Suncrest College’s Trades & Technology Centre is set to undergo a significant transformation in its Power Engineering Lab thanks to a $70,000 grant from Colleges and Institutes Canada, funded by the federal Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Canada.
The project, part of an initiative to raise awareness and reduce the climate impact of Canadian campuses, aims to make the lab more sustainable.
The college will retrofit the Power Engineering Lab to redirect heat produced during lab operations to warm the building. This change is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by allowing the college to turn off its traditional heating system while the lab is in use, cutting down on natural gas consumption. Previously, the heat was vented into the atmosphere.
Power Engineering students will be involved in calculating and displaying the amount of greenhouse gases saved by the project, with updates provided each term or year.
“This is a project that we have wanted to do for several years. We are so excited to start the work and involve students and staff at Suncrest. This will make our campus more sustainable and use the heat that is generated for a useful purpose,” said Dr. Gwen Machnee, Suncrest Chair of Applied Research.
The project, which began in March 2024, is expected to be completed by March 2025.
McPherson Engineering has designed the retrofit, with construction scheduled over the summer to ensure the lab boilers are operational by the fall semester.
