HomeNewsArticle Display

Cash saving heat

  • Published
  • By Brandice J. O'Brien
  • Tinker Public Affairs
TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  Big energy-reduction plans are in the works.

In the upcoming months, contractors will break ground on a three-year project to decentralize Tinker's steam plants. In its place will be individual boilers for each building. The plan is expected to save roughly $6 million a year and reduce natural gas consumption by 34 percent.

"The smaller boilers are more efficient and use less gas. Also, because there's no distribution system, there won't be a heat or leak loss and it cuts down on greenhouse emissions as well," said Rex Stanford, mechanical engineer with the 72nd Air Base Wing Civil Engineer Directorate. "This is a way of achieving Tinker's and the Air Force's mandated reduction goals and it will reduce the amount of gas we're burning, which equates to 30,500 metric tons of greenhouse gases per year."
Tinker's boilers are centralized to three locations: the west side by the clinic and dorms, east of the runway on the industrial side of base and between the two points at Bldg. 208. The three areas will be worked on concurrently.

Two of the heating boilers situated at Bldg. 3001's central plant are original to the building, dating back to the days of the Douglas Aircraft Factory, circa the early 1940s. In 1941, after the War Department deemed Oklahoma City a prime location for a supply and maintenance depot, the Douglas Aircraft Factory began producing C-47 Skytrains and A-20 Havocs for World War II.

But, only the boiler's shell and steam distribution system are original. The machinery has been updated through the years.

Replacing the boilers and decentralizing the system will cost an estimated $100 million, but is not a cost the government will pay upfront. Mr. Stanford said the contractor will pay the costs upfront and the Air Force will pay the cost back over roughly 23 years, similar to the way a mortgage works.

Mr. Stanford said when the project gets under way, there may be times when traffic is obstructed, but there shouldn't be any heating outages during the winter months. All three areas will be running independently before the centralized plant is shut down.

"This is a large time consuming process, but in the end, it will have a very positive impact on Tinker," Mr. Stanford said. "Tinker will be a lot more efficient and use less energy."