Overview

The State of New Jersey (NJ) retained DCO Energy (an ESCO) to develop an Energy Savings Plan and recommend Energy Conservation Measures (ECMs) to reduce energy usage, while simultaneously eliminating deferred maintenance on building systems for two adjacent facilities in Clinton, NJ.

The Edna Mahan Correctional Facility (EMCF), a 1,000 inmate women’s prison facility, and the Hunterdon Developmental Center (HDC), a 650-bed residential facility for adults with neurodevelopmental disorders, were the locations identified for the $45M Energy Savings Improvement Project (ESIP), which is NJ’s largest EISP project to date. We were selected by NJ to help verify the ECMs and savings, so they were confident in securing the loan for the project and proceeding with DCO Energy.

Additionally, we served as an on-call advisor during design and construction and will execute the energy/savings measurement & verification (M&V) plan once all ECMs are constructed.

The adjacent sites had, at one time, shared the same CHP plant, which was the outcome of a previous ESCO project done in the 1990’s. The plant had exceeded its useful life and was no longer providing the most efficient heat and power. In addition, HDC had previously disconnected from the plant, adding $1M in costs annually to the EMCF. DCO Energy was primarily tasked with decentralizing the existing plant as well as identifying other ECMs for the facilities.

ECMs

The Energy Savings Plan developed by DCO Energy included twenty four (24) ECMs. Topping the list were LED lighting replacements, decentralizing the EMCF CHP plant, and new steam and hot water boilers. Based on the recommended ECM’s, the two facilities can expect to realize more than $63M in energy savings over a 16 year period (approximately $10.5M annually).

Measurement and Verification

Entech was tasked to review and verify the energy savings projects and estimates produced by the ESCO and engineer of record, review construction drawings, review the ESCO’s measurement and verification (M&V) plan and execute the M&V Plan once construction is complete. This includes gathering and reviewing savings for utility bills, and reporting the findings to the State of New Jersey.