In the News: GBA Energy Audits Identify Potential Savings as Part of Resourceful Kansas Program

GBA conducts energy audit of United Way Building, Lawrence, Kansas 

The United Way building in Lawrence, Kansas, got an energy check-up earlier this week and the Lawrence Journal-World was there to chronicle the event! Thanks to Resourceful Kansas, an extraordinary program designed to help Kansans implement projects that will save energy, GBA’s Kevin Juhl and Brian Huff conducted the energy audit at no cost to Douglas County, which owns the building. The United Way building houses 21 nonprofit organizations.
 
According to the Journal-World, “What they found wasn’t promising: a heating and cooling system that has been in place since the building opened as a nursing home in the early 1960s.” But Juhl and Huff “were impressed with how the United Way has managed heating and cooling the building with the old system in place” and found energy use “…pretty good, based on national averages.” GBA will take this and other detailed information obtained during the facility audit to develop customized cost and benefit reviews and a prioritized list of energy-saving technologies.

 

The Resourceful Kansas program, which is funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, is designed to promote energy conservation, energy efficiency, and renewable energy throughout the state. Participants attend a one-day seminar hosted by Resourceful Kansas partners GBA, Riley County Public Works, and Kansas State University at the Riley County Public Works facility, where they learn about the types of energy-saving technologies available, tour real-world examples, and learn about sources of capital available. GBA’s team of architects, engineers, and construction managers then conduct the energy audits for a select group of participants and will provide support to help these participants integrate concepts into their own facilities.

 

To date, two seminars have been held at the Riley County Public Works facility with a third scheduled for July 27.  Over the course of the program, at least 120 organizations will attend the seminars and at least 80 organizations will receive energy audits through the program. For more information or to apply for the Resourceful Kansas program, click here.

GBA Selected to Serve as MoDOT BEAP Consultant

Jim Jarrett, P.E.
GBA Bridge Group Leader

MoDOT has selected GBA to participate in the Bridge Engineering Assistance Program, or BEAP as it is more commonly known. This important program provides engineering assistance to local public agencies throughout the state that do not have their own engineering staff to evaluate, prioritize, and develop design solutions for bridge maintenance, rehabilitation, and repair. GBA will be placed on a list of pre-approved BEAP consultants available to provide engineering services for structural analysis and prioritized design of rehab and repair.

Over the years, GBA has worked with MoDOT, KDOT, and with numerous cities and counties to realize savings for their bridge projects. GBA Bridge Group Leader Jim Jarrett, PE, and Bridge Design Engineer Jon Karst, PE, talk about some projects that may have similarities to your projects, with savings that may surprise you! 

Resourceful Kansas Gets a Nod on the DOE's Energy Blog

It turns out there’s more to harvest in Kansas than just wheat and soybeans. At least that's according to a post on the DOE's Energy Blog: Resourceful Kansas Puts Energy Efficient Technology on Display, Demonstrates Cost-Saving Benefits. 

According to public affairs specialist Lindsey Geisler, as one of the windiest states in the country, (Kansas is) a great place to harness wind power. And through the Department of Energy's Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program, the Resourceful Kansas team of GBA, Riley County Public Works, and Kansas State University is teaching the rest of the state about a wide variety of technologies available. 

Read more about the program on the DOE's Energy Blog or visit the Resourceful Kansas webite. You may be eligible to participate!