Load Shedding for Electric Chillers

At Western Michigan University, we are doing our part to minimize our carbon footprint by reducing our electrical usage during peak demand hours. Load shedding for our on-campus electric chillers is one way we do this. Using historical data trending techniques, engineers at the WMU Facilities Management Department Engineering Division determine a peak demand set point for each day. The peak demand set point is programmed into the building automation system, which is used to trigger a rolling shutdown of each of the electric chillers located on campus. Depending on the duration of the shutdown for each chiller, electrical usage on campus is reduced in excess of two megawatts! The potential of load shedding can add a significant savings to the University and offset more than 20 metric tons of sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide, all greenhouse gases.