, with the goal of a 25% decrease by 2015. GE has also reduced water usage by over 30% since 2006, surpassing the original goal of a 20% reduction by 2012.
The business need
In order to reduce energy usage at their US headquarters in Waukesha, Wisconsin, GE Healthcare’s Global Facilities Manager, Mark Colannanni, initiated a program to augment the employee fitness center’s gas-fired water heaters with a solar hot water system. GE Healthcare’s Project Engineer, Chris Jurik, contracted with Jim Leuzinger of Pewaukee-based TOTAL Mechanical and Aaron Adler of Milwaukee-based Hot Water Products to design and install the system.
Engineers from TOTAL Mechanical designed the system and determined the best location for the solar panels, hot water piping, controls, and related equipment. Representatives from Hot Water Products assisted with the site evaluation, RetScreen software simulation, conceptual design, product procurement and delivery. Mike Westfahl, a Journeyman plumber from TOTAL Mechanical, then installed the system and filled it with Dowfrost, a propylene glycol-based heat transfer fluid that contains food-grade corrosion inhibitors. The system was leak-tested, insulated, valve-tagged, and labeled prior to bringing it on-line.
The system consists of 16 Solar Skies SS-40 panels with a total area of 637.22 ft2, two 260-gal storage tanks, an HTP drain-back tank, and solar controls made by IMC Instruments. It is capable of generating up to 39 kilowatts of energy, which is equal to 116,100 BTU – enough to provide hot water to as many as three homes.
Key opportunities/challenges
It may seem that a solar water heater would not be as effective in Wisconsin as it would be in a warmer, sunnier climate. However, Wisconsin has as many sunny days as southern Texas, and the efficiency of a solar water heater is not significantly affected by the ambient air temperature. GE’s solar array faces south, at an angle of 43 degrees from horizontal. This maximizes the amount of direct sunlight captured during the winter, when the sun is at its lowest in the sky. In the summer, the energy lost to indirect sun exposure is made up for by the longer periods of daylight.
Benefit to GE Healthcare
The system is expected to contribute between 20% and 100% of the fitness center’s hot water, with an annual average of 48%. By reducing GE’s dependence on non-renewable energy, the system also insulates GE against rising fossil fuel costs. With an anticipated lifespan of at least 30 years, the system will ultimately save GE nearly $180,000. Over that period, it will have reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 281 tons, which is the equivalent of 648 barrels of crude oil. In addition to the savings realized by reducing natural gas consumption, the solar hot water system also reduces the maintenance requirements of the existing natural gas water heaters. Since the solar system is able to reduce demand on the gas burners, the burners will require less frequent maintenance, and should last longer than if they were to continue as the only source of hot water for the facility.
_____________________________________________________________________
Job Name: St. Joseph Outpatient Center
Scope of Work: Plan & Specification
Location: 201 N. Mayfair Rd., Wauwatosa, WI 53226
General Contractor: Hunzinger Construction Company
Project hours: Over 35,000 hours
The following is a summary of equipment installed at this facility:
- Five (5) Mammoth Heating/Cooling Roof Top Units
- One (1) York Air Handling Unit and Air Cooled Condensing Unit
- Two (2) Leibert Equipment Room Cooling Units and Drycooler
- Five (5) Patterson Kelley Process Hot Water Boilers
- Three (3) Fulton Humidification and Sterilization Steam Boilers
- 194 Price Variable Air Volume Boxes
- 21 Power Roof Ventilators, Exhaust Fans & Ceiling Exhaust Fans
- Rittling Convectors, Unit Heaters & Fin Tube
Project Summary:
St. Joseph’s Outpatient Center is a 210,000 square foot, state-of-the-art ambulatory care center. The five-story building includes 60 office spaces for physicians along with a 5-story parking structure. In addition, four acres of land have been purchased north of the building in anticipation of future expansion.
TOTAL Mechanical acted as the primary coordinator for the mechanical, electrical and plumbing throughout the entire duration of the project. They successfully managed to stay on track with the challenging construction schedule. The on-site project management staff coordinated all equipment and material deliveries to ensure that heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems were operating for the finishing trades. TOTAL Mechanical also coordinated temperature control installation and had the entire building commissioned and owner training completed prior to owner occupancy.
TOTAL Mechanical installed 5.35 miles of piping, 700 valves, 3000 hangers, 20,000 pipe fittings and 170 tons of sheet metal ductwork. The crew size peaked at 50 mechanics. Cooperation among all involved resulted in the on-time completion for the ten month project.
The St. Joseph Outpatient Center is featured in the 2004 May issue of Wisconsin Builder as one of the Top 20 projects completed in Wisconsin for 2003. Hunzinger Construction also received Midwest Construction Magazine’s Award for 2003 Project of the Year in the Health Care Category for this project!
_____________________________________________________________________
Job Name: Lynde and Harry Bradley School of Technology and Trade
Scope of Work: Design-Assist Mechanical Contractor responsible for HVAC installation
Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53205
General Contractor: Hunzinger Construction Company
Project hours: 37,000 hours
The following is a summary of HVAC equipment installed at this facility:
- Baltimore Air Cooling Tower, 400 Ton Capacity
- Two Carrier Centrifugal Chillers, 200 Ton Capacity each
- Ten Carrier Air Handling Units, Located in Three Mechanical Rooms
- One Rankin Custom Built Air Handling Unit
- Five Carrier Heat Recovery Units
- One Carrier Energy Recovery Ventilator
- Two Hundred Supply and Exhaust VAV Boxes
- Twenty Four Exhaust Fans
- One Leibert Computer Room Unit
- One AAF Self-Contained Dust Collector, 2,300 ACFM @ 7.5 W.G. External Pressure
Project summary:
The Lynde and Harry Bradley School of Technology and Trade is a progressive facility designed to promote Milwaukee Public Schools’ science and technology high school curriculum. In October of 2002 faculty and students moved into the new facility; the new building has been designed to provide flexibility for future technologies and curriculum updates. A significant portion of the facility’s flexibility comes from the exposed ductwork system running through the technology labs, and the HVAC equipment supporting these areas.
As a design-assist construction partner TOTAL Mechanical of Wisconsin volunteered to take the lead role in the coordination for the Lynde and Harry Bradley School of Technology and Trade. The design-assist process helped to identify building questions and installation conflicts prior to work crews beginning installation, and before the project schedule was negatively impacted.
The Lynde and Harry Bradley School of Technology and Trade is a fully air conditioned facility, with process and domestic hot water generated using City of Milwaukee distributed high pressure steam.
TOTAL Mechanical’s responsibilities for this project included coordinating over $1,500,000 worth of owner purchased equipment, materials, and services in addition to the HVAC contract work. From start to finish over 37,000 hours of labor were invested in fabrication and installation.