Bowie High School is one of the oldest operating high schools in the El Paso Independent School District. Nestled on the U.S.-Mexico border with 187,656 square feet of educational building space, the campus is a critical educational hub for the downtown and South El Paso areas, with an enrollment of over 1,300 students.
IMPROVED PERFORMANCE, SUBSTANTIAL ENERGY REDUCTION, IMPROVED INDOOR AIR QUALITY
With some of its HVAC systems approaching 50 years of age, the time had come for a substantial replacement of the aging mechanical systems. Goodwin Engineering was hired by the District to plan and design new HVAC systems that were energy efficient with a focus on improved indoor air quality.
The resultant project was a $5 million renovation that included replacement of air handling units in seven buildings, conversion and retrofit of one major constant volume built-up air handling unit to variable air volume (VAV), replacement of a majority of the chilled and heating water piping throughout the campus and replacement of the central plant boilers, pumps, and chillers, including one gas engine chiller. The existing pneumatic controls were also replaced with direct digital control (DDC) and interfaced with the District control system. Because of the substantial work required in plenums, most ceilings and lighting were replaced with new.
Goodwin Engineering was tasked with improving indoor air quality throughout the campus and implemented outdoor air control, improved filtration, and vent cycle controls into the new design.
CRITICAL PHASING
The project spanned two summer breaks and a complete school year and was critically phased to minimize disruption while school remained in session. Because of the substantial disruption to the campus, a portable classroom complex was constructed to house the classes from one building at a time, so the school could remain in service for the duration of the project.
This highly successful project provided the school with quality high performance designed to last another 50 years. Additionally, the indoor air quality was improved in all areas while substantial energy savings were realized by the client.