7 Detroit Office Buildings and Plants receive Energy Star Certification

Energy Star labels facilities which measurably cost less to operate and improve the quality of our environment. These are not demonstration facilities, but rather real world buildings and plants resulting from prudent energy management strategies and proven technologies.

Once again we shattered the old myth, you can teach an old building new tricks. Seven Detroit facilities received such certification this week. The Coleman A. Young Municipal Center highlights the fact almost perfectly. Inefficiencies were everywhere: single-pane windows, a poorly insulated building and a less than efficient hot deck/cold deck HVAC system. To make the building more environmentally friendly property managers replaced failing steam coil on air handling units and retrofitted a 135-ton chiller to run on river water rather than city condenser water. They also used active manual energy consumption controls to optimize energy savings by controlling the operation of chillers, fans and lighting throughout the building. Such modern enhancements are estimated to have saved the City taxpayer $1M/year over the past 3 years.

The Board of Commissioners of the D-WJBA (Wayne Joint Building Authority) have adopted targeted initiatives to comply with the Green Buildings Agenda and actively pursue retrofits to qualify for a future LEED certification.

Another star amongst the energy-friendly Detroit buildings is the Compuware World Headquarters located on One Campus Martius. A newer building it benefits nicely from on original design emphasizing energy efficiency. An under-floor air distribution system throughout the building offers extremely efficient year-round HVAC performance. The building operates as bright of inhabitants with high-efficiency lamps and integrated occupancy sensors which help reduce unnecessary lighting operation.

Detroit’s manufacturing sector also benefit from such practices. The Michigan Refining Division, the only refinery in the State of Michigan, located on 1300 South Fort Street worked hard to earn the Energy Star label. The Detroit refinery focused on reducing consumption through improved operating and maintenance practices. These include proper electric motor versus steam turbine operation, heater excess oxygen optimization and heat exchange monitoring and cleaning. By following these practices the refinery accounted for an annual energy reduction of 300,000 MMBTU per year.

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