CRESTON — Following a field trip to an electrical supply distributor in Cedar Rapids, Southwestern Community College’s Electrical Technology Club, also known as “The Crew,” brainstormed an energy savings idea related to the vending machines on SWCC’s campus.
The Crew calculated the average Coke machine uses approximately 300 watts of energy per hour for lighting and cooling. With the number of machines on the college’s campus, that adds up to almost $4,000 per year. Therefore, The Crew scheduled a meeting with Tom Lesan, SWCC vice president for economic development, to discuss their findings and suggest the possibility of adding energy saving devices to the vending machines.
Lesan was receptive to The Crew’s ideas and on June 5, 2012, Atlantic Bottling Co. came to campus to install vending misers on all 13 of the Atlantic Bottling pop machines on the SWCC campus. These sensors monitor the foot traffic in front of the machine. If no one walks by during a two-hour time frame, the sensor automatically shuts off the machine. Two hours later the machine restarts to cool the product and then shuts off again, therefore providing energy savings.
According to Jeff Stuber, faculty advisor to The Crew, according to the group’s calculations the college could save approximately $10,000 during a 10-year period and also reduce greenhouse gasses.