Alliant Energy helps Upper Iowa University invest in students
New student center on campus features geothermal technology to reduce energy costs
WEST UNION, Iowa – Aug. 24, 2011 – Students at Upper Iowa University are already benefitting from a smart, energy-saving decision. In 2011, students started enjoying a new student center with many cost-saving, energy-saving features. Interstate Power and Light Company, an Alliant Energy company, helped find the best ways to conserve energy, and money in the design of this new building.
The student center features a geothermal heating and cooling system, which takes advantage of the constant ground temperature just a few feet below the surface. In the winter, heat is taken out of the ground. In the summer, cold is taken from the ground. This project also featured enhanced insulation on the walls and roof. Energy-savings also came from occupancy control sensors for lights.
"At Upper Iowa University, we are committed to the vision of helping our students develop into responsible global citizens. As a university, we believe it is our responsibility to teach and mentor environmental responsibility, not only through our curriculum, but through our behaviors," said Dr. Alan G. Walker, president of Upper Iowa University. "Consequently, our new buildings are designed to be gentler on the environment, in part by significantly reducing energy consumption. We are pleased by the cost savings but even more pleased that we are reducing our impact on the environment."
By taking these steps, instead of simply following the building standards in the Iowa building code, engineers expect the energy bill to be reduced by $70,525 a year. As a part of Alliant Energy’s Commercial New Construction program this project qualified for an incentive of $158,432.
Alliant Energy offers the Commercial New Construction program to assist owners and design teams in evaluating potential energy conservation strategies for new and renovated building projects. The customer, project design team and utility personnel work together from the start of the conceptual design. They use building performance simulation modeling to identify and implement cost-effective energy efficiency approaches that improve the overall energy efficiency of a building. To qualify, the enhancements must create energy savings at least 15 percent greater than projected energy use if the building had been designed to the standards required through the Iowa building code. The new student center at Upper Iowa uses 52 percent less electricity and 42 percent less natural gas.
"The Commercial New construction program gets customers to think about energy efficiency from the very beginning of the project. That early planning really pays off when it comes to reducing energy bills," said Jeanine Penticoff, director of energy efficiency at Alliant Energy.
The Commercial New Construction program can be utilized for new commercial buildings and major remodeling projects. It is available to Alliant Energy retail electric and gas customers located in its Iowa or Minnesota service territory. For more information on Alliant Energy’s Commercial New Construction program, visit alliantenergy.com/newconstruction or call 1-866-ALLIANT (1-866-255-4268).
Alliant Energy is an energy-services provider with subsidiaries serving approximately 1 million electric and over 412,000 natural gas customers. Providing its customers in the Midwest with regulated electric and natural gas service is the company’s primary focus. Interstate Power and Light, the company’s Iowa utility subsidiary, serves 530,000 electric and 235,000 natural gas customers and is headquartered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Alliant Energy is a Fortune 1000 company traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol LNT. For more information, visit the company’s Web site at www.alliantenergy.com.
Media Contact: Justin Foss 319-786-4788