The environment is looking greener thanks to University students involved in NECA, an electrical management organization which helps promote more efficient ways to light buildings.
The National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) is a pioneer in electrical contracting and has used alternative energies to help build a $130 billion industry.
The University’s NECA student chapter is one of more than 35 schools in the country which will be able to participate in the 2nd Annual Green Energy Challenge. Competitors will be put in a real world position to propose a plan that will help a building in their community improve its electrical systems.
University NECA President, senior John Flood, said his team is working on an audit that will help a local manufacturing company in Toledo.
“We have to assess their lighting systems and see what kind of conditions they are in, then we recommend upgrades we would do to make the building more electrically efficient,” Flood said. “We’d look at the whole picture, HVAC (heating ventilation air-conditioning) equipment and figure out how much energy that produces and how we can reduce that.”
The Green Energy Challenge began Feb. 1 and ends May 30 when the team’s final written proposals are due. After submissions, NECA will evaluate the proposals and notify the winning teams in August. Winners in the overall category will receive a check for $2,000 and an all-expenses paid trip to the NECA Convention in Boston Oct. 1. The top three times will present a 20-minute oral presentation and have the ability to promote their ideas to other electrical contractors.
Last year, the University’s NECA chapter won 4th place. Their electrical proposals for the Van Guard Board of Education building are currently being considered for a green proposal, like the Stroh and Wolfe Centers, which are both shooting to be environmentally approved by LEED. LEED is the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and an affiliate of NECA and the U.S. Green Building Council.
NECA is considered by many to be one of the leading corporations in electrical contracting. The market for green resources is increasing rapidly, giving some students several job opportunities.
“There are a total of 219 construction management majors and only nine students interested in electrical,” said senior NECA member Morgan Montgomery. “That’s 210 people who have no interest in electrical. The 48 electrical contractors affiliated with NECA gives our chapter members a great reference on their resume.”
The University’s NECA chapter is two years old and will be funded by the Office of Campus Activities next semester. The group is trying to recruit more members by using different co-op incentives to expand their NECA chapter.
“We want to use this article and the scholarships we get through NECA to get more people involved,” said senior NECA member Dan Rork. “NECA national and the Toledo chapter just set up a system where if you do a co-op with a electrical NECA contractor, you get $500 once you complete your co-op and the president of the chapter receives $1,000 for each member who participates in the co-op.”
For information about joining the University’s NECA branch, contact John Flood at [email protected].