| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Editorial Contact:
John Batdorf,
UHEAC Executive Director
o 248-693-1021
c 810-908-9976
john@uheac.org
LOCAL COALITION FORMED TO REDUCE
BUILDING ENERGY COSTS
Free Seminar
Series to be Held at Oakland University this Fall
Oxford, MI -
September 22, 2008 - Are you a business or building owner
looking for ways to reduce energy costs? A newly-formed
coalition of non-profit, business and public organizations,
called ReBuild Oakland County, wants to help. The coalition
includes Upland Hills Ecological Awareness Center (UHEAC),
Oakland University, Oakland County Planning and Development, DTE
Energy and Midwest Illumination and is funded by a grant from
the ReBuild Michigan program of the State Energy Office of the
Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Growth.
The Rebuild Michigan Program fosters partnerships that promote
increased energy efficiency within a community. Partners may
include local governments, schools, universities, businesses,
non-profit organizations and public housing authorities. With
assistance from state government and other partners each
community can determine energy saving opportunities and goals
and work to implement an energy action plan.
"Under the ReBuild Michigan program, we have a unique
opportunity to provide free energy education to a wide audience
of local building owners and managers, and to provide free
energy service to a limited number of local buildings," said
John Batdorf, UHEAC Executive Director. "We are part of a
nationwide effort to improve building energy efficiency and
conservation through public/private partnerships."
As part of its grant, ReBuild Oakland County is offering a
seminar series entitled "BUILDING ENERGY SAVINGS" throughout the
fall. These fast-paced introductory seminars will be offered
free of charge to local businesses and public/commercial
building managers. The 2-hour seminars will be held at the
Oakland Center of Oakland University and start at 3pm on
Thursday October 9th, November 6th and December 4th.
The seminars will teach participants how to take control of
their energy expenses. The program will include an overview of
building energy use and savings opportunities by James Leidel,
OU Energy Manager. Leidel will discuss the 5-step Energy Star
process, energy audits including case studies of local
businesses, and energy savings measures with a focus on return
on investment (ROI). He will also review the renewable energy
alternatives available for local buildings, including solar,
wind and biomass. Terry Summerlee, President of Midwest
Illuminations, will highlight the most cost-effective energy
savings measures including lighting and building controls
upgrades. He will offer many examples of buildings that have
realized significant, cost-effective energy savings. Ample time
will be provided for questions and answers. Seminar seating is
limited and early registration is recommended. To register,
visit
www.uheac.org
and click the Register for Events link.
A
Saturday November 1st seminar will be presented by DTE Energy
and will be held at 3pm at the Oakland Center in conjunction
with the Fifth U.S. Conference on Peak Oil and Community
Solutions (www.plancconference.org).
Upland Hills Ecological Awareness Center is a non-profit
organization dedicated to providing experiences and resources
that promote a sustainable relationship with the natural world
and each other. It is a designated Michigan Energy Demonstration
Center and its facility demonstrates thoughtful ecological
design, energy conservation and renewable energy. It is located
in rural northern Oakland County at 2375 Indian Lake Rd in
Oxford, MI 48370. UHEAC can be contacted at 248-693-1021 or
info@uheac.org.
Its website is
www.uheac.org.
Established in 1993, Midwest Illumination is a company
specializing in the design, engineering, and implementation of
energy conservation projects. Midwest has a team of experts that
offers state-of-the-art energy efficient building automation
technology. Midwest is not a manufacturer of equipment, so does
not have vested interest in using a specific product. As
independent Energy Conservation Consultants, they specialize in
delivering the right solutions to new and existing facilities.
Midwest Illumination brings energy efficient technology to
commercial and industrial plants, retail outlets, offices and
schools. Visit
www.mwillumination.com.
OU Energy Manager, James Leidel, has been involved in the HVAC
control and energy industries since his graduation from the
Purdue University mechanical engineering department in 1990. He
has worked in various positions with Invensys Building Systems,
Detroit Edison, and now Oakland University. Following a masters
degree in mechanical engineering at UM - Dearborn, he is
presently completing his PhD dissertation at Oakland U., which
will optimize a building-integrated hybrid thermal-electric
solar collector. Recently, James has been researching,
home-brewing, and promoting the use of vegetable oil based
biodiesel. At Oakland, he designed and installed a 10kW roof
integrated PV system, a small hybrid wind/solar installation,
and is now developing projects to provide a fully sustainable
utility infrastructure to the entire campus. Visit
www.oakland.edu/energy. |
