Dr. Martin Myers' Research Lab was recognized for it's efforts to benefit the planet through energy efficiency. Participants could earn points by taking a number of different measures such as temperature tuning, using cutting-edge best practices and more. Congratulations Dr. Myers and team on helping the U reduce it's carbon footprint!
See article originally published in Michigan Medicine Headlines, September 23, 2023 below:
Eight U-M Medical School Labs Recognized for Energy Efficiency in International Freezer Challenge
Eight Medical School units performed well in the International Laboratory Freezer Challenge, a competition designed to help participants promote cold storage best practices and take actions that benefit the planet through energy efficiency.
Freezer Challenge participants earned points by taking any combination of actions in these areas: good management practices, temperature tuning, unit retirements, upgrades and unplugs; cutting-edge practices; and freezer and sample inventories. The eight that completed the challenge achieved a daily electric energy savings of 279.5 kWh/day, an annual electric cost savings of 102,000 kWh/year, and an annual cost savings of $10,500/year. This amount of energy reduction is equivalent to 36.3 MTCO2 or the annual energy consumption of 4.6 residential homes.
“We are proud of these teams who took the time and effort to participate in the challenge, and achieved such great results on behalf of the University of Michigan,” said Medical School Chief Operating Officer Matthew Comstock, who co-leads the Medical School Carbon Neutrality Council, along with Director of Medical School Facilities Mary Tresh. “This challenge is a great example of tangible steps that each individual can take to improve equipment reliability and also to reduce their carbon footprint.”
UMMS’ success was realized by the combined efforts of the participants and included an internal challenge hosted by the U-M Office of Sustainability to identify which participant made the most improvement.
Challenge participants included the Clinical Research Specimen Processing (CRSP) lab in the Oncology Clinical Trials Support Unit, under the direction of manager Keri Innes; the In-Vivo Animal Core lab in the Unit for Laboratory Animal Medicine; and the individual faculty and laboratories of Salim Hayek, M.D., associate professor of internal medicine; Marc B. Hershenson, M.D. professor of pediatrics, molecular and integrative physiology; J. Michelle Kahlenberg, M.D., Ph.D., professor of internal medicine and dermatology; Tom K. W. Kerppola, Ph.D., professor of biological chemistry; Kenneth Y. Kwan, Ph.D., associate professor of human genetics; Martin G. Myers, Jr. M.D., Ph.D., professor of internal medicine and molecular and integrative physiology. The top three were Kerppola, CRSP and Hayek.
“This challenge vividly demonstrates how individual groups can come together and make a large impact,” said Jack Gosselin, regional energy manager for the medical school in the Office of Campus Sustainability and U-M Facilities and Operations. “We are looking forward to building on the success of the program next year.”
The medical school and U-M Office of Campus Sustainability continue to support reducing their carbon footprint, greenhouse gas emissions and energy costs through best practices in cold storage management.
Freezer users can learn more about these initiatives and best practices at U-M Freezer Challenge or My Green Lab Freezer Challenge. For specific questions, email sustainable-labs@umich.edu.