New Research Center Calls for CHP Expansion

The challenge

Veolia’s energy consulting group, SourceOne, was retained to provide project management and technical assistance on the expansion of a combined heat and power (CHP) plant supporting a medical school campus’s new 512,000-square-foot research center.
 
Services included budget development, equipment sizing, design, compliance review and coordination of the plant’s construction team. The group also conducted a full-campus metering assessment.

The client’s challenges are:

• The existing power plant on campus no longer sufficed because the new space would grow its electric generation by 7.5 MW, cooling capacity by 4,000 tons and thermal capacity by 60,000 lbs/hr by housing five learning communities, a 350-seat lecture hall, fitness center, full-service café and common atrium.
• The project required a cogeneration system that would allow the CHP facility to handle this energy output in a cost-efficient manner.
• Medical centers have too much at stake to rely on grid and backup power, which can cause latency in patient care and associated diagnostics.

Veolia’s solution

Innovative commercial solutions:

• Installed a 7.5 MW gas-fired combustion turbine to replace the school’s oil-fired steam boilers
• Delivered a thorough allocation study to school administration during the plant’s commissioning

Customer targets:

• Maximize operational uptime and minimize energy costs
• Find best, economical solution

The benefits for our client

Guaranteed resource optimization:

• The newly renovated utility system accommodates the center’s higher electric generation volume.
• The system also produces enough cogenerated steam from that volume to heat buildings across campus.

Provide cost effective solutions:

• The school saw 58,000 MWh of annual electricity savings, amortizing the project’s cost in less than three years, and has since reduced carbon emissions at a rate that is consistent with its goal to become climate-neutral by 2060.