Central Plant facts:
The new plant will
conserve energy
More than 10,000 square feet of piping is being installed
Water enters the plant at 56 degrees and exits at 42 degrees
In addition to water piping, workers are installing tubing that can be used
to house fiber optic cables
Three exterior chillers - two outside the library and one near Johns Hall
- will eventually be dismantled as part of the project.
New
Central Plant will save energy, be more efficient
Digging for project to continue through the year
You've seen the bulldozers, attempted to make sense of the makeshift signage and tried unsuccessfully to give an off-campus visitor directions to your office.
But that's not the worst of it. As a Furman employee you've been forced to commit an act that is wholly unnatural - you've had to drive down the wrong lane of the university's main mall.
But what does it mean? And when will it end?
Preparations for the new Central Plant, though aggravating now, will lead to big savings for the university in the long run. The new system, scheduled to be completed by the end of 2001, will be more efficient, environmentally friendly and reliable. Furthermore, as new buildings are added, the new central plant will help Furman hold the line on electricity costs.
"We become so much more energy efficient by using this," says Doug Lange, director of Facilities Services. "This will allow the university to reduce our total electricity load by about 10 percent."
Currently, individual chillers cool each campus building. These bulky machines, often located in the basement of buildings, chill water that is used to cool interior air. Exterior coolers that are hidden by brick walls and foliage serve James B. Duke Library and John E. Johns Hall.
Faced with the prospect of having to replace several aging chillers earlier this year, the university opted to construct a new Central Plant that will cool most buildings. The facility, to be constructed adjacent to the Facilities Services complex, will house two large chillers, one powered by electricity and the other by gas.
Workers spent much of the summer digging a trench five feet deep along the main mall and installing insulator piping that will transport the chilled water from the plant to buildings and back again.
"It acts as a closed system," explains Jeff Redderson, associate director of Facilities Services. "After the chilled water is used, the heated water will be pumped back to the Central Plant where it will be cooled and pumped out for reuse. Operating the two chillers, as opposed to running many smaller units, will save us about $50,000 a year in electricity. It is also much easier to maintain and is more reliable."
Workers have just completed paving the stretch of roadway along the mall. Piping must still be installed along Milford Mall, on the road in front of the dining hall and University Center, and along the road leading from the PAC to Facilities Services. This second and final stage phase of pipe installation should be completed by Christmas. Construction on the Central Plant will begin late this year with a completion date set for fall 2001.
The Central Plant will cool buildings located in the heart of campus. Other chillers will cool Timmons Arena and North Village, located on the outskirts of campus, because extending piping to those areas is not cost effective.
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Inside Furman is published monthly during the school year by the Furman University Department of Marketing and Public Relations. For story ideas, e-mail John Roberts, editor.