Bay City, Texas To Save Energy, Conserve Water Through Siemens Performance Contract

BUFFALO GROVE, Ill., July 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Siemens Industry, Inc - Building Technologies Division announced today that through a $9.3 million energy savings performance contract (ESPC), Bay City, Texas will be able to provide its citizens with a more sustainable, energy and cost-efficient infrastructure. Planned improvements, which focus on the city's waste water and potable water supply systems, water meters, municipal lighting and supporting information technology, will reduce electricity consumption by nearly 30 percent and water consumption by more than 70 percent, while increasing the safety, reliability and efficiency of these essential services.

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"Our goal was to find the best, most effective way to improve key elements of Bay City's infrastructure within our existing capital and operational budgets," said Bay City Mayor Mark Bricker. "Performance contract financing is the perfect solution because the guaranteed energy savings essentially pay for the project. The operational efficiencies that will result, especially from installation of automated meter reading technology, will help us sustain the financial health of Bay City well into the future."

The 15-year term of the project is expected to generate a positive cash flow for the city starting in year one. Once the project is completed, the energy savings guaranteed by the performance contract will yield some $700,000 in equivalent energy expense reductions every year for the duration of the contract.

"Through the proactive efforts of Mayor Bricker, Siemens presented the City Council a budget neutral way for Bay City to upgrade infrastructure and provide better customer service to the people of Bay City. I am excited to be a part of this project and really appreciate all the hard work that the Mayor, staff members and Siemens have put into bringing this creative solution to the citizens of Bay City," said Bay City Mayor Pro Tem Patti McKelvy.

The City's energy efficiency upgrades and infrastructure retrofits cover 26 city facilities, including its aging wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). For example, Siemens will be replacing blower motors and aeration equipment that will significantly reduce the WWTP's energy usage. A new supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system will provide city workers the ability to monitor and control the city's lift station pumps without having to spend hours driving around town to each station. The installation of a non-potable water source will allow the city to save more than 16 million gallons of drinking water annually by reusing water from the WWTP for the facility's operational needs. 

Siemens will also be installing more than 8,100 new water meters throughout the City that will wirelessly transmit consumption data and allow the city to account for every customer's daily usage. The new meters will be more accurate ensuring consumers only pay for the water they use, and streamline reading routines—freeing staff resources and reducing expenses associated with the manual reading of the city's old meters.  The fixed-base automatic meter reading system coupled with new billing software will allow the City to provide better customer service to its citizens with reference to daily consumption data, online bill pay, quicker response to inquiries about water use, and leak detection.

Other improvements include installing more efficient indoor and outdoor municipal lighting, retrofitting the irrigation system at the city's sport complex and replacing domestic water and plumbing fixtures throughout city facilities.

Siemens Infrastructure & Cities Sector, with approximately 87,000 employees worldwide, offers sustainable technologies for metropolitan areas and their infrastructures. Its offerings include complete traffic and transportation systems, intelligent logistics, efficient energy supply, environmentally compatible building technologies, modernization of the way power is transmitted and distributed, and smart consumption of electricity.  The sector is comprised of the Rail Systems, Mobility and Logistics, Low and Medium Voltage, Smart Grid and Building Technologies Divisions as well as Osram Sylvania.  For more information, visit www.usa.siemens.com/infrastructure-cities

The Siemens Building Technologies Division is the world's market leader for safe and energy efficient buildings ("green buildings") and infrastructures. As a service provider, system integrator and product vendor, Building Technologies has offerings for building automation, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), fire protection and security. For more information, visit http://www.usa.siemens.com/buildingtechnologies

SOURCE Siemens