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UMASS COMMONWEALTH HONORS COLLEGE

AMHERST, MASSACHUSETTS

CHALLENGE AND OPPORTUNITY

The Commonwealth Honors College Residential Community is comprised of six residential buildings capable of accommodating approximately 1,500 students and encompassing 500,000 ft2. This facility was constructed in 2013 and had higher than expected energy use intensity when benchmarked against similar building types.

B2Q performed scoping level EBCx studies on each of the six residential buildings and the central heating and cooling systems (2 chillers, 4 primary HW/CHW pumps, 24 secondary pumps, 2 steam to HW HX) that serve the Community. B2Q identified fifteen energy-efficiency measures and three facility improvement measures. B2Q provided turnkey implementation services including, Engineering, OPM, CxA, sub-contractor management, M&V and utility incentives on all fifteen of the energy efficiency measures identified in the scoping level study.

  • Optimized variable volume primary HW and CHW pumping systems to match secondary system loads

  • Implemented demand based dP reset on 12 secondary pumping systems

  • Repaired broken AHU valves and dampers and optimized AHU heat recovery sequences

  • Implemented community wide, floor-by-floor scheduling capability

  • Over 900,000 kWh annual electric savings and 3,500 Mlbs annual steam savings $160,000 in avoided annual energy costs

  • Obtained over $200,000 utility incentive

  • Under 9-month simple payback after utility incentive

  • Improved automation of controls and reduced staff operation and maintenace time

Market:

Colleges and Universities

Services:

Energy Efficiency and Analysis
Building Systems
Implementation Services
Building Commissioning

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The ETIC RCx project was an outstanding success, delivering verified energy savings and operational improvements that exceeded UMass Lowell’s expectations. The project achieved impressive annual cost savings—10% higher than initially projected—while reducing energy intensity by 14% for UMass Lowell’s third-largest utility account.

Beyond cost savings, the initiative delivered significant environmental benefits, cutting annual carbon emissions by 530,000 lbCO2e. Additionally, it enhanced lab safety through robust lab pressurization tracking and the recalibration of all terminal devices.

This success was made possible through the unwavering collaboration between UMass Lowell, B2Q, and NGRID, demonstrating the power of partnership and a shared commitment to cost efficiency, sustainability, and operational excellence.

Daniel Abrahamson 
University of Massachusetts Amherst

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