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Oklahoma City Community College Combines Campus Expansion with Energy Saving Improvements

Posted on: Tuesday, 14 July 2009, 08:35 CDT

OKLAHOMA CITY, July 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Education leaders at Oklahoma City Community College (OCCC) recently completed infrastructure upgrades that have significantly decreased energy use and improved the school's learning environment while making the school more environmentally responsible.

In 1995, the school undertook an extensive expansion to upgrade aging infrastructure and to increase total square footage by 30 percent. The school also needed to address rapidly growing enrollment which today is nearly 22,000 students.

Between September 2003 and September 2008 alone, the new high efficiency infrastructure systems chosen by the administrators have decreased the school's energy use per square foot by nearly 35 percent.

"We've been very pleased with the energy savings on the infrastructure improvements," said Dr. Paul Sechrist, president, OCCC. "Additionally, as one of the nation's largest community colleges, we believe it's important that, in addition to teaching young people about environmental responsibility in our classrooms, we demonstrate it with our actions."

OCCC Receiving an Award for Energy Leadership

In recognition of the importance of these upgrades and OCCC's commitment to energy efficiency and to reducing its environmental footprint, the school will be receiving the "Trane Energy Efficiency Leader in Education Award" for its sustainable energy and operational efficiency improvements.

Details of the award presentation:

• Scott Krull, vice president of commercial business in the U.S. west territory for Trane, will present the award to Dr. Paul Sechrist, president of OCCC
• Awards presentation will be at 10:30 a.m. on July 17 in the OCCC Union, Room 3.
  

The Energy Efficiency Leader in Education Award honors a school that has completed building improvements that optimize the teaching and learning environments and increase operational efficiency.

Upgrades Benefit Entire Campus

While upgrades were completed throughout the campus, infrastructure improvements to the school's chilled water plant, which serves the entire campus, are among the most significant. The plant's efficiency and effectiveness were maximized by upgrading the pumping system and by adding a new chilled water system to provide constant volume. The upgrades also expanded capacity to enable the plant to meet the needs of the expanded campus.

In the school's library, improvements to an existing thermal ice storage system shifted ice production to low-cost evening hours, saving energy and money.

In three buildings: the Health Professions Center for nursing students, the SEM (Science, Engineering and Math) Center, and the Visual and Performing Arts Center, improvements included new air handlers and valves and controls for increased energy and operational efficiency.

About OCCC

A state college, OCCC is the fifth largest higher education institution in Oklahoma with an annual enrollment of nearly 22,000 students. Considered a landmark in the southwestern section of Oklahoma City, the college is located on 143 acres just south of Interstate 240 on South May Avenue. OCCC was founded in 1972, and was established on the belief that everyone deserves an opportunity for a college education. OCCC is a progressive two-year college, offering nearly 50 associate degree programs and numerous certificates of mastery. Each year, nearly 1,200 students graduate from OCCC. The college maintains a passion for providing one of the best instructional systems in the country and has a student-faculty ratio of 22:1.

About Trane

Trane, a business of Ingersoll Rand, improves the performance of homes and buildings around the world. Trane solutions optimize indoor environments with a broad portfolio of energy-efficient heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems, building and contracting services, parts support and advanced controls for homes and commercial buildings. For more information, visit www.trane.com.

SOURCE Trane

Source: PR Newswire

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