Guma Hustisia’s air-conditioning retrofit completed

The Guma Hustisia has received a much needed upgrade to their air-conditioning system thanks to funding provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act’s State Energy Program.

The ARRA State Energy Program funding awarded to the CNMI Division of Energy is focused on promoting the concept of “going green.” This project is a great example of incorporating technology to increase energy efficiency, which leads to cost savings for the Commonwealth.

Prior to the retrofit of the air-conditioning system, readings were taken to gauge the effectiveness of the new units and to measure the cost savings. The initial numbers showed that the Guma Hustisia was using about 130,600 kilowatts a month. Using data provided by the Commonwealth Utilities Corp., the recent numbers for the month of July showed that the usage has dropped to 104,800 kW. At the current rate of $.34 per kWh, this means a savings of about $108,360.00 a year or 20 percent.

New technology was installed as a part of this upgrade, which monitors the time in which each compressor has been working. Once it senses that a particular compressor has been working longer than the others, it will send a signal to the cold-water chiller to shut that particular compressor off and activate the others. This will allow for the other compressors to work until they are equal in time and the temperature has been satisfied. This will help to provide for a longer lifespan for these compressors and less time between overhauls while ensuring that there is no gap in air-conditioning service within the Guma Hustisia.

Prior to this project, the Guma Hustisia had three separate 110-ton chillers, one of which was inoperable. The inoperable chiller has now been replaced with a new 200-ton oil-free chiller and turbo core compressor. The other two chillers have received an upgrade to their existing electrical systems in addition to having new refrigerant piping installed. The Guma Hustisia runs a daily building load of 200 tons, which was being met by using the two 110-ton chillers. The new 200-ton chiller has allowed the Guma Hustisia to use one chiller instead of two to meet its daily building load, leading to a savings in utility bills.

“The project is now officially 100-percent complete as of Aug. 17,” said project manager Andrew Ashburn of Red Rock LLC. “The courthouse is operating with an energy efficient air-conditioning system for the first time. This ARRA funded project installed three condenser units and a 200-ton chiller.”

Staffers have also stated how surprised they are that the system works so well. They also said that they now have a nice cool consistent temperature for working and that the project went very well.

“The CNMI ARRA Office in association with the CNMI Division of Energy is proud to help the CNMI realize the benefits of the State Energy Program,” said CNMI ARRA communications manager Fred Camacho. “This project will go a long way to benefit not only the hard working employees of the Guma Hustisia building, but the various members of the community who conduct business there as well.” [B][I](Office of the Governor)
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