May 30 2013
Honeywell today announced an energy retrofit project that will save the Huntington West Virginia Housing Authority more than $340,000 in annual energy and operating costs.
The initiative will improve building comfort and energy efficiency in more than 900 public housing units in 13 complexes for the Huntington West Virginia Housing Authority and includes building upgrades and conservation measures that will cut energy use at each complex.
The housing authority will finance the building improvements through a 15-year, $3.7 million energy savings performance contract with Honeywell. This will enable it to fund the retrofit project with annual energy cost savings guaranteed by Honeywell rather than using additional public resources.
"Maintaining our complexes is always a top priority, but it has become increasingly difficult to fund necessary improvements in light of tightening budgets," said William Dotson , executive director of Huntington West Virginia Housing Authority. "Our retrofit project with Honeywell will allow us to address maintenance and conservation needs risk-free with measures that will not only improve comfort but help us save money, too."
As part of the retrofit work, Honeywell will install more energy-efficient lighting, furnaces and hot water heaters, implement water-saving measures such as low-flow toilets and faucets, and update wall insulation to minimize air infiltration at each of the 13 housing complexes.
In addition to saving money and improving comfort, the building improvements will also cut the housing authority's annual greenhouse gas emissions by 1,081 metric tons – equivalent to removing 226 vehicles from the road.
"Cash-strapped public entities often have to defer plans for needed building improvements or get creative in finding ways to fund them," said Paul Orzeske , president of Honeywell Building Solutions. "Guaranteed energy savings performance contracts are the ideal solution to allow public entities to make significant, energy-saving improvements without making a capital investment, with the savings guaranteed by Honeywell."
Honeywell, a global leader in energy efficiency, has completed more than 5,000 energy efficiency projects around the world generating more than $5 billion in energy and operational savings for customers.