AEP OHIO CASE STUDY
Ohio School District Utilizes Incentive
Program to Save Money and Energy
Adams County/Ohio
Valley School District
Project summary
Industry
K-12 school
Building type
High Schools and Elementary
Measures implemented
Lighting
HVAC
Total project cost
$55,367
Projected annual energy savings
117,565 kWh
Incentives paid
$14,950
Payback period without AEP Ohio incentive
Approximately 5.9 years
Payback period with AEP Ohio incentive
Approximately 2.2 years
Program Type
Prescriptive Lighting
Prescriptive HVAC
An Ohio school district in need of
financial assistance and committed to
finding ways to reduce costs finds
energy efficiency projects as a way to
offset financial burden. Adams County
Ohio Valley School District, rated
“excellent” by the Ohio Department of
Education, replaced 400 watt high
intensity discharge, metal halide
fixtures throughout the high school and
elementary gymnasiums with 4 - foot
fluorescent lamps (1” diameter tube
and ballasts).They also implemented
two HVAC rooftop unit upgrades with
the help of incentives through the AEP
Ohio gridSMART Prescriptive Program
to save money on energy bills.
Business challenge
The Adams County School District has
been challenged with passing of
operating levies and layoffs for some
time now. Steve Wolfe, LEED AP,
facility manager for Adams County
School has always had energy
efficiency lighting and HVAC upgrades
on his “wish list” but had been unable
to justify the capital costs to the district.
In 2010, he attended an AEP Ohio
customer seminar in Piketon to first
learn of the gridSMART Business
Incentives Program and was very
interested in understanding how his
district might benefit. Shortly thereafter,
his AEP account team, Ken Boldman
and Shaun Semran, met with him and
informed him of the program details
and how his district could take
advantage of the incentives while
helping reduce operating costs.
The AEP Ohio incentives for energy
efficiency were the primary drivers to
move forward with this project to
meet the challenge of offsetting
increasing energy bills.
“We would have not been able to
even consider doing the lighting
projects without the AEP Ohio
incentives” said Mr. Wolfe.
The lighting audit provided by
Current Electrical Supply proved the
district had ample opportunity to
reduce costs and improve the overall
lighting quality. The next step was to
present detailed information on the
project and its return on investment
(ROI) to the school board.
Mr. Wolfe did his homework before
presenting to the board and suggests
that any other districts looking to
implement something similar do the
same. Mr. Wolfe detailed the upfront
investment, annual energy savings,
AEP Ohio incentives and how long it
would take the district to recover the
costs and begin saving money.
Solution
“Staff layoffs and not being able to
purchase books and curriculum hurt
the students and community”. “Energy
efficiency was a way to find money
without hurting the district; we didn’t
realize all of the non-financial rewards
we would also have.”
Steve Wolfe
Facility Manager
Adams County School District
The next step was to contact his local
supplier, Tim Driscoll from Current
Electrical Supply, for assistance with
preparing the financial analysis and
ROI details the school board would
need to see. By understanding the
return on investment the district was
able to make a confident decision to
move forward with the projects. Mr.
Driscoll then contacted the gridSMART
Business Incentives team with specific
questions on the application process
for the customer.
Adams County School District decided
to start by replacing the old lighting in
the gymnasiums and an older HVAC
unit. All this was completed from start
to finish in a couple of months during
business hours. The school staff used
other gyms for classes and practices
while the renovations were taking place
to maximize efficiency.
The district has already seen
significant energy savings on their
electricity bills as a result of their
projects and will continue to do what
they can to be more efficient.
Adams County Ohio Valley School district was
pleased that AEP Ohio presented them with a
ceremonial check to promote the district’s
commitment to energy efficiency.
Mr. Wolfe is part of a local organization
for school facility managers and has
presented his solution to many other
districts in the area. His
recommendation to others is “have all
of your ROI calculations completed
before presenting the financial benefits
to the district and present them with a
case they cannot refuse”.
Key benefits
The community, staff and students
were ecstatic with the results. Mr.
Wolfe was pleased to say that he
received numerous comments and
“thank you” letters from teachers,
coaches, and the community regarding
the increased lighting levels and
appearance of the gymnasiums.
The indirect benefits of increased
lighting levels, anticipated longer
life cycles, and overall reduced
maintenance costs complement
the initial reasons the district
implemented the improvements.
One staff member commented on
how nice it was to not have to hear
the buzzing sound of the former
lighting fixtures. “At first we were
worried about the changes, mainly
losing light levels in the gyms;
however, the opposite happened
and everyone was pleasantly
surprised with the results,” said Mr.
Wolfe.
“Our basketball team is now able
to walk out to the spot light
introduction ceremony they’ve
wanted for so long, because the
lights do not take 20 minutes to
turn on and off”.
The district is committed to
sustainability and currently has six
“Energy Star” labeled facilities,
while keeping their operating costs
per square foot significantly below
the average for Ohio schools.
Future Plans for Efficiency
The Adams County Ohio Valley
School District’s mission is: “To
reach excellence through
continuous improvement”. The
energy efficiency improvement
projects align directly with their
mission.
The district has recently submitted
two additional projects for energy
management systems and has
plans to continue striving for
energy efficiency and excellence
for their students and the local
community.
About AEP Ohio’s energy efficiency programs for businesses
AEP Ohio’s Business Incentives program provides cash incentives to help
business customers purchase and install energy efficient equipment. Prescriptive
incentives are available for common commercial and industrial measures including
lighting, HVAC, motors and drives, refrigeration, and food preparation and storage
equipment. Custom incentives are available for process improvements and other
measures not covered through prescriptive incentives. For more information, visit
AEPOhio.com/Incentives or call 1-877-607-0739.
AEPOhio.com/Incentives
877-607-0739
Disclaimer: AEP Ohio does not guarantee the
energy savings and does not make any
warranties associated with the measures eligible
for incentives under this program.