Project Title:

Central Utility Plant Upgrades

Client:

University of Maryland, Baltimore County

Location:

Baltimore, MD

Summary:

The Central Utility Plant Upgrades at UMBC were provided under multiple contracts.  The projects consisted of the evaluation of existing High Temperature Hot Water (HTHW)  and chilled water generation systems to support the existing and projected campus loads.  The evaluations included the development of various options to improve system redundancy and reliability for the short term and long term campus requirements.  These various options considered optimal equipment sizing and system arrangements.  A detailed life cycle cost analysis was performed to determine the most cost effective solution. 

The initial campus utility plan was completed in 1996 and from the master plan, the existing central plant was expanded.  The design and construction of the modernization of the chilled water and HTHW systems included an above ground thermal storage system and was successfully commissioned in 2000.  The cost of the project was approximately $6,000,000. 

A HTHW generation / distribution master plan and analysis was completed in August 2002.  The master plan optimized various replacement strategies for the HTHW generations. 

Design for the HTHW Boiler Replacement project started in April of 2003 and was completed in September 2003.  This project consisted of the phased replacement of two 50,000 MBH HTHW boilers and modifications to the primary piping to improve system operation and redundancy.   The project was successfully bid within budget and construction is scheduled to be completed by August 2004. 

An analysis was completed in December 2003 to evaluate the existing HTHW expansion tank capacity and provide recommendations for automating the fill/make-up water system.