The Boy in the Bubble: Abundant Caution Causing Excessive Waste in Hospitals
Abstract
Hospitals account for more than 4% of all energy used in commercial buildings in the United States despite only representing 2% of the total square footage. The energy intensity and ubiquity of these facilities make them attractive candidates for energy efficiency improvements. However, they are dominated by a culture where failure is not an option and trail-blazing in the name of efficiency is eschewed. Critical environments in these facilities, such as laboratories, patient spaces, and operating rooms, are often served by systems for which the primary design criteria are safety and dependability. Energy efficiency is frequently overlooked both in the design phase and in operation as it is seen to add complexity and potential for failure. As a result, these systems are overdesigned or operated in a way that is unnecessarily wasteful out of fear of potential issues.
In this paper, we examine several different energy efficiency measures at large hospitals following recommendations from energy audits. Some of these measures were implemented while others were not pursued. These measures include reducing air change rates in operating rooms during unoccupied periods, optimizing laboratory exhaust systems to efficiently respond to varying wind speeds and other factors, removing HEPA filtration where unnecessary, reducing cooling tower winterizer setpoints, and reducing occupied air change rates in other areas. We will examine each of these measure’s costs, benefits, barriers to implementation, and applicability across the industry. We also discuss the culture at these facilities and how to best engage with stakeholders to achieve results.
The Boy in the Bubble: Abundant Caution Causing Excessive Waste in Hospitals
Wittberg, N., Kleinhenz, P. ACEEE 2018 Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings.