Six UW students aim to cut the energy costs of a local elementary school by half, which could help create long-term ecological sustainability within the Seattle Public School District.

The UW chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) will participate in the first NECA competition, called the Green Energy Challenge. NECA has invited universities from across the nation to participate in the challenge, and the UW is one of those seven schools that are participating.

“Our team is extremely excited for this competition, ” said Joseph Berger, captain of the UW NECA team. “Typically, students who get to participate in student competitions are seniors; this is the first competition, as far as I know, to have six juniors represent the UW.”

The competition requires the teams to audit the energy use of a local K-12 school and create a proposal for a remodel of the electrical systems. The team must design several components of a new electrical system in order to increase the sustainability of the school. The proposal must replace the old lighting system with new, energy-efficient lighting and implement either a solar-power or wind-turbine system.

The UW team selected Wedgwood Elementary School because it is local — just two miles north of campus — and is eligible for an electrical efficiency redesign.

“The architectural features of the building presented a great opportunity to make it more electrically efficient,” Berger said. “It has so much opportunity in the design to utilize daylight.”

The proposal for the redesign is due May 30, and the UW team has prepared a concept of what they intend for Wedgwood.

“We want to do a lighting retrofit, and, on top of that, we [want to] implement a photovoltaic system,” said Robert Radulescu, a member of the UW NECA team.

A lighting retrofit refers to the process of replacing all of the old light fixtures and bulbs with newer, energy-efficient ones. A photovoltaic system uses solar panels to capture light energy and convert it into electricity, which would reduce the amount the school consumes from Seattle City Light.

The team is also proposing a distribution retrofit, which would increase the efficiency of power used for other electrical devices within the school.

“The lighting upgrade will provide over 50 percent savings per month,” Berger said. “Once they implement the lighting upgrade, the amount of power they will need per month will be about 8,000 kilowatt-hours, and of that, we will be producing about 25 percent via photovoltaic power.”

With a price tag of $375,000 and the economy still in a slump, financing this project is a major concern for the UW team.

“Our greatest challenge will be financing and funding because the [Seattle Public School District] has very little money for this project,” Radulescu said. “We are looking at grants and rebates to cover the cost.”

The team has found rebate programs with Seattle City Light, which offers rebates for energy-efficient retrofits of this nature.

If their proposal is chosen as one of the top three projects, they will be presenting it at the 2009 NECA Convention and Trade Show, which will be held in mid-September at the Washington State Convention & Trade Center.

Even if the UW team isn’t chosen as a finalist, team members say the project will still have been worthwhile.

“I have really enjoyed this NECA project; it has helped me grow as a team leader and individual,” Berger said. “I now feel ready to go out into the business and make moves, make changes and create a more sustainable world for [the] future.”

Reach contributing writer Nicholas Ditzler at development@dailyuw.com.