Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 51.46
Liaison Bradley Flamm
Submission Date March 6, 2020

STARS v2.2

West Chester University of Pennsylvania
OP-5: Building Energy Efficiency

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.29 / 6.00 Bradley Flamm
Director of Sustainability
Office of the President
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1. Site energy use per unit of floor area

Performance year energy consumption

Electricity use, performance year (report kilowatt-hours):
kWh MMBtu
Imported electricity 45,282,401 Kilowatt-hours 154,503.55 MMBtu
Electricity from on-site, non-combustion facilities/devices (e.g., renewable energy systems) 0 Kilowatt-hours 0 MMBtu

Stationary fuels and thermal energy, performance year (report MMBtu):
MMBtu
Stationary fuels used on-site to generate electricity and/or thermal energy 116,355 MMBtu
Imported steam, hot water, and/or chilled water 0 MMBtu

Total site energy consumption, performance year:
270,858.55 MMBtu

Performance year building space

Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
3,964,360 Gross square feet

Floor area of energy intensive space, performance year:
Floor area
Laboratory space 79,201 Square feet
Healthcare space 13,193 Square feet
Other energy intensive space 21,667 Square feet

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
4,170,815 Gross square feet

Performance year heating and cooling degree days 

Degree days, performance year:
Degree days
Heating degree days 5,474 Degree-Days (°F)
Cooling degree days 1,200 Degree-Days (°F)

Total degree days, performance year:
6,674 Degree-Days (°F)

Performance period

Start and end dates of the performance year (or 3-year period):
Start date End date
Performance period July 1, 2018 June 30, 2019

Metric used in scoring for Part 1

Total site energy consumption per unit of EUI-adjusted floor area per degree day, performance year:
9.73 Btu / GSF / Degree-Day (°F)

Part 2. Reduction in source energy use per unit of floor area

Baseline year energy consumption

STARS 2.2 requires electricity data in kilowatt-hours (kWh). If a baseline has already been established in a previous version of STARS and the institution wishes to continue using it, the electricity data must be re-entered in kWh. To convert existing electricity figures from MMBtu to kWh, simply multiply by 293.07107 MMBtu/kWh.

Electricity use, baseline year (report kWh):
kWh MMBtu
Imported electricity 35,061,801 Kilowatt-hours 119,630.87 MMBtu
Electricity from on-site, non-combustion facilities/devices (e.g., renewable energy systems) 0 Kilowatt-hours 0 MMBtu

Stationary fuels and thermal energy, baseline year (report MMBtu):
MMBtu
Stationary fuels used on-site to generate electricity and/or thermal energy 178,663 MMBtu
Imported steam, hot water, and/or chilled water 0 MMBtu

Total site energy consumption, baseline year:
298,293.87 MMBtu

Baseline year building space

Gross floor area of building space, baseline year:
3,398,494 Gross square feet

Baseline period

Start and end dates of the baseline year (or 3-year period):
Start date End date
Baseline period July 1, 2011 June 30, 2012

A brief description of when and why the energy consumption baseline was adopted:
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Source energy

Source-site ratio for imported electricity:
3

Total energy consumption per unit of floor area:
Site energy Source energy
Performance year 0.07 MMBtu per square foot 0.15 MMBtu per square foot
Baseline year 0.09 MMBtu per square foot 0.16 MMBtu per square foot

Metric used in scoring for Part 2

Percentage reduction in total source energy consumption per unit of floor area from baseline:
7.53

Optional Fields 

Documentation to support the performance year energy consumption figures reported above:
A brief description of the institution's initiatives to shift individual attitudes and practices in regard to energy efficiency:
No formalized initiatives to shift individual attitudes and practices in regard to energy efficiency.

A brief description of energy use standards and controls employed by the institution:
WCU uses a web based digital control HVAC management system. Room climate is determined by room schedules and occupancy. There is a night set-back for all the buildings that are digitally controlled

A brief description of Light Emitting Diode (LED) lighting and other energy-efficient lighting strategies employed by the institution:
WCU uses LED lighting in fixtures. We have eliminated all of the inefficient old T-12 fluorescent lamps and standard ballasts. These have been replaced with T-8 lamps and in some cases T-5 lamps. We use energy efficient electronic ballasts.

A brief description of passive solar heating, geothermal systems, and related strategies employed by the institution:
The campus geothermal system was proposed in 2007 as a means of updating the coal-fired steam plant and electric chillers on-campus. The district geothermal system currently involves 12 buildings:

Francis Harvey Green Library
Business and Public Management Center
Mitchell Hall
Student Recreation Center
Recitation
Ruby Jones
Anderson Hall
Hollinger Field House
Wayne Hall
and the residence halls Allegheny, Commonwealth, and Brandywine.

The President's House (Tanglewood), 25 University, the E.O. Bull Center, and the Village and Village East Apartments use individual geothermal systems separate from the main district geothermal connections. There are 887 wells (as of 2/29/20) with an anticipated total of over 1,000.
The geothermal system runs by removing excess heat from inside buildings, accumulated by body mass and solar energy, and storing it in below-ground water wells. Due to the high specific heat of water, this heat can be stored as energy so that when heating needs are required on cooler days the automatic, remote computer system will pump the stored heat back into the building.

A brief description of co-generation employed by the institution:
N/A

A brief description of the institution's initiatives to replace energy-consuming appliances, equipment, and systems with high efficiency alternatives:
West Chester University completed an initial 15-year guaranteed energy savings agreement in 2019 and is considering the development of a second to extend into the future. These agreements have involved lighting improvements, controls upgrades, water conservation, HVAC system improvements, and other measures.

Website URL where information about the institution’s energy conservation and efficiency program is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Data provided by WCU Energy Manager, John Lattanze (jlattanze@wcupa.edu), and WCU Exec Dir of Facilities Design and Construction, Patrick Brunner, in 2018. Updated with current energy data for FY 2019 in February 2020 by Bradley Flamm.

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.