Agenda item

(1)          Dr Zach Gill, Senior Energy Solutions Engineer and CoRE (Centre of Refurbishment Excellent) Retrofit Coordinator for Willmot Dixon, had to give his apologies as he was unwell. Dr Gill would have been interviewed alongside Mr Nick Swinford, who kindly offered to be interviewed in Dr Gill’s place, in regards to the energy security work Willmot Dixon was undertaking with the University of Kent.

 

(2)          The Chairman welcomed Mr Swinford to the Meeting. He introduced himself as the Assistant Director Estates: Infrastructure & Sustainability at the University of Kent. He gave his professional background as a chartered engineer with work history in the pharmaceutical industry and NHS. He has been working for the University of Kent for the last 24 years.

 

 

Mr Swinford then responded in full to the themes and questions suggested in the agenda on page 21.

 

(3)          Mr Swinford opened by stating that he is a chartered engineer who has been working at the University of Kent for 24 years. The University of Kent is working with Willmott Dixon on a £26m project constructing a new business, mathematics and statistics facility for the University. This is a sustainable building project focusing on energy conservation. Mr Swinford stated that the University’s motto for energy use is “Use less, want less.” The University has recently celebrated its 50 years anniversary and has been undergoing massive growth for years. The student population has increased to around 20,000 and they have also been undertaking large developments on the Medway Campus and the Chatham Historic Dockyard.

 

(4)       Reference was made to Kent’s ‘Little Blue Book’, a book from the University that has compiled key facts and figures about the University of Kent, which gave the following statistics;

            a) University and students contributed £600 million to the South East’s      economy.

            b) University of Kent students spend £211 million a year locally.

c) 27,000 University of Kent graduates have remained in Kent.

            The University achieved Carbon Trust Standard accreditation in 2009 a     nd Mr Swinford stated that he is certain that it will be reaccredited for 2015. The Carbon Trust Standard is an independently audited service         which measures an organisations carbon emission in many areas,             including its use of transport. The University of Kent is ensuring its       environmental management conforms to ISO 14001 guidelines.  The           University is Fair Trade accredited. 

 

(5)          The University of Kent’s Carbon Management Plan for 2010 to 2020 commits to a 23% absolute reduction measured against a 2005 baseline and latest figures have shown a 16% carbon emission reduction. Display Energy Certificates (DECs) are displayed for all University of Kent buildings including halls to publicise energy use.

 

(6)          Mr Swinford then described elements of the strategy in place in the University's building projects that favour energy security, of which a recent example is the over-cladding of the Ingram Building that cost £3.8 million. Roof insulation and cavity wall insulation has been included in all of these building projects. Double glazing and automatic doors have been installed wherever possible to ensure as little heat is lost as possible.  They have moved to using natural ventilation in their new builds. Lighting included in the new builds and the street lighting has been entirely LED. Modern boilers have been installed across the estate, and a building energy management system (provided by Honeywell) has been put in place.

 

(7)          In terms of using renewable resources the University of Kent has done its best to explore its options. All new buildings use photovoltaic arrays to generate approximately 10% of their energy. The addition of a 2MW wind turbine on University owned land has been considered. However, there are issues such as; the impact on protected species in the area (such as the great crested newt), the fact it would be in line of sight of the cathedral and the shadow flicker created by the wind turbine blades could be a nuisance to local residents.

 

(8)          Over the course of the past 7 years the University of Kent has run a behaviour change project the first two years, branded Degrees Cooler, was DEFRA funded. The University of Kent was 1 of 20 institutions selected in the first tranche to undertake this project. This year’s project - known as Green 15 - and fully funded by the University encourages staff teams to adopt environmentally friendly behaviour and offers awards to the teams who achieve environmental excellence.

 

(9)          Mr Swinford confirmed it was University of Kent policy to take every opportunity where an economic case that includes environmentally friendly options could be made. He reiterated that the new builds were naturally ventilated, used photovoltaic arrays and have a sedum roof. All of the buildings that are constructed are to at least a BREEAM very good standard. The new building being constructed by Willmott Dixon on campus aims for a BREEAM excellent rating. The University of Kent also uses bio-fuelled stagecoach buses in the area. To discourage students who live close by from using their cars, and therefore reducing carbon emissions from travel, the University does not allow students from postcodes that are close to the campus to park their cars at the University.

 

(10)       In regards to University accommodation there is over 300 houses on campus. They have a 10 year refurbishment program on these houses. There had been concerns over using solar-heated water for these houses as there is the risk of bacteria multiplying, of particular concern is Legionnaires Disease, as solar-water systems often cannot keep the water at a high enough temperature to prevent the bacteria proliferating. They have resolved this by having a system where high temperature boiler water is used to heat a small volume of hot water in a coil which is then drawn off as required for students to use.

 

(11)       Mr Swinford explained that in effect the University had two budgets to keep in mind. The first focusing on the University’s administrative buildings and laboratories while the second is for the residential halls. Energy security measures are included in both where it is economically sound.

The University has found it approximately 25% more efficient using plate heat exchangers rather than shell and tube calorifiers.

 

(12)       The University’s district heating boilers where installed in 1990. The University are looking to replace these with new energy efficient boilers and incorporate a large CHP engine as a part of their ‘District Heating Phase 2’ project. Previously ‘District Heating Phase 1’ dealt with upgrading distribution mains; the University invested £3.25m replacing all the pipes in 2012 with a Danish system called ‘Logstor’. Water temperature will be reduced to around 90 degrees and the CHP will generate 10% of the electricity for the site. The University’s district heating system is used between mid-September to mid-June.

 

(13)       Having secured a Salix loan of £320,000, along with £80,000 of the University’s own funds, a £400,000 Recycling Fund was established to invest in energy efficiency projects. Energy cost savings have been reinvested with a total investment of £700,000 so far.

In regards to challenges the University are facing Mr Swinford explained that over-cladding their Ingram Building addressed a major concern because it had been particularly inefficient but now heat losses have been significantly reduced.

 

(14)       Mr Swinford also confirmed that UK Power Networks cannot take electricity exported from the University as their infrastructure is inadequate in the area. Because of this the University aim to generate just enough power so as not to have an excess. Challenges include difficulties around the availability of long-term loans for energy projects, as well as the fact that cheap gas prices currently undermine energy conservation projects.

 

Mr Swinford finished responding to the themes and questions suggested in the agenda and took questions from the Committee.

 

Q. Could Officers approach UK Power Networks in regards to the infrastructure and improving it?

 

(15)       Mr Romagnuolo undertook to provide Members with a map of the UK Power Networks infrastructure in Kent.

 

(16)        Mr Swinford highlighted the importance of considering how power would be prioritised should Kent suffer a serious power loss.

 

Q. In your view, and the University’s view, what can KCC do?

 

(17)       Mr Swinford stated that KCC could lobby for more financial support from Central Government for organisations to invest in energy conservation. For the University to pursue energy conservation it has to be economically sustainable due to other budgetary needs.

 

Q.   What is the principle driving force for such projects?

 

(18)       Mr Swinford stated that a lot of money was spent on energy. There was money to be saved in the long term if less energy was required. This money could then be spent on improvements to the core work of teaching and research.

 

Q. To what extent is this driven by legislation?

 

(19)       Mr Swinford explained that in this the University was no different than any other organisation. Local planners tended to have their own ideas on how to pursue the University’s projects. The University had had to refer a planning decision to the Secretary of State.

 

Q. What plans would you do if you were able to fund more?

 

(20)       Mr Swinford stated that they would go ahead with District Heating Phase 2, which would cost around £7m.

 

Q. How does the University deal with waste?

 

(21)       Mr Swinford confirmed that they had a waste management strategy in place. The waste was segregated and managed by Cloud Sustainability Software. Non-recyclable waste was incinerated off of the University estate for power generation.

 

Q. Will there be a return on the CHP investment? Where does the University stand with its peers?

 

(22)       Mr Swinford explained that the Higher Education Statistics Agency collected statistics annually and these were available to the public. The University of Kent were performing well in their benchmarked group of Universities. He agreed to confirm after the meeting exactly where the University of Kent was in this table.

 

Q.  Is there concern of a power cut?

 

(23)       Mr Swinford stated that there was a narrowing margin between available power and demand. This was due primarily to removal of old plant (i.e. nuclear), and a failure on the part of Central Government to invest in new capacity capable of providing a base load for the system.

 

 Q. Coal provides a lot of energy and we are cutting back on this. How is the best way to respond?

 

(24)       Mr Swinford stated that reducing our energy demand was the best response. There should be more incentive for local generation as local generation helps to avoid (energy) distribution loss across the power network.

 

Q. Does the University get any energy from food waste?

 

(25)       Mr Swinford confirmed that oil from food waste was taken and recycled into biofuel.

 

Q. Have you noticed a reduction in maintenance costs?

 

(26)       Mr Swinford stated that it had not been more expensive. For example the cost of lighting has fallen now LEDs are used. The quality of the light is better and for CCTV it makes facial recognition far easier. Where University maintenance costs were rising, this was due primarily to the fact that the University of Kent is growing in size as a university.

 

Q - Following the closure of Chatham Dockyard what we see at Chatham Dockyard today, including those buildings restored by the University, is the result of hard work of Medway people. What is your view?

 

(27)       Mr Swinford agreed that a lot of skilled labour came from the Dockyards. The University of Kent had refurbished the old Drill Hall and the Pilkington Building. These would prove great facilities for the students. The Clock Tower Building and the old Fire Station had also been refurbished into useful accommodation and research facilities.

 

(28)       The Chairman thanked Mr Swinford for speaking in place of Dr Gill.