Midwest Center Promotes Cogen
Staff -- Consulting-Specifying Engineer, 12/1/2002
It's no secret the U.S. Dept. of Energy and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have been pumping resources into a number of national organizations to promote the use of combined heat and power (CHP) technologies. But it's the local groups, such as the Midwest CHP Application Center, that have achieved far more success to date.
Housed in the Energy Resources Center at the University of Illinois, Chicago, and partnered with the Gas Technology Institute, the center has reached out to several dozen architects, engineers and building owners, assisting them with feasibility studies, providing technical consulting and working to remove regulatory barriers.
"By providing technical assistance funding for feasibility assessments, we're helping A/Es make suitable CHP projects move forward," states Leslie Farrar, the center's director.
On a larger scale, the center has been giving technical presentations, working to identify the best markets for these projects, addressing issues such as utility interconnection and lobbying policy makers about CHP's benefits.
"I'm thrilled with what the center has been doing toward increasing the number of cogeneration sites in the Midwest," says David Patricoski, president of LaSalle Assocs., Glen Ellyn, Ill., a firm who has tapped into the center's resources.
Additional resources available to engineers interested in pursuing CHP projects include engineering tool kits, case studies and accredited training classes, all accessible at the center's web site: www.chpcentermw.org.
