One of the missions of UBC Facilities’ Energy and Water Services (EWS) is to conserve and reduce energy, waste, and eliminate greenhouse gas emissions to support UBC’s Climate Action Plan, approved by the UBC Board of Governors in 20211.
To advance its energy conservation vision, UBC EWS successfully partnered with BC Hydro and FortisBC, securing financial funding for installation of occupancy sensors as in a number of buildings across campus.
The project installed occupancy sensors in 10 buildings on the UBC campus, with an estimated annual energy savings of 143,200 kWh. This will directly reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 1.62 tonnes of CO2 equivalent (tCO2e)2.
Occupancy sensors are physically integrated in classrooms, lecture halls, shared meeting rooms, and large open spaces. These sensors provide feedback signals to the building’s mechanical systems, further enhancing system optimization.
The newly installed occupancy sensors enhance energy conservation by optimizing heating and cooling modes based on real-time room usage. This leads to reduced energy consumption and lower operational costs through reduced run time hours and reduced wear and tear on building mechanical systems.
The feedback from sensors is used to adjust fan speeds and outdoor damper positions to ensure efficient system performance. Additionally, they improve overall comfort and functionality within university facilities by maintaining ideal environmental conditions, tailored to actual occupancy, thus creating a more comfortable and productive learning environment.
One project space is the lecture hall in the Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability building.
1 University of British Columbia. (n.d.). Climate action plan. UBC Sustainability. Retrieved June 3, 2024, from https://sustain.ubc.ca/campus/climate-action/climate-action-plan
2 Government of British Columbia. (n.d.). Electricity sector: Greenhouse gas quantification and reporting. Retrieved June 3, 2024, from https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/environment/climate-change/industry/reporting/quantify/electricity