The Challenge
Projectors, laptop charging carts and Smart TVs have become standard in Magnolia's classrooms, but these loads aren't managed by a building automation system. With no way to switch them off automatically when staff went home, devices ran around the clock, even though school buildings were empty about 70% of the time.
The Solution
Magnolia selected ENGIE Services U.S. (now OpTerra) to develop and deliver a district-wide energy program with new HVAC units, HVAC and lighting controls, solar shade structures and plug load management. During the investment-grade audit, BERT identified more than 500 devices across the nine schools that could be turned off at night and on weekends, including vending machines, printers, copiers, projectors and smartboards. The district installed 520 BERT Smart Plugs.
BERT also found more than 100 Smart TVs that were left out of the initial estimate because their processors were managed by district IT. Working with IT, BERT set a schedule that switches the TVs off without interfering with overnight updates. Installers plugged TVs and projectors or smartboards on the same outlet into a single controller, so savings grew without adding controllers. Installation details were captured in real time, giving the district and ENGIE immediate as-built records.
The Results
After the Smart TVs were brought under control, annual savings rose from the initial calculated 51,875 kWh to 69,901 kWh, an increase of about 35%. Overall, BERT reduced the baseline load of the controlled devices by 31%.