February 1999

The Official Newsletter of International District Energy Association Volume 14 Number 7

 

IDEA College Attendees Invade the Big Easy

A fantastic technical program and exciting exhibits awaited the attendees of the 12th Annual College/University Conference as IDEA descended upon New Orleans just in time for Mardi Gras.

More than 150 IDEA members attended this year's conference to hear the technical program (put together by Technical Chairman Peter Cooper of MIT) and take advantage of the hospitality displayed by Conference Chairman Joel Chatelain of the LSU Medical Center.

For the fourth year, table top exhibits were displayed at the Conference. IDEA would like to thank the following exhibitors for their support of the Conference.

Alfa Laval
Baltimore Aircoil Company
CES/Way International, Inc.
Controlotron Corporation
DriTherm Incorporated
FES (Division of Thermo Power Corp.)
Nalco Chemical Company
Nova District Energy, Inc.
Perma-Pipe, Inc.
RMF Engineering, Inc.
Rovanco Piping Systems, Inc.
Spence Engineering Co.
Thermal Science Technologies
The Trane Company
Urecon Ltd.

We would also like to thank the
following sponsors of the Conference.

Alfa Laval
Carter & Burgess
CES/Way International, Inc.
Entergy Thermal
EVAPCO, Inc.
FES (Division of Thermo Power Corp.)
Kattner/FVB District Energy, Inc.

Plans are already underway for next year's conference in Vancouver, British Columbia!! See you then!!

 

Marketing Workshop Update

There is still time to register for the Marketing Forum Workshop which is being held March 11-13, 1999 in
Denver, Colorado. Don't miss this chance to hear from the following speakers:

  • Joe Stolarski, LaSalle Partners, will discuss major trends in the real estate market, the impact of energy prices on building owners and managers, how building owners and managers are responding to change;
  • Gerry Lands, CTI, will discuss internet information tools that serve as the gateway for data interchange and increased knowledge about building operations nationwide;
  • Steve Spiwak, Nalco Chemical Company, will discuss marketing through vendor/supplier relationships;
  • PSC Colorado's Communications Department will discuss how to handle media pressure and crisis communications;
  • Mark Spurr, Kattner/FVB District Energy, will discuss life-cycle costing;
  • John Ansbro, Alfa Laval, will discuss customer interface with flow and temperature control, and;
  • There will be a presentation on REITs ­ what they are, where they came from, and future trends.

You won't want to miss this informative workshop. Contact IDEA at (202) 429-5111 for further information or to register.

 

DOE Reports on Deregulation

The January 5 issue of "PowerPlus Daily" reports that DOE intends to make changes to its utility restructuring proposal that address the congressional criticisms from last session, including public power tax issues and the future of the Tennessee Valley Authority. The article says Administration and DOE officials are optimistic that the changes will result in a more streamlined approach to the passage of a bill. However, House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) has rejected the notion of a national mandate on electricity deregulation saying that he believes the states know what is in the best interest of their citizens.

 

North Carolina Energy Association Releases Study

The North Carolina Solar Energy Association has released a new Carolina Poll of 589 adults conducted by the UNC School of Journalism on renewables and restructuring. It found that 65% of North Carolinians favor requiring electricity suppliers to disclose on the customer's bill information on the fuels (i.e. types and emissions) used to generate their electricity; 58% support requiring all sellers of electricity in the state to generate a portion of their electricity from renewable energy sources; 57%
support adding an extra charge of at least 1% to each customer's utility to help pay for renewable energy and energy efficiency programs; 51% are willing to pay $1 or more each month to enable them to purchase their electricity from renewable sources. The poll results are available from the Institute for Research in Social Science, Manning Hall, CB #3355, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3355. The release can be found at <www.mindspring.com/~ncsea>.

 

IDEA System-of-the-Year Award Deadline Approaching

The System-of-the-Year Award was created in 1992 as an annual award to recognize an outstanding district energy system which exemplifies high levels of performance and furthers the goals of the district energy industry. The award serves to: provide an industry benchmark for overall excellence; provide a platform for sharing ideas and efforts that have made systems successful; identify and recognize systems that illustrate the overall importance of district heating and cooling in the marketplace and in the long-term energy picture; and further publicize district heating and cooling as a progressive industry that seeks constant improvement in the services it provides.

1999's award-winner will benefit from:

  • IDEA's letters to the community's mayor, president of the city council, executive director of the local BOMA and head of the local Chamber of Commerce informing them that an organization in their community
    won the award;
  • an advertisement purchased, designed and run in the local business journal compliments of IDEA congratulating the winning system on the honor; and
  • a professional photograph taken at the awards ceremony courtesy of IDEA and enlarged for display
    in the winner's office.

Previous winners of this prestigious award include:
District Energy St. Paul, Energy Systems Company, Minneapolis Energy Center, University of California-Los Angeles and Trigen Energy Baltimore.

Contact Marie Williams at IDEA, (202) 429-5111, for a complete listing of eligibility, submission requirements,
criteria and scoring. All submittals must be received by April 30, 1999. The winner of the Award will be announced during the Chairman's Dinner at the 90th Annual IDEA Conference in Boston, Massachusetts in June.

 

EIA Releases Study

According to the "Short-Term Energy Outlook," just released by the Energy Information Administration, notwithstanding assumptions of slower economic growth, U.S. petroleum demand is expected to increase in 1999 by over 500,000 barrels per day, or 2.9%, from 1998 levels. Much of this growth is expected as a result of increases in demand for heating oil and other weather-sensitive products (e.g. propane and heavy fuel oil), based on an assumed return to normal weather patterns, as well as continued growth in transportation demand. U.S. petroleum demand is expected to rise by an additional 300,000 barrels per day in 2000. U.S. net imports of petroleum in 2000 are forecast to account for 52% of total U.S. petroleum demand, up from an
estimated 50% in 1998. The report also notes that electricity demand is expected to increase 1.6% over 1998 levels while
it is projected to increase by 2.2% in 2000. The document can be found at <http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/steo/pub>.

 

$11 Million Comfort Link Project to Support Charles Street and West Side Redevelopment

Plans to build an $11 million Market Center Chiller Station to provide air conditioning for buildings in Baltimore's commercial and retail business districts were announced by Comfort Link.

In addition to the financial and entertainment centers at Charles Street and Inner Harbor, the Market Center Chiller Station will also serve the 18-block West Side redevelopment district.

Comfort Link President Stanley Gent said the new facility "represents the first private-sector infrastructure investment in the downtown Howard Street corridor in at least two decades."

Gent said that having the station and underground distribution pipes fully operational by September will significantly lower costs to building owners for new construction and for renovation, and would ensure that even the oldest buildings, such as the famed Hippodrome Theatre, will meet today's environmental standards.

"When complete," said Gent, "the Comfort Link system will save downtown businesses more than $36 million just in capital funding, $10 million of which will be in the West Side redevelopment area.

 

ARI Standard 550 and 590 Combine

A free copy of the newly revised standard which affects how chillers used for comfort cooling are rated and tested is now available at the Internet web site (www.ari.org) of the Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute (ARI). Also available is an explanatory white paper that will be of special interest to design engineers and equipment owners.

The newly published ARI Standard 550/590-98, Standard for Water Chilling packages Using the Vapor Compression Cycle, combines two previously separate standards: ARI Standard 550-92, Centrifugal and Rotary Screw Water Chilling Packages, and ARI Standard 590-92, Positive Displacement Compressor Water Chilling packages.

ARI's Large Tonnage Liquid Chiller Product Section voted to combine the two standards to reduce confusion in equipment application and assure consistent treatment for rating and testing of two very similar and overlapping product lines.

The combined, revised standard includes two other major changes which affects how chillers are rated and tested. These changes relate to the Integrated Part Load Value (IPLV) and the fouling factor adjustment used for evaporators in closed loop water systems.

The IPLV rating conditions and part load weightings have been changed to more closely reflect actual operating experience found in the field for a single chiller. The evaporator fouling factor has been changed from 0.00025 to 0.0001 based on research work sponsored by ASHRAE which shows that the actual fouling of the waterside of evaporators operating in closed circuit water systems experience very minimal degradation in performance over time.

According to the white paper, "By having a single standard, it is easier to define each chiller type and clearly state how each is rated and tested...Specifying engineers and owners are encouraged to update their purchase specifications for chillers, particularly in regard to using 0.0001 FF on closed-circuit evaporators, reference to the new IPLV or NPLV equation as applicable, and in specifying performance based on ARI Standard 550/590-98."

A free copy of the standard and the white paper may be printed from ARI's "CoolNet" web site (www.ari.org).

 

 

People

in the

News

  • Andres D. Garay has been named international operations manager at Baltimore Aircoil Company (BAC). In his new position, Garay will provide the leadership and support to all BAC licensees and joint venture companies currently in Japan, Malaysia, China, Korea, Brazil and Mexico.
  • Also at Baltimore Aircoil, Frank J. Bowman, Jr. has been named vice president marketing - international. In his new position, Bowman will direct all export, licensees and joint venture marketing and sales activities in Asia and Latin America, as well as direct the marketing support activities for field-erected project in all international areas.
  • CTG Resources, Inc., the holding company of Connecticut Natural Gas Corporation (CNG) and its unregulated subsidiary The Energy Network (TEN) announced the promotion of James P. Laurito to president of The Energy Network. Laurito will be responsible of all aspects of The Energy Network.
  • Comfort Link, a jointly owned subsidiary of Baltimore Gas and Electric Company (BGE) and Monumental Investment Company, has announced that Stanley Gent has recently joined them as President. Mr. Gent assisted in the development of the world's largest district cooling service in Chicago, as well as worked on the development of other systems in Boston and Detroit, and in Toronto and Windsor in Ontario, Canada.
  • IDEA Vice-Chairman Ray DuBose has been named Director of Energy Services for UNC-Chapel Hill. He will be responsible for Electric Systems, Chilled Water Systems, HVAC Systems, and Cogeneration Systems. His previous position with UNC-Chapel Hill was as Cogeneration Systems Manager.
  • Sebesta Blomberg & Associates is pleased to announce the following promotion and additions to their staff:
    • Nathan F. Germolus to Associate and Division Leader for the Electrical Utilities Division;
    • Lamont Fortune as the new Senior Registered Engineer; and
    • Charles O. Picker as the new Construction Service Manager for the Sebesta Blomberg Champaign office.

 

Web Page Update...

As we mentioned in December's newsletter, the IDEA web site is now located at www.districtenergy.org or at districtenergy.org. There is a new map on the web site showing the location of our members. The IDEA web site receives about 40,000 hits per year. We are constantly updating it, so visit often!!!

 

ASHRAE Holds Annual Winter Meeting

The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) held its
Winter Meeting, January 23-27 in Chicago, Illinois. Over 50,000 attended this annual event. IDEA Member Systems, Trigen-Peoples and Unicom Thermal Technologies both hosted Society tours of their plants.

Also at the meeting, two of ASHRAE's highest awards were given to IDEA members. The F. Paul Anderson Award, given in recognition of notable achievement, outstanding work or service in any field of the Society, was presented to Presidential Member Donald R. Bahnfleth, P.E., Fellow ASHRAE and Life Member. The ASHRAE/ALCO Medal recognizes distinguished public service by an ASHRAE member. The 1999 recipient is Evans J. Lizardos, P.E., for his leadership and
public service to his community.

 

Award Nominations Sought

Nominations are actively being sought for the Norman R. Taylor Award, IDEA's "man-of-the-year" award which recognizes life-long achievement and support of the district energy industry. Past award winners include Michael McKay, Princeton
University; John Gray, Grace Dearborn; Jack Kattner, Kattner/FVB District Energy; Tom Casten, Trigen Energy Corporation; Hans Nyman, District Energy St. Paul; Jim Barnes, Central Heat Distribution Company; Ken Linwick, Minneapolis Energy Center; Wyndy Clarke, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; Carl Avers, Thermal Ventures; Ishai Oliker, Joseph Technology Corporation; William Goodwin, Harrisburg Steam Works; and Rich Mayer, San Francisco Thermal.

Nominations are also being accepted for the Public Sector Leadership Award. This award differs from the above in that it recognizes active, consistent support of the district energy industry by a person in the local, state or federal public sectors. Past award winners include The General Services Administration; New Jersey General Assemblywoman Maureen Ogden; Trenton, New Jersey Mayor Arthur Holland; St. Paul Mayor George Latimer; Michael Wiggin, Energy, Mines and Resources Canada; Fred Strnisa, New York State Energy R&D Authority; Gordon Bloomquist, Washington State Energy Office; and Federico Peña, former U.S. Secretary of Energy.

Awards will be conferred during the 90th IDEA Annual Conference, June 12-15, 1999 at the Boston Park Plaza Hotel, Boston, Massachusetts.

For more information, or to submit a nomination, contact IDEA or Steve Swinson, IDEA Past Chairman and Chairman of the Nominations Committee, Trigen Technology Division, 911 Main Street, Suite 2320, Kansas City, MO 64105, (816) 218-4994, (816) 842-4272 fax. THE DEADLINE FOR NOMINATIONS IS APRIL 26, 1999.

 

 

Clinton's Climate Package for FY-2000 Includes $1 Billion-Plus for DOE

Vice President Gore provided a preview of DOE's FY-2000 budget request when he unveiled the Clinton administration's plans to spend more than $4 billion next year for efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Included in the figure is $1.12 billion in DOE funding under the Climate Change Technology Initiative, a $222-million increase above FY-99 spending. Another $318 million would flow to DOE climate-related programs outside the official CCTI designation. The remainder would go to programs at the Environmental Protection Agency and Housing and Urban Development, Agriculture and Commerce departments, and for tax credits to encourage the purchase of energy-efficient technologies.

Gore called the measures "significant new investments...to accelerate our aggressive, common-sense efforts to meet the challenge of global warming." He said the administration "will continue to work on the diplomatic front to achieve a truly global response to this global challenge. And we are firmly committed to stepping up our efforts at home as well."

The measure recommends a tax credit for combined heat and power systems which use thermal energy that is otherwise wasted in producing electricity by more conventional methods. The measure would also provide an 8% incentive for investments in large CHP systems that have a total energy efficiency exceeding 70% and in smaller systems exceeding 60% efficiency.

 

 

Oops!!

Due to a problem with our printer, in some issues of January's District Energy Now, the last line of the article entitled "Thermal Science Technologies Reduces Heat Loss in Birmingham, Alabama," did not print. The last line should have read "The project was completed from existing manholes without any excavation work on the surface." We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.

 

EuroHeat web site Up and Running

The EuroHeat web site is now operational. Visit the site at <www.euroheat.org>.

 

 

Calendar
of

Events

IDEA Marketing Workshop
March 11-13, 1999
Denver, Colorado
Contact: IDEA, (202) 429-5111

CDEA Conference & Trade Show
April 14-16, 1999
Casino Windsor
Windsor, Ontario, Canada
Contact: Chuck Stoffle,
888-366-0357

90th Annual IDEA Conference & Trade Show
June 12-15, 1999
Boston Park Plaza Hotel & Castle Boston, Massachusetts
Contact: IDEA, (202) 429-5111

29th Biennial Congress
of Euroheat and Power, Unichal
June 14-16, 1999
Sheffield, England
Contact: CHPA Services, +44 1403 785409

European District Heating & Cooling Week
November 9-12, 1999
Finlandia House, Helsinski
Contact: EuroHeat & Power, unichal, +32 2 779 9279

 

We hope you will join us in welcoming the following new
members of IDEA!

Don Ireland
Division Manager/Vice President
Midwest Mechanical Contractors, Inc.
4550 W. 109th Street, Suite 100
Overland Park, KS 66211
913-469-2200
913-469-2290 fax
E-mail: d_ireland@mmccorps.com
Referred by Steve Swinson, Trigen
Technology Division

Bob Bryon
Operations Manager
Midwest Mechanical Contractors, Inc.
4550 W. 109th Street, Suite 100
Overland Park, KS 66211
913-469-2200
913-469-2290 fax
E-mail: b_byron@mmccorps.com
Referred by Steve Swinson, Trigen
Technology Division

John Molloy
Account Manager
BetzDearborn
12619 S. Menard
Pelos Heights, IL 60463
847-342-0240
847-342-0245 fax
Referred by John Gray, BetzDearborn

Thomas Swain
President
Phoenix Sales and Marketing
227 W. Broad Street
Burlington, NJ 08016
609-387-8002
609-387-8003 fax
E-mail: tws@bellatlantic.net

 

 

Conference Update...

Are You Prepared?

 

We're only five months away from the International District Energy Association's 90th Annual Conference and Trade Show

 

District Energy and the Environment: Preparing to Enter a New Millennium

Boston Park Plaza Hotel * June 12-15, 1999

We would like to thank the following companies for their commitment to exhibit at the Annual Conference:

There are still exhibit and sponsorship opportunities available for this conference.
To secure a sponsorship, please contact Marie Williams at (202) 429-5111.
For information on exhibiting at IDEA's conference, contact Tammie Jackson at (301) 464-0059.

  ABB-Fischer & Porter  Erdman, Anthony & Associates  Psychrometric Systems, Inc.
  Adams Valves, Inc.  EVAPCO, Inc.  R.G. Vanderweil Engineers
 Alfa Laval  FES (Division of Thermo Power Corp.)  RMF Engineering, Inc.
 Altran Corporation  Flow Control Industries, Inc.  Rovanco Piping Systems
 Ashland Chemical Co./Drew Industrial Div.  Green Contracting Company, Inc.  Sebesta, Blomberg & Associates
 Baltimore Aircoil Co.  Jordan Valve-Bestobell Steam  Spence Engineering Co.
 BetzDearborn  Kattner/FVB District Energy, Inc.  Thermacor Process, Inc.
 Carrier Corporation  Kerotest Manufacturing Corp.  Thermal Science Technologies
 Carter & Burgess, Inc.  Matrix/Colt Construction  Thermo Power Corporation
 CES/WAY International, Inc.  Nalco Chemical Co.  The Trane Co.
 Chemworks Filtration  NEPCO  Tower Tech, Inc.
 Coffin Turbo Pumps  Newmans/Newco Valves  Tuthill Energy Systems
 Controlotron Corp.  Nova District Energy Services, Inc.  Urecon, Ltd.
 DriTherm, Inc.  Paul Mueller Company  Vanessa/Tyco Valves & Controls
 The Energy Network  Perma-Pipe, Inc.

 Yokogawa Corporation of America

York International Corp.

 

District Energy Now is a monthly
publication of the International
District Energy Association.

Marie Williams, Editor

Barbara Erickson, Graphic Designer

All copy and correspondence
should be sent to:

1200 19th Street, N.W., Suite 300
Washington, DC 20036-2422

(202) 429-5111 phone
(202) 429-5113 fax

e-mail: idea@dc.sba.com

Return to IDEA home page.