Energy Performance
Contracting
Case Study:
Lavington School
March 2015
Lavington School is a rural secondary
comprehensive, with approximately 700 pupils, near Devizes. In this case study we hear from Angela Downing, the school’s business manager, about their experience of energy performance contracting.
Trialling this approach gave the school the opportunity to bring in external expertise and achieve signifi cant energy savings, without the need to put money aside to pay for the improvements. It also helped the school to tackle the rising costs from its oil heating system. Let’s see how they achieved it…..
How did you fi rst hear about Energy
Performance Contracts?
“Our head teacher attended a Wiltshire Association for Secondary School Heads (WASSH) meeting where MITIE (an Energy Performance Contracting
provider) delivered a presentation. Our Head thought it sounded like a great way to save money for the school, so we invited them to the school to discuss possible options for us.”
Were you concerned about being the
fi rst school in Wiltshire to enter such a
contract?
“We were cautious at fi rst at the thought of giving over control to a third party, as we did not want to become committed to anything that would create risks for the school. Having met with an EPC provider we commissioned them to undertake a ‘no obligation’ study to make sure that any energy savings really stacked up.
The proposals included taking control of our energy budget, insulating plant room pipe work, servicing the fan heaters (long overdue) and checking room temperatures throughout the school.
Energy Performance
Contracting Case Study:
Lavington School
What are energy performance
contracts and how do they work?
In a nutshell, an energy performance contract (EPC) allows a company to make energy saving improvements at no upfront cost to the customer. The customer agrees to pay a set amount to the company per month, which is no more than their current energy costs. Energy effi ciency improvements are made and any saving is split between the two parties at an agreed rate. Once the total cost of the improvements has been recovered by the company, the payments stop, and the customer enjoys the benefi ts of lower energy bills for the foreseeable future.
They averaged out our previous year’s energy bills and charged us accordingly so we could easily budget ahead. Every month our provider calculated fees for their technician’s time, paid our energy bills, after which we agreed to share whatever was left. They ensured there was no fi nancial risk to the school. Based on this, we entered a one year contract.”
How were these plans put into action?
“Our provider started by simply procuring energy on behalf of the school, securing us a lower tariff than we could have managed on our own.
As we have an oversized hot water tank, we tended to waste energy in the summer holidays, heating a large amount of water in order to undertake cleaning or for hand washing. The proposed solution was to install electric point-of-use water heaters (e.g. in the toilets), which makes generating hot water much more effi cient and saves us money as we can turn off our big heating system.
Our provider had remote access to our Allen Martin building management system (common in many Wiltshire schools) to monitor the heating system. This allowed them to progressively reduce over-heating in the school, without needing to be on site all the time.”
Did you decide against any of the
recommendations and how did that
affect the predicted energy savings?
“Longer term, larger capital investment measures (such as upgrades to the lighting, building
management system and controls) were proposed, but we wanted our fi rst contract to focus on the ‘low hanging’ fruit which didn’t need much investment of capital.
Our longer term plans may include biomass (wood) based heating systems or renewable energy (e.g. solar photovoltaic panels). However, whilst the
savings have the potential to be bigger the longer the period you share a contract, don’t feel like this is the only way it could work for you.”
Are you saving
money?
“The school has grown signifi cantly since we started the EPC, including the construction of new classrooms, sports hall and dining area. This has increased our consumption of oil and electricity, but overall the results are very encouraging.”
How long is an EPC contract?
These can range from 12 months to several years. It’s entirely dependent on what you want to achieve, the length of time the energy saving measures take to pay back, and what the school is happy to commit to.
Lavington School started with a 12 month contract (that delivered the projected savings on time) after which they felt comfortable to commit to further 1 year contracts.
Are there any top tips you would pass
onto other schools considering an EPC?
• “A member of staff with a vested interest (e.g. the business manager) needs to put aside some time to understand the energy savings calculated. • Be aware that to begin with, people may complain
about any changes to the heating system,
especially turning it down. The EPC provider gave us the evidence to show that in most cases the rooms were in fact at recommended temperatures. • The site/maintenance manager must be fully
involved with the process as they can function as an additional set of eyes and ears in the school.”
Would you recommend an EPC to other
schools?
“Being the fi rst school in Wiltshire to commit to an EPC was daunting, advice from the local authority gave us confi dence, but we would do it again based on what we learnt from the process and know now. In the future, we would seek our provider’s advice from the start of any new building projects. Other schools would need to establish whether it was the right thing for them, but our experience has defi nitely been a positive and happy one!”
What are the main advantages and disadvantages of EPC’s in your experience? Advantages Disadvantages
Identifying ‘no cost’ Potential constraints on ‘out-of-hours’ activities improvements if not agreed with EPC provider
Having expert advice on hand Annual heating period is agreed in advance – so a cold day in May or September can result in a surcharge
Better energy management Large savings are diffi cult to sustain year on year with a short term contract
Easier budgeting for energy bills Opportunity to engage pupils on saving energy
Energy and cost savings
Each year the school receives an annual energy management report highlighting the savings that have been achieved.
The latest report (2013) shows a signifi cant reduction in gas oil consumption used for heating the main school block, compared to before the EPC started (these fi gures are used to budget for energy costs). In total, energy consumption for the main school building was down 45%. Taking the average cost for gas oil as approximately 55p/litre, this would equate to a saving of over £10,500.
The report also shows that over the same period in the science block, which is heated with
‘burning’ oil (kerosene), consumption is down 36%. At a similar average cost this would equate to a saving of over £2,000.
Energy Use Reduction Cost saving
Gas oil Heating main school block 45% £10,500*
Burning oil (kerosene) Heating science block 36% £2,000*
Finally, has your use of EPC had a long
term impact on energy management at
the school?
“Five years on, we continue to use our provider to support better energy management at the school. This has enabled us to keep a close eye on our energy consumption through monitoring and reporting. Decisions about which improvements we want to invest in, however, are now taken in house. We have a better understanding of where the opportunities are and in this way we receive the full savings ourselves.”
Further information
1. RE:FIT is an award-winning programme, delivered by the Greater London Authority, that used Energy Services Companies to implement energy saving measures in public sector buildings throughout London. It includes a framework of approved suppliers. www.refi t.org.uk/contact-2/
2. Eco-Schools www.eco-schools.org/