Challenging and instructive—this is Anika Veith’s retrospective assessment of her experience of implementing the energy strategy adopted by the Rectorate in fall of 2022. As the head of the Energy Management unit, she led one of seven teams assembled to advise the Rectorate and University institutes on how to save energy. “Our teams brought together experts on heating, climate and energy management to advise those in charge of the various University facilities,” explains Veith. “Working together, we drew up practicable solutions to achieve a significant reduction in the energy consumption of the 40 University buildings. At the time, energy used by the buildings accounted for more than 90 percent of the university’s total energy needs.”
To take just one example, our assessment of the historical greenhouses in the Botanic Garden revealed that the temperatures in the rainforest gardens could be lowered by six degrees without endangering the most important plants. Thanks to these and other measures, we were able to reduce the amount of thermal energy used in the gardens by over 20 percent in the first month alone.
A range of adjustments made in Bonn University and State Library on Adenaueralle reduced power consumption by some 1.8 million kWh—slightly more than half of the consumption in preceding years. The greatest savings were made by dispensing with full air conditioning using the highly energy-intensive processes of humidification and dehumidification—a renouncement we have sticked with until today. Whilst the use of air conditioning in the summer has also been reduced, excessive temperature peaks on hot summer days require moderate air conditioning.
The results produced by the package of measures are impressive. “The University was able to save more than 12 million kWh in heating alone—enough to heat the homes of around 1,150 two-person households for a year,” says Veith. In so doing, we were able to exceed our target of reducing the use of the heating system by 20 % compared to the average for the period 2017-2021, by 126%. The 20 percent savings target for gas consumption was also exceeded by 171 percent. In total, the range of measures implemented saved almost 18 million kWh of energy.
An important factor in the success of the plan was the involvement of staff and students. Launching a campaign to raise awareness of the issue amongst University members, the slogan “Make a difference!” encouraged them to play their part in saving energy.
In addition to the good news which these positive figures constitute, Holger Gottschalk is conscious of an even more valuable insight which he has drawn from the experience: “We have implemented a range of measures, including reducing the operating time of the heating systems, but the level of success we have achieved is due in particular to the commitment of our staff and students, who made a vital contribution to reducing energy consumption at the University.”
Looking ahead, Holger Gottschalk believes that it is important to remain vigilant and to work towards achieving further savings. “We are not satisfied with a one-off success, but are planning to re-orient our energy consumption over the long-term,” says Holger Gottschalk. For example, pushing ahead with the expansion of photovoltaic systems is an important step in the University's drive for sustainability. “We are not finished by a long chalk: last year shows just what we can achieve when we all work together.”
