Hall County, located in northeast Georgia, has completed comprehensive energy and infrastructure renovations on its Hall County Government Center with partner Trane Technologies. The upgrades are expected to help slash the facility’s annual energy usage by 35%.
Working consultatively with the Hall County construction and facilities teams, Trane identified and implemented energy efficiency and indoor environmental quality improvements in the Government Center to meet the requirements of a modern office space in the Southeast and support the county’s energy reduction goals.
The five-floor, 131,000-square-foot building, built in 1982, underwent significant renovations over 18 months. Building upgrades included a heating and cooling plant conversion to help improve system performance, efficiency, reliability, and serviceability; air distribution reconfiguration for improved comfort and indoor air quality throughout the building; and an advanced building automation controls platform to replace the building’s outdated technology.
The county also took advantage of the opportunity to upgrade the building’s decades-old interior fluorescent lighting system to high-efficiency LED fixtures. In addition to improving light levels and overall aesthetics, the new system included energy-saving features such as sensors that turn lights on and off as rooms are occupied, dimmers in key areas, and daylight sensors that automatically adjust interior light levels near windows.
“This was a significant, much-needed renovation project that will serve our county well for many years to come,” said Hall County Assistant County Administrator Katie Crumley. “We now have a Government Center facility that operates more efficiently and sustainably, while creating a more comfortable, welcoming, and productive environment for employees and citizens alike.”
As mentioned, the county is expected to realize an approximately 35% reduction in energy usage annually, or roughly 950,000 kWh in electricity, as a result of the improvements. This equals nearly 675 metric tons of reduced carbon emissions, the equivalent of more than 1.6 million miles driven by an average passenger vehicle or more than 130 homes’ electricity use each year.