In an attempt to match supply and demand for power, the energy footprint of RHU’s buildings is being studied. The initial phase of this study is centered about Building E which houses both the administration and the cafeteria.

Measures to improve the energy efficiency of RHU’s buildings are currently:

• Installing low-e reflective films on all windows notably on the East, south and west sides.

Low-e glass minimizes summer heat gain by reflecting much of it. It also minimizes winter heat loss from the room by reflecting this back to the room rather than losing it to the outside.



• Replacing all lights with LEDs

Light-emitting diodes are the state of the art method of efficient lighting. A LED consumes much less power than other types as the figure shows. In addition, the declared lifetime of a LED is usually longer than that of a CFL.



• Using proximity sensors to control on-off times of lights

Usage patterns determine the amount of energy spent. It is wasteful to keep a light on when a room is not being used. Sensors automatically switch off the lights after a room stays vacant for a certain time.



• Maintaining HVAC equipment

AC equipment probably are the greatest consumers of any building unit. Faulty AC equipment can therefore consumes far more than they normally should need. As such regular maintenance should be performed and parts replacement if needed should be caught early.



• Replacing HVAC systems by central chillers – with an option to couple to ground-source heat exchangers (geothermal)
• Maintaining and Increasing usage of solar water heaters on dorm building

Solar water heaters (SWH) can save up to 50% of a typical hot water heating electricity bill. The RHU dorms have …solar water heaters, however it is not yet clear whether these are functioning properly or if more SWH’s are needed.

• Other measures to come