National Grid and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority today launched “Energy Efficiency For Health,” a powerful new partnership to help National Grid’s hospital customers across New York State reduce their energy usage, save on operating costs and cut greenhouse gas emissions through more efficient use of electricity and natural gas.
Under the new initiative, National Grid and NYSERDA will work together to provide hospitals with individualized and targeted technical assistance as well as up to $10 million in funding for energy efficiency initiatives that will generate as much as $5 million in annual energy savings.
Upstate University Hospital, the teaching hospital of SUNY Upstate Medical University, which has already instituted a number of energy-savings initiatives, is the first hospital in Upstate New York to participate in the energy efficiency cost-saving program and kicked off the event at its facility in Syracuse
Energy savings support will be offered for lighting, heating, cooling, insulation, retrocommissioning, data center operations, and other energy-intensive operations.
“Energy Efficiency For Health” brings together the program and technical resources of National Grid and NYSERDA to work collaboratively to identify energy efficiency opportunities for New York State hospitals, provide hands on account management, and assist hospitals through the design and implementation of sustainable, cost reducing, energy efficient measures and practices. Customized lists of energy efficiency measures will be developed and prioritized based on payback on investment, a phased implementation plan and customer goals as they relate to advancing critical care practices.
“Upstate Medical University and Upstate University Hospital are delighted to be Upstate pioneers in this venture with National Grid and NYSERDA,” said Upstate President David R. Smith, M.D. “We have made significant strides in becoming a more energy-efficient employer and look forward with our National Grid-NYSERDA partnership to creating even greater savings and efficiencies through this program.”
About 75 to 100 of the largest hospitals across New York State in National Grid’s service area were selected to participate in “Energy Efficiency For Health” based on hospital type, size, number of beds and relative age. Prior project activity in energy efficiency programs was considered as well. The hospital initiative includes electric and gas energy efficiency programs.
“Energy Efficiency For Health” consists of four main components:
- Technical Assistance Studies for hospitals interested in identifying their energy efficiency options.
- Energy Efficiency Incentives for retrofit and new construction projects to off-set the cost of energy efficiency improvements.
- Customer Installation Support to provide participating hospitals with a complete package that addresses all energy related issues critical to their facilities’ operation.
- Outreach, Education, and Marketing to recruit hospitals into the initiative.
To participate in the program, hospitals can call 1-866-774-8818. For additional information, customers can visit http://www.nyserda.org/HealthCare/default.asp.
Pictured above: SUNY Upstate Medical University is Central New York’s largest employer and the area’s only academic medical center, training medical professionals, conducting biomedical research and providing patient care through its teaching hospital, Upstate University Hospital, the Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital and an extensive network of specialty clinics, including the area’s only trauma center, burn center and poison center. Upstate is part of the State University of New York.
