Florida Schools Give Retrofits An 'A+' As Growth Looms
That student boom means demands for Florida's universities to extend their classroom hours, increasing utility costs and accelerating the aging of mechanical equipment. New research centers and other high-tech buildings help keep pace with educational progress, but they are requiring vast amounts of energy nevertheless. And with funding for higher education (as a percentage of the state's total revenue) declining amid these changes, it's not an easy time to manage a school's energy resources.
Four universities have enlisted a corporate ally to try to maintain first-rate facilities without running the budget into the red.