Energy and Water Saving Strategies at Universities

1. Energy and water saving strategies J Lavarack & M Buchhorn

2. Soft systems and hard hats Communication processes for utilities management Campus Property & Services

3. About us Environmental Strategies, Campus Property & Services

4. Overview I: Resource pressures - NSW II: Utilities management at the University history 2005-6: Audits & Savings Action Plans III: Consultation and engagement Benefits Our Method Some outcomes

5. I: Resource Pressures

6. Water and energy challenges for NSW • Drought • Water restrictions • Energy demand • Blackout risk

7. ..and implications for the University • Large Consumer • Energy trending up • Sports fields

8. ..and implications for the University • State government mandate: Energy & Water Audits Energy & Water Savings Action Plans • State government Savings Funds • NSW State Government Environment Trust – education grant This project has been assisted by the New South Wales Government through its Environment Trust

9. II: Utilities Management at the University

10. Management activities 1998-current • Dedicated manager • Utilities Management System • Housekeeping • Design guidelines • Working groups & Discussion Papers

11. Developing Savings Action Plans: 2005-6 • Management Review • Audit – Level 3 AS/NZS 3598:2000 • baseline data desktop from UIS • 15 buildings audited – water • 10+ buildings underway - energy • Savings Actions Plans - 4 years

12. Water Savings Actions identified for 2007-2010 • Leak detection • Flow restriction • Rainwater harvesting • Waste water re-use

13. Summary: Savings Action Planning activities Ongoing Utilities & Facilities Planning Technical auditing Communication & Relationships ‘Management Reviews’

14. Exploring communication & relationship building: Technical auditing? Utilities & Facilities Planning activities? Communication & relationship building activities ? ‘Management Reviews’

15. Is there more to ‘communication strategies…than ‘awareness raising’? ‘Engineered Awareness’ Source: Les Robinson

16. III: Consultation & Engagement

17. Auditing can deliver quantitative estimates…… ……However ‘qualitative’ questions remain: What issues occupy people’s time within the organisation? How do people at the university influence utilities consumption?

18. Our ‘stance’:Consultation and ‘engagement’ as a cornerstone of Utilities Planning

19. Ignore ‘soft systems’ at your own risk when.. The University is devolved: • Institutional / building knowledge is devolved • Plans need to reflect ‘local settings’ • CP&S relies on local or Faculty based ‘agents’ for facilities management activities

20. Benefits of consultation & ‘engagement’? Involve those who will ‘live with’ planning decisions To co-develop more robust solutions

21. Benefits of consultation & ‘engagement’? In some instances, occupants influence the environmental performance of their building… Eg: air conditioning control panels Design success requires understanding of how people respond to local conditions and equipment

22. Engaging - Benefits ‘good housekeeping’ involves the daily practice of all staff Consult to reveal ‘motivators’ for change amongst ‘target groups’

23. Engaging - Benefits Our ‘engagement method’, applied across 15+ buildings Reduced the number of buildings required for a technical audit on campus

24. PROFILING INTERVIEWS ASSUMPTIONS • buildings are the most relevant “management unit” (cf. sub-catchments) • presence of building users with relevant (tacit) knowledge/experience • an interview can ‘capture’ this knowledge Physics Building and Tennis Courts

25. ACTION APPROACH SKILLS 1. MAKING CONTACT • Initial contact found through: • Reports from facility managers • Complaints records • Chance information kept and annotated • Other interviewees • Open manner • Respectful • Non-threatening • Voluntary • Purposeful Managing complex data sets Uni live week

26. ACTION APPROACH SKILLS 2. SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEW • Agreement for initial interview and note taking • Confidentiality and access to notes • Digress and finish all the questions Reflective • Story telling - history • Inviting interpretation • Receptive to frustration and enthusiasm • Bracketing • Attentive listening

27. ACTION APPROACH SKILLS 3. INTERPRETATION • Interviewers • Interviewees • Relevant technicians (eg. HVAC, project managers) • Share interpretation and use of data • Share responsibility for data • Facilitation • Communic-ation tool develop-ment

28. 4. THE INTERVIEW

29. ‘Profiling’ – Outcomesin terms of relationships • An emerging, ‘self generating’ network of faculty based ‘building managers’ that is: • - clarifying issues • identifying their own ‘capacity building needs’ • clarifying the role of Environmental Strategies Team • providing a network of local representatives of a ‘franchised’ approach to communication

30. ‘Profiling’ – Outcomes in relation to Savings Action Plans Understanding of where ‘local capacity’ lies for Water Savings & Energy Savings initiatives A process to develop processes for local implementation

31. ‘Profiling’ – Outcomes in relation to “Green Buildings” Growing understanding of where it’s strategic to undertake communication for environmental outcomes within the project/building cycle: --- design---build---commission----tuneup Capacity for ongoing dialogue with occupants to understand communication needs: from their perspective

32. Lunch Please reconvene at 2pm on Level 3, Ballroom A/ Ante (adjacent to the Trade Exhibition)