On July 16, DOE traveled to Charlottesville, VA to recognize Better Buildings Challenge partner University of Virginia (UVA) for impressive energy efficiency advances made on its campus. DOE toured the energy and water upgrades made at UVA’s Showcase Project, Clark Hall.
Clark Hall is mixed-use academic building totaling 181,200-square feet, and currently houses the university’s Department of Environmental Sciences and Charles L. Brown Science and Engineering Library.
Attendees had the opportunity to see the many efficiency upgrades made throughout Clark Hall, including a 2.2-megawatt solar system and solar array covering 280,000 square feet of roof space, extensive LED lighting updates, upgraded pneumatic HVAC controls, and more.
As a result of these and other significant improvements, Clark Hall earned LEED Silver certification for the V4 Existing Buildings, Operations + Maintenance category, the first in Virginia.
Since its 2014 pre-retrofit baseline, Clark Hall has achieved an annual energy savings of 65%, or $750,000 in cost savings, and annual water savings of 79%, or $22,000.
As a Better Buildings Challenge partner, UVA is committed to achieving a 20% reduction in energy intensity by 2020, and is on track to meet this goal through a comprehensive retrocommissioning process that includes HVAC, controls, and lighting upgrades across the university.
Read more about UVA’s commitment to energy efficiency in its Clark Hall Showcase Project, and check out pictures from the site visit below. From left to right:
1. Dave Smith, Associate Chair of the University of Virginia’s Department of Environmental Sciences, Jesse Warren, Sustainability Program Manager for Buildings & Operations at the University of Virginia, and DOE personnel pictured in front of the LEED plaque in the Clark Hall lobby
2. UVA’s Charles L. Brown Science and Engineering Library, in which all fluorescent interior lighting was upgraded to LED.
3. Jesse Warren, UVA Sustainability Program Manager, showcasing the mechanical room upgrades
4. Exterior shot of the Library
5. Interior look at Clark Hall’s state-of-the-art control system
6. UVA Sustainability Program Manager Jesse Warren discussing Clark Hall’s efficiency achievements with a local reporter
