GRAND RAPIDS Metropolitan Hospital and Aquinas College announced Wednesday that they will jointly operate a state-of-the-art energy and education center at Metro Health Village in suburban Wyoming, which will produce electricity for the hospital and serve as a laboratory for students in Aquinas Sustainable Business Program. The 45,000 square foot, $30 million facility gets some funding from a $2.75 million Energy Department grant that will be used to pay for the combined heating and power element.
When built in late 2005, the CSEE will self generate electricity during the day through photo voltaic cells and buy green power at night from Mackinac Power, which generates electricity through wind power. The hospital expects to save at least $700,000 in electricity costs from the world-class alternative energy complex.
The non-profit Aquinas/Metro joint venture will oversee the energy and education center, which will be dedicated to demonstrating and teaching efficient business practices. The goal is to transform Metro Health Village into a national leader in environmentally responsible business practices.
Our collaboration with Aquinas College at the CSEE will enable Metro to re-evaluate the way it conducts business, said Mike Faas, president and CEO of Metropolitan Hospital. Our business practices will move towards a model of sustainability, which is a process looking to balance fiscal responsibility while maintaining a commitment to the environment. The center connects to Metros core purpose of providing health care in several ways. It will allow us to reduce operating costs and therefore contribute to our commitment to the community to reduce the cost of health care as a result of our relocation. It will also make our community a healthier place to live by reducing pollution and the use of limited natural resources.
The CSEE will be a 45,000-square foot facility on the eastern edge of the health village. It will serve as a site for classes offered by the Aquinas College Sustainable Business Program. At the same time it will house the hospitals energy production and management activities, which will rely on advanced systems that greatly reduce environmental impact. Locating the activities of the college and the hospital together will create an ideal setting for teaching and advocating sustainable business practices.
The Aquinas College Sustainable Business Program the first degree of its kind in the nation will also benefit from the research and education opportunities made possible by the joint venture.
This partnership will allow Aquinas faculty and students to showcase advanced technology, practices and innovations that demonstrate how communities can survive and even thrive with lower energy consumption, said Harry Knopke, president of Aquinas College. They will learn how power can be produced in a sustainable way and will see businesses come to life without harmful environmental effects.
Forging together in a quest to honor the environment, the organization has defined its purpose in seven main categories:
Improve and increase energy efficiency, quality and reliability of electric supply to the hospital campus
Reduce the impact of the hospitals operation and energy use on the environment
Quantify and promote the benefits of green building design
Further develop and expand the Aquinas College Sustainable Business Program
Develop and promote renewable energy technologies that will reverse Americas dependence on foreign oil and reduce greenhouse gas emissions
Demonstrate and promote alternatives to harmful building materials such as polyvinylchloride (PVC), lead, formaldehyde and mercury
Showcase advanced technologies, practices and innovations that demonstrate how communities can reduce energy demands, produce power in an environmentally sustainable way and build and operate businesses with reduced environmental impact
The enterprise is seeking a mix of conventional financing, private grants and philanthropic contributions, the first of which was announced Tuesday, a $2.75 million grant from NOVI Energy. , Metropolitan Hospitals energy manager and a Michigan-based energy consultant, has been selected for a $2.75 million contract award to benefit the CSEE. A total of 41 organizations applied for funds to enhance energy research through the U.S. Department of Energys Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The CSEE, which was one of only three projects funded, received the largest award.
Phase I will include construction of the central utility plant, which will provide thermal and electric power to the hospital and educational opportunities to Aquinas sustainable business students. This phase is slated for completion in late 2005. Phase II will incorporate visionary renewable energy technologies, sustainable design features such as a 200-seat auditorium and two multi-purpose classrooms, and will promote the further development of the Aquinas Sustainable Business Program.
It is anticipated the CSEE will receive the U.S. Green Building Councils highest level of certification, LEED NC 2.1 Platinum. No other energy center in the world has achieved this designation.
