AFNWC directorate saves energy

  • Published
  • By Col. Clarence "CJ" Johnson
  • Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center Nuclear Capabilities Directorate
KIRTLAND AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. --  Slightly more than eight months ago, the men and women of the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center's Nuclear Capabilities Directorate stepped up to take on a challenge to reduce energy consumption within its buildings at Kirtland AFB by 5 to 8 percent over 12 months.
 
Our internal reduction targets were set at $6,000 (threshold) and $9,000 (objective). To date, we have saved more than $8,000 off of our fiscal year 2011 performance standard. At this rate, the possibility exists we'll beat our threshold target by nearly twice over.

The initiative was one in a series of Director's Challenge projects we embarked on together earlier this year. Along with blood drive challenges and resource efficiency initiatives, the directorate viewed this challenge as one that would enable us to engage in shared sacrifice while supporting Air Force and Air Force Materiel Command goals to become more energy efficient.

In a Sept. 30, 2010 10 memo, the Air Force Secretary and Chief highlighted the Air Force long-term effort to improve our nation's energy security through energy efficiency and conservation. They challenged Airmen to continue to instill energy efficiency and conservation into our daily routines within our aviation and installation communities.

As we stood up the Nuclear Capabilities Directorate in January 2012, we took this challenge to heart and sought methods to reduce our electricity use for the installation.

We saw the challenge as even more personal, when we learned our host unit, the 377th Air Base Wing, would not receive its full utilities funding requirement from the major command and had to reduce services provided to the installation due to reductions in operations and maintenance funding.

We figured if we could do something to bring down the wing's utility bill, we could help them lower the base's energy cost and support the ability to reinvest those O&M savings into needed services.

What followed was truly amazing. We instituted a competition that solicited energy efficiency ideas from all our divisions and staff functions.

The objective was to recognize the top three ideas as the winners, and spend a small pot of set-aside dollars to implement them.

We were overwhelmed with the interest and participation. After studying the feasibility of each submission, we selected three individual award winners and one team.

Our individual award winners were Sharon Wright, Michael Morgan and Ronald Froseth. Our team award winner was the Missile Sustainment Division.

Our conservation award winners offered low-cost solutions that included the installation of motion-activated lighting, end-of-day and end-of-week checklist items for unplugging and powering down equipment, migration to energy-efficient appliances in the workplace, improved thermostat and common use area lighting, and the introduction of best use practices for individuals in their office and cubicle spaces.

These ideas were captured in our recently released Directorate Energy Conservation Plan for 2012-2013.

Our energy efficiencies manager, Master Sgt. Raul Aragon, has taken the charge to implement the proposed conservation solutions.

Some solutions include the development of daily and weekly checklists; the installation of motion-activated lighting and energy-efficient light bulbs; and the creation of a model work cubicle that contains typical work center electronic devices, each labeled with a placard indicating how much electricity in kilowatt hours is wasted if the devices are not powered down or placed in energy-efficient sleep mode.

In a Sept. 28, 2012 memo signed by our Air Force leaders, they said the Air Force spent $10 billion during Fiscal Year 2012 on energy alone - that's 9.5 percent of the service's budget.

The suggestion was there are ample savings opportunities within that level of consumption.

In that memo Secretary Donley, General Welsh and Chief Roy said that every dollar we do not spend on energy can be invested in enhancing a high-quality and ready force. What we've determined within the Nuclear Capabilities Directorate is that each of us can contribute to continuing efforts at making our Air Force more effective and ready through shared sacrifice.

It's a personal choice for each of us every time we walk out of an office to turn off the light switch. I am proud of the men and women of the Capabilities Directorate, for they embody this year's Air Force Energy Action Month theme, "I am Air Force Energy."