UBC's campuses are exceptional places to explore, test, and demonstrate sustainability solutions. With many initiatives already in place--and the support to do more coming from all levels at the university--our campuses are becoming “living laboratories,” places where students, faculty, staff and community work together to discover, learn and take action to guide UBC, and the wider world, toward sustainability.
But we cannot do it alone. UBC is seeking to engage strategic partners to participate in the UBC as a Living Laboratory program and in the development and implementation of various aspects of the UBC Smart Energy System strategy. A Request for Expressions of Interest is presently posted on the B.C. Bid website, with a closing date of December 8, 2010.
UBC defines its Smart Energy System as the integration of electrical and thermal energy supply and demand on campus into an interactive and responsive system that is capable of coordinating supply and demand, maximizing energy efficiencies, and responding intelligently to changing needs and constraints.
UBC Goals
The University's goals for the Living Laboratory and Smart Energy System strategies are to:
1. Achieve GHG reduction targets for the Vancouver campus - 33% reduction in Scope 1+2 GHG emissions by 2015, 67% reduction by 2020 and 100% reduction by 2050;
2. Become the world leader in developing and demonstrating energy efficiency and clean energy technologies on a university campus;
3. Optimize energy infrastructure so that it is flexible to energy availability, sources and demand;
4. Combine the talent of our researchers and students, the expertise of our operators and the entrepreneurship of our industrial and community partners to make UBC, both in Vancouver and in the Okanagan, the most sustainable and innovative campus on Earth;
5. Act as an innovation hub to foster the growth of the clean energy sector in British Columbia and Canada.
6. Support research, innovation, and learning opportunities for students, faculty and staff.
Target Partnership Areas
Living Laboratory opportunities within the context of the Smart Energy System initiative can be sub-divided into five individual component areas. Note that, in the list that follows, Item 1 is the subject of this Request for Expressions of Interest (RFEOI). Items 2 through 5 may be the subject of future RFEOIs.
1. Smart thermo-electric grid / continuous optimization with intelligent systems (sensor/actuator) for generation, delivery, and storage (See Table 1, section 1)
2. Alternative energy sources
3. Energy efficiency technologies (building systems, lighting, smart appliances, etc)
4. Electric vehicles
5. Water recycling and treatment systems
The intention is to select partners for defined, non-overlapping elements within component areas.
Access to Complete RFEOI Text
The complete Request for Expressions of Interest is posted on BC Bid® and can be accessed via their web site:
1. www.bcbid.ca
2. Browse BC Bid (right-hand side), select Browse for Bid Opportunities or Bid Result
3. Select, Browse opportunities by organization
4. Scroll down to “University of British Columbia”