Vilonia School District

Project Overview

The Vilonia School District, located in central Arkansas, serves approximately 3,000 students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. The school district has 575,000 square feet of buildings on six campuses. Vilonia competitively selected Energy Systems Group (ESG), a leading performance contracting firm, to design and implement a $3.2 million project that improved the school district’s infrastructure while providing more than $6.1 million in energy and operational savings.

What started out primarily as a project focused on light-emitting diode (LED) lighting improvements to provide energy and cost savings developed into a more comprehensive project designed to address a wide variety of Vilonia’s infrastructure needs. Using the energy savings performance contract (ESPC) procurement method, the school district was able to implement additional improvements to its facilities including HVAC unit replacements, controls upgrades, water conservation measures, and building envelope improvements without having to use capital funds.

Vilonia Middle School and High School Gym

Lighting Upgrades

LED lighting improvements were carried out at a dozen facilities including the Frank Mitchell Intermediate School, Vilonia Freshman Academy, Vilonia High School, Vilonia Middle School, Vilonia Elementary School, and Vilonia Primary School.

 HVAC Upgrades

76 HVAC units replaced across the high school, primary school, elementary school, and Freshman Academy.

Controls Upgrades

Upgraded the district-wide building automation and control system with a Pelican web-based operating system to control existing and new HVAC equipment and systems, providing optimum energy efficiency.

Water Conservation Improvements

Installed new, efficient fixtures at seven facilities.

Building Envelope Improvements

Installed new door seals, caulked windows and sealed walls to prevent energy loss.

Destratification Improvements

New destratification fans with Smart Triac controllers installed to improve consistent air circulation in the school district’s high-ceiling buildings, which are its seven gymnasiums.

Provides the school significant energy and cost savings

Enhances learning environments
for students

Allows school to address deferred maintenance without having to use capital funds, which means the school can focus its resources on teachers and students instead of infrastructure