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Operating Room HVAC Setback Strategies
Operating room setback is a proven energy-saving strategy for hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers in all climates. However, because of the unique constraints governing the design and operation of ORs, several factors must be considered when designing a solution for a particular facility. A successful solution must take into account the local climate, facility type, and user needs and adhere to applicable code requirements. Each of the many potential setback solutions has corresponding trade-offs between the level of control, complexity, and cost of the strategy chosen. This paper outlines the possibilities to consider and provides questions to ask in determining which approach to use for a particular situation. An experienced design professional with detailed knowledge of the facility and its users’ needs can assist facility staff in identifying the optimal solution.
Healthcare Energy Efficiency Research and Development
Hospitals are among the most energy intensive of all commercial buildings in the U.S. and the healthcare industry as a whole represents a substantial fraction of total U.S. commercial building energy use. While healthcare facilities have many special characteristics that lead to higher energy consumption, there is broad recognition among knowledgeable designers and operators that energy use can be reduced substantially with net economic benefit to the industry.
Recommendation for inclusion of Wireless light switches in Kaiser Permanente Standards
Wireless light switches have been installed and operated in European buildings for years; they have been available in the United States for at least five years. While they are not yet widely used in U.S. hospitals, there are a handful of manufacturers whose products could and would work well in hospital settings.
Wireless Light Switches Recommendations for Kaiser Permanente, San Leandro
The purpose of this report is to investigate the advantages/disadvantages of using Wireless Light Switching technologies in the Kaiser Permanente, San Leandro HSB building. The report will evaluate the cost benefits, if any, of implementing this technology by comparing the cost of installing a hardwired, dual–level, push-button light switch to the cost of two of the available wireless light switches.
Meaningful Use and Existing Hospital Infrastructure
The electronic health record (EHR) is quickly becoming a major focus of today’s healthcare system. The goal of an EHR system is to provide patient care more effectively, more efficiently, and at a much lower cost than our current, paper-based patient record system. While some healthcare organizations have already implemented an EHR system or are working to implement one, many others have not yet made that jump. It’s about time to do so, since new government regulations mandate that healthcare organization implement an EHR system in order to achieve ‘Meaningful Use,’ by 2015—a mere four and a half years away.
Hospital Energy Benchmarking
Benchmarking is an assessment approach in which energy-related metrics measured or estimated at one facility are compared to those from other facilities and/or specific performance targets. Metrics can be specified at the level of a facility, a building, a functional area within a building or specific systems or operations. Benchmarks can be derived from distributions of metric values obtained from facilities having similar functionality or characteristics, from engineering analysis or building simulation modeling, or from expert knowledge of standard and best practices.
High Performance Healthcare Buildings: A Roadmap to Improved Energy Efficiency
Hospitals are among the most energy intensive of all commercial buildings in the U.S. and the healthcare industry as a whole represents a substantial fraction of total U.S. commercial building energy use. While healthcare facilities have many special characteristics that lead to higher energy consumption, there is broad recognition among knowledge designers and operators that energy use can be reduced substantially with net economic benefit to the industry.
Energy Use In Hospitals
This document presents the results of a review of publicly available information on energy use in health care facilities. The information contained in this document and in the sources cited herein provides the background and context for efforts to reduce energy use and costs in health care. Recognizing the breadth and diversity of relevant information, the author acknowledges that the report is likely not comprehensive. It is intended only to present a broad picture of what is currently known about health care energy use.
Comment to the NFPA opposing the requirement for Isolated Power Systems in Operating Rooms
During the Public Comment Cycle for NFPA 99-2009, a proposal was submitted to define all Operating Rooms as Wet Locations. This change would indirectly require isolated power systems (IPS) in all operating rooms, and it is the intent of this comment on proposal to defend the fact that the majority of operating rooms are not actually wet locations, and that there is little evidence to suggest an increase in patient safety due to the installation of isolated power systems (IPS) in operating rooms (ORs).
Use of LED Fixtures in Healthcare Facilities
The use of LED lighting in healthcare facilities is an effective strategy for achieving energy savings while improving the visual quality of light and maintaining light levels. M+NLB conducted an analysis to evaluate the energy and maintenance costs as well as environmental impacts of traditional fluorescent lighting as compared to LED lighting in healthcare facilities
Life Cycle Cost Analysis
Learn the benefits of using full life cycle cost analysis (LCCA) for making mechanical, electrical and plumbing infrastructure decisions in healthcare facilities.
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