Marlboro Park Going "Green"

Marlboro Park is going Green. Marlboro Park Hospital has committed to conserving energy by registering all facilities with Energy Star. Many who have purchased appliances over the last several years may have noticed a yellow Energy Star rating label. This label signifies the level of energy efficiency.

The first step is to gather utility bills for the prior two years and submit the data to Energy Star. This provides a baseline for monthly consumption of energy, which includes electricity and LP or natural gas. Steps are taken to identify potential energy savings opportunities. Initially, we had Grainger do a lighting audit. This survey consists of counting the number and type of all fixtures in the building. The majority of fixtures in the hospital are utilizing T12 bulbs and standard ballasts, which are large energy consumers.

We are retrofitting the lighting fixtures with energy efficient, electronic ballasts and T8 bulbs. The conversion will allow for cooler operation of the lighting fixtures and conserve energy and should reduce the building heat load, which will result in additional cooling savings. The project timeline runs through December, 2009 at a cost of $21,000. However, the simple payback on energy savings is approximately six months. This should result in annual savings of $40,000 in the coming years based on a fixed electricity rate.

The bulbs and ballasts carry a five year warranty and will provide good, quality light. In addition, as the bulbs age they do not have a noticeable decreasing output (lumens) as do the existing T12 bulbs, which is noticeable as you move through the corridors of the hospital. The first stage of retrofits will occur in the main corridor, then to departments operating 24 hours per day such as the Emergency Room and Radiology.

The Plant Operations department at Marlboro Park Hospital consist of Todd Hughes, Director; Ricky Stokes, and Clinton Williams. “I’m proud of the work our plant operation staff performs daily.” “They have a very large campus to take care of and they do so every day to make sure our patients and staff has excellent facilities”, states Jeff Reece, CEO.