Ave Maria University completes $5.3M energy infrastructure projects

Work has been completed on a pair of projects at Ave Maria University that modernize the school’s infrastructure and upgrades its automation system.

Ameresco Inc., a Massachusetts-based energy solutions company that did the work, says in a statement that the $5.3 million projects were designed to "enhance operational control, safety and support future campus expansion" at the Collier County university.

The scope of the work includes automating HVAC equipment across five campus buildings and upgrading exterior lighting to improve visibility and safety.

A third project that begins soon will increase the central utility plant’s capacity by more than 80%.

Ameresco says in the statement that the work it and the university did “leverage innovative energy infrastructure to support their long-term academic needs and energy goals.”

The first phase of the project, according to the statement, focused on implementing a new building automation system that integrates the HVAC equipment across the campus. The web-based platform improves “occupant comfort and operational controls.

The company say the change will provide about $200,000 in annual savings.

Along with those improvements, the second phase “addressed exterior lighting." No further details were provided.

A third phase, which is upcoming and designed to increase the plant’s capacity, will add a 3,000-ton chiller to the plant, boosting total capacity from 3,600 tons to 6,600 tons. This upgrade, the statement says, “will ensure system redundancy and improved efficiency across the university’s 17 facilities.”

Construction is expected to be completed on the project in 2026.

Ave Maria is a Catholic university established in in 2003 by Thomas Monaghan, an entrepreneur and the founder of Domino’s Pizza. It is in the master planned community that bears its name.

Ameresco is based in Framingham, a city west of Boston, and employs more than 1,500 people.