Photovoltaic (Solar) Initiatives

The FCTS greenhouse and attached building will soon be powered by a photovoltaic array that was built and installed by the electrical students from the school. The electrical teachers have incorporated photovoltaic technologies into their curriculum. Always striving to keep the electrical program current, the program has also introduced programmable logic controllers into the shop program - critical skills for the operations of environmental systems in facilities of all sizes.

Photovoltaic and PLC skills, along with the traditional skills every electrician must have, will prepare our electrical grads for the many career opportunities of the electrical field. To stay abreast of new technologies, our teachers continue to participate in college programs and workshops on green/environmental advances in the electrical and construction fields.
About our Electrical Program

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Electrical students assemble and install the photovoltaic array that will eventually supply power to the greenhouse and attached building

PEP: In-School Recycling

Awareness of recycling is shared throughout the entire FCTS community, but nowhere has it been so ingrained as in the Pre-Employment Program (PEP). The PEP program is a unique educational program that is dedicated to working with students with a range of cognitive and/or physical challenges. A component of the program is to provide students with exposure to shops, practice with life skills, developing academic skills and career skills --- based upon individual student capacity.

With the emerging growth of recycling careers, the PEP program has developed a school wide recycling program during which, students collect paper, bottles and cans. Returnables are separated from recyclables and materials sorted and disposed into appropriate receptacles.

The entire school has embraced the program. On any given morning, recycling bins are placed in the halls for daily pickup. What once was trash, is now properly disposed of according to its material content.
About our PEP Program

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Students from the PEP Program expertly sort recycled materials

Water-borne Paint System in Auto Body

Finding an environmentally safer method of painting in the auto body shop was accomplished with the installation of a new water-borne coating system that replaces the traditional oil based paints. Some solvent based products will continue to be used, but with the addition of the new system, the "greener" products will be used in the painting process where appropriate.

Use of the new system is still in the learning phase. Along with the paint products came a new software system for precision mixing. This system gives the auto body students another level of experience that will benefit them when they enter the trade.

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Brian Kuzmeskus, one of the two auto body instructors, who, along with students are using the new water-borne coating system in the shop.

Siemens Energy Project

FCTS began serving Franklin County students in 1976 with its brand new building. Thirty-three years later, even with diligent maintenance, the environmental systems of the building, once efficient for their time, had become very inefficient and prone to ever growing malfunctions and resulting costly maintenance. The prospect of an overhaul of these systems would be costly - but was very much a necessity. The FCTS administration did an enormous amount of research into the best tactic to approach the problem. Eventually, they turned to Siemens Building Technologies, Inc. for a creative, cost containing solution.

In summary, "performance contracting" through Siemens would result in the installation and improvements of facility systems and the building itself. But the costs of these improvements would be paid from the energy savings realized by the improvements. With this scenario, there are no up from costs and no changes to the operating budget.

In an over simplified example, this is how it works:

• A facility annually budgets $24,000 for electric (estimating a $2,000 a month cost).
  
• Energy improvements are made at a cost of $100,000 - a loan cost.
  
• Following the improvements, the monthly electrical costs average $1,000, a 50% reduction.
  
• The savings, $12,000 annually, will be used to help pay off the $100,000 loan.
  

Environmental systems, over 30 years old, were inefficient and experiencing frequent and costly maintenance and repair issues.

Lighting Changes

Hundreds and hundreds of old fluorescent lights, incandescent lights and spotlights were replaced throughout FCTS. T-8 fluorescent fixtures were replaced by efficient T-5 indirect fixtures.
Incandescent fixtures were replaced with T-5 indirect fixtures.
Metal halide fixtures that were in the shop areas were also replaced with T-5 fixtures. Not only is the T-5 lighting cost efficient, but it provides whiter, brighter lighting. Not to be overlooked, the exterior of the building is now lit with new, efficient lighting.

New lighting achieved two improvements - better and brighter lighting with much lower energy consumption

Heating Fuel Conversion

FCTS heat and hot water was oil driven. With the Siemens performance contracting changes, it was determined that a conversion to gas fueled heating would result in great savings.
Once the conversion was done, the oil that remained in the oil tanks was given to area schools/towns.

The old, oil operated boiler.

Boiler Replacement

The old oil fueled boiler was replaced with a hybrid boiler plant. The new plant equipment consists of two condensing boilers and two non-condensing boilers. Additionally, two high-efficiency pumps with VFD's were installed. One unit is the primary pump and the other acts as the back-up pump.

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A new gas operated hybrid boiler was installed

Filter and Ducting Cleaning

As the FCTS facility got a "Green" overhaul, the entire building envelop was sealed for improved heat and A/C retention. It was important that the circulation of air be at its best, so in the middle of the environmental systems improvements, every vent was cleaned and filters cleaned or replaced.

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To improve air quality and flow, all ducts and filters were cleaned/replaced

Auto Shutdown of lights and computers

Most people can understand the old exclamation "turn off the lights when you leave the room!" It's all about reducing energy wastefulness. For FCTS, with over 600 people coming and going at any given time, it was not that easy to implement. So, with the new green initiatives being made, Siemens engineers put all lights and computers on an auto-shutdown schedule. Hallway lights now shut off after 20 minutes of inactivity, as do all room lights. Lighting shutdown is controlled by occupancy sensors now installed in classrooms, offices, shops, halls and gym. Computer shutdown is controlled by a program from the Faronics Company. Computers will shutdown after a period of non use. The audit report for the savings resulting from computer shutdown shows a monthly savings average of $1,000 in that initiative alone! It took a little time for staff and students to adjust to the new auto shutdown program, but everyone has now come to accept the system.

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Old controller units were replaced with sophisticated equipment with efficiency controlled programs

Modern & Efficient Hot Water Units

For 30+ years, the hot water storage tank was a single, 2,550 gallon behemoth. With the Siemens energy project goal to improve energy consumption, the tank was replaced by four, highly efficient 119 gallon indirect fired storage tanks. These tanks were installed and tied into the new hybrid boiler plant.

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New hot water tanks are installed

Green Construction

Green construction is a broad category. It can include use of materials that are renewable. Use of materials that are non toxic. Use of sustainable materials. Creation of energy efficient buildings. Increased use of non fossil fuels for heating and lighting.

As the FCTS shop programs making up construction trades prepare students in the shop classrooms and on actual construction projects, the emphasis on green construction is reinforced. Plumbing/heating will discuss and demonstrate radiant and geothermal heating. Heat loss programs are run to help students determine efficiencies. Carpentry students learn the techniques for top quality insulation. In the recently completed Habitat for Humanity house, carpentry students built with green in mind and in action.

The health of the environment depends on people having an awareness of the impact that mankind has on the planet. FCTS is working hard to operate a facility that models this belief, and to prepare a generation of youth with awareness and practical knowledge of how to live gently on the earth.

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New Seasons4 RTU. High-efficiency DX cooling, direct-fired gas burners, VFD's for supply and returns fans are at the core of these new roof top units.

FCTS & GCC Green Collaboration

In development at this time, is a collaborative plan between Greenfield Community College and FCTS to have a green technologies building on the FCTS campus that is to be used by both FCTS and GCC students.

GCC is short on space for a large classroom to hold and use their state-of-the-art technologies for their "renewable/energy efficiency" major.

FCTS has a large shed (almost barn-like), that was attached to the former greenhouse. The shed is to become a classroom for green technologies instruction and will be a wonderful sharing of resources.

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Students in the PEP program tour a large scale recycling plant. The tour gave the students an opportunity to see one of the final phases of the recycling process and to see the career options in the recycling field.

Other Activities of Green Interest

• Source-to-Sea Clean-up --- Students and staff clean up community littler/trash
• Restaurant switches from styrofoam containers to biodegradable paper based products
• Cafeteria ends plastic milk containers and switches to paper based products
• Ink and toner cartridges from printers are recycled through recycling programs
• Science classroom creates solar and wind-power experiments

Amy Donovan, Program Director from the Franklin County Solid Waste Management District spoke to PEP students about recycling and environmental issues of interest to the FCTS students managing the recycling program at the school.