Energy Action Month: Power to win

October is the Army’s Energy Action Month. This year’s theme, “Power to Win”, reinforces the importance of resilient and secure energy and water at Army installations to enable Warfighters to accomplish their mission.

The Army has overall annual efficiency goals to reduce energy use by 2.5% per year, water use by 3%, and energy costs by 5%. What actions do we all need to take to improve efficiency? There are only four things that we need to do:

Pay attention to thermostat settings. The Army temperature standard for an air-conditioned space is ﮿47 F when occupied and ﮿58 F when unoccupied, such as nights and weekends. For heat, the standard is ﮿86 F when occupied, and ﮿55 F when unoccupied. The number one action to save energy at YPG is to set thermostats to the Army policy.

Turn off the lights and equipment that you are not using. Remember to turn off lights in offices and conference rooms at the end of the day and when unoccupied. Also remember to shut down equipment if it is not being used.

Buy energy efficient equipment. Department of Defense policy is to purchase only Energy Star rated equipment, when available. If you are purchasing equipment, first check to see if Energy-Star versions are available.

Prevent waste of energy and water. Keep doors and windows to air-conditioned areas closed. Submit a service order to repair any issues that may cause energy or water to be wasted such as failed weather stripping, broken windows, and leaking water fixtures. Service orders may be submitted through armymaintenance.com to have issues corrected.

We can have an impact on larger, Army-wide resilience issues by taking actions every day to reduce energy and water consumption and lower utility costs. Please remain mindful of our energy and water use throughout the year to reduce consumption, and you too can help improve Army resilience.