U.S. Senator Robert Marshall visits Sumner County’s Department of Energy project
Barry Dicker, Decent Energy, Inc. with U.S. Senator Roger Marshall. (Submitted photo).
Submitted to Sumner Newscow — U.S. Senator Roger Marshall received a firsthand update at the Wellington Police and Fire/EMS Building regarding the progress being made with Sumner County’s “Building Technologies Proving Ground – Public Sector Field Validation” project awarded by the United States Department of Energy. The three-year project is studying Passive Thermal Energy Storage ceiling tiles that are manufactured using Phase Change Material.
The Project Team, which includes Sumner County, the City of Wellington, Sumner County Economic Development Commission, University of Kansas School of Engineering, Insolcorp, LLC, and Decent Energy, Inc., indicated to Senator Marshall that they have installed monitoring and sensor equipment in four buildings during the first the year of the project.
Project Manager, Barry Dicker, President of Decent Energy, Inc., briefed the Senator, “The equipment we have installed in the Police/Fire Building and others in Wellington is currently capturing, recording and transmitting temperature and humidity data, establishing a baseline for this study. Once the ceiling tiles are installed, these same sensors will record the same data points for comparison.”
Under the guidance of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the energy models formed from these statistics expect to validate a 20% reduction in cooling, heating and electric demand in the study buildings. This reduction will increase energy efficiency, lower energy costs and improve comfort levels.
Senator Marshall, who serves on the Senate’s Committee on Energy and Natural Resources which oversees the DOE commented, “If your electric bill is $100 a month, 20% is worth $20 a month in savings, but if your electric bill is $400, saving 20% is significant and rates aren’t coming down.”
To source locally current and accurate weather information for the study, Dicker also shared that a weather station had been installed on the roof of the Sumner County District Courthouse.
“This new weather unit continually monitors and transmits solar radiation, wind speed/direction and temperature/humidity data, which is being incorporated into energy models designed by graduate students at KU’s School of Engineering.” said Dicker. Additionally, the live weather data will be accessible to area first responders, county and city staff.
