SOLUTION

Burns & McDonnell was engaged to validate the master plan and develop engineering plans to take the next steps forward.

Goals were to increase capacity, improve energy efficiency, reduce emissions, and strengthen overall system reliability and emergency operating capacity. In addition to validating the master plan, we provided engineering, procurement and construction services for the $377 million expansion, all without hindering the medical center’s ongoing operation.

We took on the first phase of the expansion program, which included the design of a 48-megawatt (MW) CHP plant with capacity to produce up to 330,000 pounds per hour of steam. Other elements included:

• An 8.8 million-gallon chilled water thermal storage tank with 76,000 ton-hours capacity.
• A new East Chiller Plant featuring four 8,000-ton electric-drive chillers and space within the plant to add six chillers in the future.
• New cooling towers with the equivalent of 32,000 tons of storage capacity.
• An expansion and upgrade to the 138-kV substation serving TECO.
• A new 29,000-square-foot operations support facility.
• A 6-MW back-pressure steam turbine.
• Additional chilled water loops to serve new loads located on the western and southern perimeter of the TMC campus.

Another priority was storm hardening the entire facility with equipment and systems that would prepare TECO to provide continuous service during hurricanes and the tropical storms that often threaten the Houston area.

RESULTS

The expansion was completed in 2011 and has since met and exceeded objectives outlined in the original master plan.

Improving energy efficiency: TECO’s CHP plant operates at approximately 80% efficiency by recovering waste heat from its energy production.

Reducing grid load: TECO’s new system reduces the demand created by TMC by 50% through the use of an on-site 48-MW combustion turbine.

Saving money: By 2015, customer rates had been reduced by 4.1% over rates in previous years. More than $3 million has been refunded to TMC customers.

Improving security and reliability: TMC has proven to be a vital medical resource during recent natural disasters, thanks in large part to reliable, on-site energy that has continued in island mode while the surrounding power grid was down. This priority paid off in 2017 when TECO continued to provide full service to all TMC facilities while South Texas was reeling from Hurricane Harvey.

TECO now provides service to approximately 24 million square feet of space dispersed among 50 buildings on the TMC campus. More importantly, and thanks to the foresight in the original master plan, TECO is poised to expand power, chilled water and steam capacity when future needs dictate.

TECO has been consistently recognized over the past two decades by the U.S. Department of Energy for leadership in modeling the benefits of district energy.