Diego Garzon, Haydn Hornstein-Platt, Wahhaj Iqbal Butt, Brandon Munroe, Gregory Oberschelp
EGEE 102H
Professor Pisupati
April 26, 2014
Rising Spring Meat Company Research Report
Energy Efficiency Recommendations
Contents
1.0 Executive Summary ............................................................................................................. 2
2.0 Business Background .......................................................................................................... 2
3.1 Utility Bill Analysis ................................................................................................................ 3
3.2 Lighting Efficiencies and Controls ........................................................................................ 5
3.3 Building Envelope Improvements ......................................................................................... 5
3.4 Energy Efficient Cooler and Freezer Improvements ............................................................. 7
3.5 HVAC Efficiencies and Controls ........................................................................................... 7
4.0 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 8
1
1.0 Executive Summary
During the on-site assessment, the following information was provided:
 Utility Bill Analysis for January 2012 to January 2014
 Energy Usage comparison of Rising Spring with similar businesses in
Pennsylvania
 Information on State and Federal Grant Funding, Fact Sheet Provided by EMAP.
The following is a prioritized list of recommendations based on the research:
 Insulate remaining pipes (return lines).
 Replace older single-paned windows with double-paned Energy Star® rated windows –
save up to $372 annually.
 Purchase an Energy Star® freezers and refrigerators - energy savings of as much as 35
percent with a 1.3 year payback period.
 Add plastic curtains on cooler doors.
 Seal the door.
 Take out room air conditioners during the winter.
2.0 Business Background
Rising Spring Meat Company has a 4500 square foot facility located in Spring Mills, PA.
There is a slaughterhouse where they butcher pigs, sheep, buffalo, venison, and cows,
and a retail store. Both the retail store and the slaughterhouse range from 75-35 years
old, due to some more recent renovations. The majority of the square footage in the
meat processing portion of the facility is devoted to refrigeration, and in the retail area is
devoted to a cutting room and large coolers. Rising Spring Meat Company maintains 5
employees who work one shift up to six days a week with occasional overtime. The
business is open for 7-9 hours a day, 4-6 days a week. There were 50 T-8 fluorescent bulbs in
the slaughterhouse and 15 T-12 bulbs in the retail area. There were no occupancy sensors to
shut the lights off automatically located in the 3 large refrigerating units or the 2 coolers. The
large majority of equipment for refrigeration (compressors for the coolers and freezers) are
inefficient and out of date. The coolers and refrigerating units do not have any insulation, and
have cinderblock walls separating the units from outside, and there are no plastic curtains on
any cooler doors. The ceiling has 6’’ cellulose insulation. The facility is currently using a 2-year
old, 238 MMBTU HVAC system that operates on oil.
2
3.1 Utility Bill Analysis
Note: The Business did not provide us with the data of gas or oil energy bills
YEAR:2012-2014
Month # Days in
billing
period
June
28
July
32
Aug
30
Sept
29
Oct
31
Nov
29
Dec
28
Jan
33
Feb
28
Mar
29
April
33
May
30
June
29
July
32
Aug
30
Sept
29
Oct
31
Nov
29
Dec
31
Jan
34
605
Electric
Electric
Usage
Demand
kWh
kW
2,190
26
7,867
26.5
8,024
26
7,366
26
8,220
26
6,936
26
7,262
36
4,896
19.5
4,282
20.5
4,606
24.5
6,732
26.5
8,987
30
2,190
26
7,867
26.5
8,024
26
7,366
26
8,220
26
6,936
26.5
5,532
20
5,044
19.5
128547
25.5
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
Electric
Cost
$
185.84
582.61
592.99
530.07
587.01
501.06
567.48
390.90
346.92
369.38
526.77
695.88
185.84
582.61
592.99
530.07
587.01
501.06
567.48
883.17
$10,307.14
ELECTRIC
Electric
Electric Electric Load Factor
Service
Total cost
Unit Cost MMBtu
Charge
$
$/kWh
$
185.84
$0.085
7.47
0.13
$
582.61
$0.074
26.84
0.39
$
592.99
$0.074
27.38
0.43
$
530.07
$0.072
25.13
0.41
$
587.01
$0.071
28.05
0.42
$
501.06
$0.072
23.67
0.38
$
567.48
$0.078
24.78
0.30
$
390.90
$0.080
16.71
0.32
$
346.92
$0.081
14.61
0.31
$
369.38
$0.080
15.72
0.27
$
526.77
$0.078
22.97
0.32
$
695.88
$0.077
30.66
0.42
$
185.84
$0.085
7.47
0.12
$
582.61
$0.074
26.84
0.39
$
592.99
$0.074
27.38
0.43
$
530.07
$0.072
25.13
0.41
$
587.01
$0.071
28.05
0.42
$
501.06
$0.072
23.67
0.38
$
567.48
$0.103
18.88
0.37
$
883.17
$0.175
17.21
0.32
$
$ 10,307.14
$0.082 438.60
0.35
3
Load factor is not written on your electricity bill, but it still affects electricity costs. Essentially, it
analyzes how well your business currently utilizes peak demand. Throughout the day, energy is
used at different rates, and during peak times, the electricity costs are higher. The higher cost
helps the electricity provider account for the increased demand during these times. The load
factor for Rising Spring Meat is lower than average and inconsistent, which makes costs
unnecessarily high.
Increasing your load factor is possible by reducing demand and increasing production. By
distributing your energy use over time, the amount used at peak times will be diminished, thus
reducing demand and saving money. Another option is to increase production, by keeping
operations moving the demand is kept constant. This will fix your current inconsistency with
energy usage.
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3.2 Lighting Efficiencies and Controls
There are 25 T8 lights in total. Each light has a dimension of 4 ft. and consumes 32 watts. The
lights are on during the hours of operation which are from Monday through Friday (7 am to 9
pm).
The light in the freezers and refrigerators is always on. The desired amount of time that lights
should be off is 10 hours per weekday while store is closed and another 48 hours during
weekends.
We would recommend to install occupancy sensors but as the T8 lights are already efficient the
payback period to recover the investment is around 7 - 10 years.
3.3 Building Envelope Improvements
Window Upgrades
-Upgrading the windows would decrease the amount of electricity required to run Rising Spring.
Several of the windows in the facility have cracks, thus allowing heat to escape.
We highly recommend replacing these cracked windows, and the single paned windows to
Energy Star® double paned windows. Installing Energy Star® qualified windows, doors, and
skylights lowers energy bills and saves you money. With more efficient windows, you also use
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less energy, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions from power plants. If we upgrade to
Energy Star®, the annual savings predicted by the Energy Star® website is $372 for East North
Central area.
Weather Stripping
-We recommend door seals on the front door of the establishment. During our examination of
the premises, it was clear that there were significant cracks between the door and the door
frame that allowed for cold air to come in and for hot air to leave the store. We also highly
encourage Rising Spring to remove room air conditioning units from the windows during the
winter. There were clearly large gaps through which air could flow surrounding the air
conditioning units. Storing these somewhere during the winter would conserve a significant
amount of money.
Insulation
The larger cooler and freezer are definitely in need of additional insulation. The ceiling, which is
above both the cooler and freezer, is insulated with 6’’ cellulose, but the outside walls consist of
only cinderblock. The cooler is approximately 300 square feet, and the freezer is approximately
400 square feet. It is advisable that additional insulation should be added to the ceiling, and
insulation should be added to the surrounding walls. Below is a chart of R-value (insulation
efficiency). The current combined R-value of the attic is around 22 - 40.It is suggested that the
State College area have a combined R-value of 49-60 in the attic. 25-30 in the floor, and 5-6 in
the walls. We also suggest adding plastic curtains to all cooler and refrigerator doors to prevent
excess heat loss while using the equipment.
The return lines for the boiler are not properly insulated. Adding some cheap insulation to these
pipes could increase some savings as well.
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3.4 Energy Efficient Cooler and Freezer Improvements
Having efficient coolers and freezers is incredibly important, especially since this is such a large
percentage of the energy consumption at Rising Springs. The freezers are homemade and
really old, our recommendation would be to install Energy Star® labeled commercial
refrigerators and freezers. These are more energy efficient because they are designed with
components such as ECM evaporator and condenser fan motors, hot gas anti-sweat heaters, or
high-efficiency compressors, which will significantly reduce energy consumption and utility bills
Compared to standard models, Energy Star® labeled commercial refrigerators and freezers can
lead to energy savings of as much as 35 percent with a 1.3 year payback period.
The following is a list of practices that are easy to implement and will result in a reduction in
energy consumption from the same cooling units:
● Keep refrigerators and coolers closed as much as possible
● Keep condenser coils clean and give them proper space (several inches at least of
empty space behind the refrigeration unit) to release heat
● Do not put cooling units in the vicinity of anything hot (Ex: oven, window, etc.)
● Ensure that seals on doors do not allow air out or in
● Maintain constant temperatures (refrigerator between 35°F and 38°F, freezer at 0°F)
● Keep cooling units as full as possible so that there is less space for warm air to occupy
when the door is opened
● Let anything hot cool down before placing it into refrigeration or freezing unit
● Defrost freezers regularly
3.5 HVAC Efficiencies and Controls
Boiler Upgrade
The current boiler at Rising Springs is an oil fired boiler for heating and hot water. It is less than
2 years old, and 238 MMBTU. The return and feed lines are insulated in the boiler room, but
once the pipes extend beyond that room they are not insulated. These lines total approximately
35 feet long. In general, Energy Star® products are significantly more efficient, utilizing about
85% of energy, which is about 20% better than regular boilers. There is no need to change the
boiler as the current one has been used just for two years.
Purchasing a thermostat can regulate the temperature of the water, and have it hot when you
need it, instead of all of the time. The business had installed thermostats which is great
investment on their part.
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4.0 Conclusion
In conclusion the business has a lot of ways to cut down the energy bills. The lighting is very
efficient. But the freezers and the refrigerators are really old and have leaks. The building is not
very well insulated. They require to increase the insulation in the freezers refrigerators, attic,
walls, in order to cut down the energy bills. The air conditioners are always on the windows,
they can remove them in the winter to avoid the heat inside to escape. All in all if the
recommendations are implemented. The energy bills can shrink by 30-40%. This is a huge
number and would increase the efficiency of the business, therefore leaving them with more
money to spend on other areas.
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