Everett Arena Upgrades Facility with New Lighting & Brine Chiller

The City of Concord has recently completed two energy savings projects at the Douglas N. Everett Arena. The brine chiller (a component of the refrigeration system) was replaced and all indoor and outdoor facility lights have been converted to LED. The brine chiller replacement was a scheduled project included in the arena’s capital improvement plan and conducted this past summer by RECCO Refrigeration Engineering and Contracting Co. The LED lighting conversion was made possible by a partnership between the City of Concord, Unitil, and Affinity Lighting with construction completed in October by R&T Electric. The lighting upgrade was funded with half the costs from a rebate and the other half included within bill financing over the next four years. The City also received an energy rebate for the chiller replacement, totaling the rebate from Unitil to $50,864.

These upgrades were accomplished to improve the quality of the facility’s lighting and refrigeration system, increase efficiency, and improve energy use. The new brine chiller has improved cooling capabilities, while the new LED lighting features customization controls to adjust the brightness level and which lights to turn on/off. This new lighting control system has increased the arena’s foot candles (measurement of light intensity from one light per square foot), increasing the overall lighting quality while still using less energy. “Members of the community have noticed the difference,” states Jeff Bardwell, Arena & Properties Manager, “and we are very happy for this change since the arena, although owned and operated by the city, is self-supporting. These upgrades will be reducing costs significantly on our electricity bill and will also reduce maintenance hours since LED bulbs last longer.”

This upgrade is one of several energy savings projects completed at the Everett Arena. In 2005, the arena used 598,920 KWh annually prior to any energy savings initiatives. After several projects throughout the years, including dehumidification upgrades, lighting sensors, refrigeration control, and eliminating ice season in the summer to reduce maintenance costs, the arena was able to reduce kilowatt usage to 376,181 in 2011. With the LED lighting conversion and brine chiller replacement projects completed in 2017, it is anticipated that the arena will save drop usage down in 2018 to roughly 290,000 KWh.

Energy consumption at the Everett Arena has reduced over 310,285 KWh since implementing conservation measures in 2005. The Everett Arena will continue to explore additional energy saving initiatives to maintain sustainable operations. Find more information about the Everett Arena by visiting www.concordnh.gov/arena.