Continuing energy-saving success together  [27.10.23]

[Translate to English:] Auch in diesem Winter sollen die Thermometer zum Einsatz kommen, die letztes Jahr verteilt wurden, um die Raumtemperatur selbst zu überprüfen. Bild: Uni Hohenheim | more press photos in print quality

The acute energy crisis in Germany has been averted. But the topic remains topical for the University of Hohenheim. Although electricity and gas prices are now falling, the chancellor still expects actual additional costs in the millions in 2023.

"The state has promised us an aid payment that was announced some time ago. But this will cover a maximum of 75% of the additional costs. In all likelihood, it will be significantly less, because the state does not accept our real cost increases in its calculations, but uses a significantly higher fictitious energy cost budget for the past years as a reference value. We feel this shortfall very clearly - and it remains difficult to forecast the exact amount of additional costs that will remain with the university," says Dr Katrin Scheffer.

Successful energy balance

Nevertheless, the chancellor is optimistic about the future: "Our goal for 2023 is to reduce energy consumption on campus by 10% plus X compared to the last pre-Corona year. So far, we are on track with this, especially in the area of heat. This is due in no small part to the mindful behaviour of employees during the last heating season. If we manage to repeat this joint success this winter, we will probably not need any more budget cuts in 2024," says Scheffer.

The savings programme that the rectorate had announced for the Hohenheim institutions at the beginning of the year was already mitigated in May thanks to the easing of the energy market and the successful energy-saving efforts.

Mindful heating - also this winter

Even though the federal energy-saving regulation has officially expired in the meantime, the chancellor appeals to all university members to continue saving energy with the same commitment as before. This is important not only for financial but also for ecological reasons.

In concrete terms this means:

• Offices and lecture halls should not be heated warmer than 19 °C this winter.
• At night, on weekends and especially during longer absences, e.g. Christmas holidays, the temperature should be reduced to 16 °C. Employees are asked to turn down the radiators manually. Employees are requested to turn down the radiators manually for this purpose.
• The thermometers that were distributed last year should be used to check the room temperature independently.
• Electronic radiant heaters should only be used in exceptional cases and after an energy consultation.
• Hot water boilers should continue to be switched off completely.

"I would like to thank everyone who continued to support us in saving energy in everyday life. However, where the regulation led to very great hardship for employees last winter, we can now handle our guidelines a little more flexibly in individual cases," adds Scheffer.

LED replacement has started

So far, the university has achieved savings primarily in gas consumption. Electricity consumption, on the other hand, has been reduced only slightly. The first small successes have been achieved mainly through more economical cooling of the buildings in the summer months and more efficient use of the cooling system in the biology building.

Giancarlo Bragagnolo, Head of the Technical and Domestic Services (AT), sees considerable potential for saving electricity, which could be realised in the short term, especially in the area of lighting. The university's goal is therefore to replace all outdated light sources with energy-saving LEDs as quickly as possible.

"We have already created an important prerequisite for this," reports Bragagnolo. "During their tour of the campus at the beginning of the year, our energy-saving helpers recorded the current lighting in about 8,000 rooms for our digital MORADA system. On this basis, we can now plan the successive replacement more efficiently and set priorities. We were already able to install the first new LED lighting during the summer months. We also worked very well with the State Office for Property and Construction on this."

There is a need for action in a total of about 5800 rooms. How quickly LEDs can be installed across the board is therefore also a question of money. Welcome support has now come from the State Office for Property and Construction (Landesamt für Vermögen und Bau), which surprisingly took over the costs for the first replacement campaign in the Ö1 and Ö2 lecture halls in the summer. At the same time, the State Office has announced that it will provide further funds for the roll-out of the measure on campus in the future.

State examines modernisation of district heating network

There are also signs of movement regarding the urgently needed modernisation of the district heating network on campus: "The State Office for Property and Construction has now recognised the extent of the problem and is currently conducting a feasibility study. The results should be available in the coming months. From our point of view, an important first step is the hydraulic balancing of the individual campus buildings. Currently, we still consume too much energy because the heating systems on site are not well regulated," says Bragagnolo.

Text: Leonhardmair | Translation: International Office

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