Photo By Douglas Stutz | Helping to shed light on some conservational energy...Capt. Jeffrey Bitterman, Naval...... read more read more
Naval Hospital Bremerton (NHB) received the Fiscal Year 2017 Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) Energy and Water Management Award for the command’s continued emphasis on energy efficiency and water conservation.
“We are the only facility in BUMED to receive this recognition. Our Facilities Management team is setting the bar high with their behind the scene efforts. What they do is amazing. It’s not easy dealing with the elements in a structure like ours that’s been here since 1980. Kudos to Russ Kent and his team for this fantastic news,” said Capt. Jeffrey Bitterman, Naval Hospital Bremerton Commanding Officer.
NHB was awarded the Gold Level of achievement that indicates a very good to outstanding energy program. The SECNAV 4101.2 instruction notes that energy action equals mission success and drives the Department of the Navy to seize all reasonable opportunities to reduce the logistical constraints imposed by the procurement, storage, and delivery of energy to naval forces. Access to secure, reliable energy and water is critical to providing sustained forward presence.
NHB was also one of only two Navy military treatment facilities recognized by the Secretary of the Navy's Energy and Water Management Award program with the Gold Level achievement for fiscal year 2016.
Additionally, NHB was a recipient of the Chief of Naval Operations Environmental Award for Fiscal Year 2016 for the command’s continued environmental stewardship and sustainability efforts.
“More than anything, this (award) indicates that NHB has adopted energy conservation as a routine behavior, rather than an occasional emphasis item. From small thing such as turning off unused lights and reporting water leaks, to incorporating new technology and conservation opportunities in facility repair projects and large-scale renovation projects, energy conservation is continuous effort,” said Russell Kent, NHB Facilities Management Department head.
An example of NHB’s commitment to energy efficiency was the installation of a lighting control system which reduces the intensity of lights throughout the complex. The lighting system also dims the lights when it senses a room is unoccupied. NHB has also been swapping out older fluorescent lighting with newer and more energy efficient LED lights.
NHB’s power plant underwent a modernization project that further helped to reduce energy expenses and increase efficiency in energy usage that included improvements made to the hospital’s boilers in providing steam for equipment sterilization, heating the main hospital and family practice wing and hot water heating needs. The decades-old heat ventilation (and) air conditioning (HVAC) units were replaced with more energy efficient units to provide a better control of air flow throughout the main hospital.
Water conservation has become an all-hands effort at NHB, even if it’s just one drop at a time. Bottle fillers were installed at 14 drinking fountains throughout the command, and have been showing consistent usage leading to ecofriendly benefits. Just one bottle filler is on average dispensing the equivalent of 192 bottles of water in one work week, thus theoretically keeping that many plastic containers out of recycle bins, trash cans and landfills.
“In line with the Fiscal Year 2017 Commander Navy Installation Command Strategic Guidance we worked to identify projects and develop policies to advance and support Navy's goals in sustainable energy and energy savings, which include consumption reduction, conservation and renewable energy. Over the past three years we have had an 11 percent decrease in energy consumption. This reduction is due to our targeted efforts to improve the power plant by replacing our outdated gas boilers with a bank of four condensing boilers and two dedicated steam boilers, a complete chiller plant overhaul and upgrade, and HVAC replacement and repairs. Additionally, our staff continues to identify novel approaches to reduce energy and water consumption throughout all of NHB and its branch clinics,” stated Cmdr. Robert T. McMahon III, NHB Director for Administration.
Led by the understated but essential work of Facilities Management, the approximately 1,400 staff assigned to NHB and Branch Health Clinic Bangor, BHC Everett and BHC Puget Sound Naval Shipyard staff continues to set ecological awareness standards, one fiscal year at a time.
| Date Taken: | 11.03.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 11.03.2017 19:52 |
| Story ID: | 254085 |
| Location: | BREMERTON, WA, US |
| Web Views: | 154 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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