The Fredericktown R-I School District in Fredericktown, Mo., is implementing $3.4 million in facility enhancements designed to improve operations, comfort, and efficiency in its high school building. TAC by Schneider Electric, the building management and energy services business of Schneider Electric, will complete the work as a performance contract with the district later this year and estimates the district will reduce its utility costs by $30,000 annually.

The 60,000-square-foot, single-story high school building serves 600 students in this southeastern Missouri community. Unfortunately, the 30-year-old building has suffered roof leaks since its construction as result of the “roof pits” that were a part of its original design. In addition, the gymnasium did not have air conditioning, individual classrooms lacked electrical receptacles for computers and other technology, and during the past winter, several of the heating units on the roof were condemned.

“Last winter, teachers were forced to utilize space heaters and students to wear coats in some of our classrooms. In warmer months, teachers, students, patrons, and visitors endured extreme heat without air conditioning during many events in the gymnasium,” said Kelly Burlison, superintendent of the Fredericktown schools. “We also need to expand our electrical capacity to accommodate modern technology. The performance contract with TAC addresses all our critical needs and is built around our financial criteria. We have worked with TAC previously and have always found that throughout the process, TAC considers our input and makes decisions based on their own engineering expertise coupled with the insights we offer.”

Performance contracting offers many long-term benefits for school districts, such as improved facility efficiency, occupant comfort, financial management, and environmental benefits.

To resolve the problems at the Fredericktown High School, TAC will apply a variety of energy conservation measures and other infrastructure improvements. These include a new standing-seam metal roof along with the addition of insulation, sealing of the building envelope, installing a new variable refrigerant volume HVAC system, a lighting redesign and retrofit, redesigning and replacing drop ceilings, and adding additional electrical capacity.

“This project will eliminate the roof leaks that have plagued the building for years using a standing-seam metal roof that is designed to last for the long term. Not only will the building and its occupants be protected for years to come, it makes the best long-term use of the local taxpayers’ dollars,” said Shon Anderson, vice president of sales, TAC Energy Solutions. “Every other aspect of the design was done with an eye toward long-term environmental responsibility. The objective was to minimize environmental impact by designing the improvements in a fashion that would minimize the long-term energy usage and corresponding costs in order to ensure that tax dollars were managed responsibly in both the short- and long-terms.”

For more information, visit www.tac.com and www.schneider-electric.com.

Publication date: 09/21/2009