Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 57.92
Liaison Keisha Payson
Submission Date Feb. 25, 2016
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

Bowdoin College
OP-8: Building Energy Consumption

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.36 / 6.00 Keisha Payson
Sustainability Coordinator
Facilities Mgmt
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Total building energy consumption, all sources (transportation fuels excluded):
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total building energy consumption 230,361 MMBtu 233,257 MMBtu

Purchased electricity and steam:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Grid-purchased electricity 59,999 MMBtu 62,617 MMBtu
District steam/hot water 0 MMBtu 0 MMBtu

Gross floor area of building space::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Gross floor area 2,041,652 Gross square feet 1,968,654 Gross square feet

Floor area of energy intensive space, performance year::
Floor Area
Laboratory space 75,700 Square feet
Healthcare space 0 Square feet
Other energy intensive space

Degree days, performance year (base 65 °F)::
Degree days (see help icon above)
Heating degree days 7,997
Cooling degree days 484

Source-site ratios::
Source-Site Ratio (see help icon above)
Grid-purchased electricity 3.14
District steam/hot water 1.20

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or 3-year periods)::
Start Date End Date
Performance Year July 1, 2014 June 30, 2015
Baseline Year July 1, 2004 June 30, 2005

A brief description of when and why the building energy consumption baseline was adopted:

This is the baseline year we have used throughout all of our STARS reporting during our 2011 and 2013 submissions, and we have made an effort to continue to use it for this most recent submission.


A brief description of any building temperature standards employed by the institution:

Bowdoin has two energy management systems. Johnson Controls Metasys is one system monitoring 90% of the buildings. Invensys/Vykon System monitors the remaining 10%. Timers are set for 85% of campus buildings. These buildings are monitored by Facilities Management during business hours and by the Office of Safety and Security's Communications Center during non-business hours.


A brief description of any light emitting diode (LED) lighting employed by the institution:

Bowdoin began installing LED lighting on campus in November 2010. Since that time over one dozen campus building are utilizing LED lighting, with more being converted each year. Starting in the fall of 2015 the Sustainability Office began offering LED bulbs to students during Orientation, replacing the CFL distribution program.


A brief description of any occupancy and/or vacancy sensors employed by the institution:

Bowdoin uses several types of vacancy controls to reduce unnecessary energy consumption. The College uses occupancy sensors in spaces like restrooms, classrooms, and the library's stacks as part of a lighting control system which turns off lights in offices and classrooms when unoccupied.

Additionally, Bowdoin uses day-lighting controls in many building spaces that have ample daylight (i.e. hallways and stairwells) by shutting lights off via a photo sensor when it is sunny outside, but turning them on at night and on cloudy/rainy days.


A brief description of any passive solar heating employed by the institution:
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A brief description of any ground-source heat pumps employed by the institution:

Bowdoin uses a geothermal heating and cooling system for two of the first-year residential dorms. By drilling a series of wells, pumping the water to the surface and running it through compressors and heat exchangers, it is possible to heat and cool entire buildings with groundwater while reducing the College's reliance on fossil fuels. Bowdoin also uses a geothermal heating and cooling system for Studzinski Recital Hall.The building uses water from two 1,500-foot-deep wells and heat pumps. Well-insulated groundwater, pumped into the building, remains at a constant temperature of around 50 degrees; the heat pumps extract 15 to 20 degrees to heat or cool the buildings. The system allows Bowdoin to save more than 40 percent of the energy usually consumed in a similarly sized building.


A brief description of any cogeneration technologies employed by the institution:

In 2012 the College installed a new back pressure steam turbine that was part of a combined heat and power project to use excess steam energy to generate electricity for campus consumption, offsetting electricity previously purchased from the grid. The cogeneration system supplies approximately 8% of the total campus electricity consumption, thus helping Bowdoin cut its energy costs and carbon emissions.


A brief description of any building recommissioning or retrofit program employed by the institution:

Bowdoin recently completed a recommissioning of the Druckenmiller science building, which is our most energy intensive building on campus. Based on the positive experience, we have developed a list of priority buildings that include complex mechanical systems to consider for future recommissioning project.


A brief description of any energy metering and management systems employed by the institution:

Bowdoin's Building Dashboard monitors energy use at 57 Bowdoin buildings plus several larger meters that monitor regions of campus. Between these locations Bowdoin is utilizing 30 steam meters, 52 electricity meters and two meters monitoring solar hot water production. Dashboard allows users to compare energy usage between various campus buildings, monitor energy competitions, and allows for analysis of building energy usage over time.


A brief description of the institution's program to replace energy-consuming appliances, equipment and systems with high efficiency alternatives:

It has been standard protocol for the past 12 years for Bowdoin to replace any older equipment such as refrigerators and air conditioning units with energy star rated appliances.


A brief description of any energy-efficient landscape design initiatives employed by the institution:

During the winter, the grounds crew intentionally leaves certain pathways across the central campus unplowed in an effort to minimize costs, emissions, salt use and lawn damage.

The Grounds Department has allocated funds to purchase electric-powered equipment by the end of the current fiscal year, with plans to test their performance in comparison to the current gasoline-powered equipment.


A brief description of any vending machine sensors, lightless machines, or LED-lit machines employed by the institution:

To accommodate the student "One Card" swipe system, during the winter break of 2010-11 Bowdoin upgraded all vending machines with either energy star machines or machines with the Elstat energy monitoring system, while at the same time eliminating many underutilized vending machines on campus. Ten of the 14 machines remaining on campus are Energy Star rated, utilizing more efficient compressors, fan motors, and lighting systems to keep beverages just as cold and the machine visible while using less energy. The remaining 4 machines utilize the Elstat energy management system, which learns the patterns of the environment in which the machine operates, ensuring optimum operating temperatures are maintained exactly when required and not a minute more.


A brief description of other energy conservation and efficiency initiatives employed by the institution:
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The website URL where information about the institution’s energy conservation and efficiency initiatives is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.