Case Study
Alleghany county public schools
Overview
Alleghany County Public Schools (ACPS) serve over 2,000 students in 5 different schools. Their funding is distributed on a per-student basis. Over the past few years, the school saw a 33% drop in its student population. This dropped the fixed costs for operating the schools because of a much bigger portion of the budget.
Keven Rice the director of finance was able to negotiate better pricing for some of their accounts but knew an electric rate analysis done by energy experts would be the best option to lower their bills.
UMS completed the routine off-site utility bill analysis and discovered there was an issue with a piece of equipment that was causing excessive charges. UMS worked with ACPS and their power provider to have the equipment replaced without any interruption.
With the equipment fixed and rate changes implemented, ACPS saved more than $40,000 annually with no operational changes adding more back to their budget
“Some operational functions are outside our areas of expertise and we are appreciative of the assistance
Utility Management Services provides in one such area."
The Facts
- ACPS's funding is based on the number of students they serve and they had seen a 33% drop in their student population
- ACPS had negotiated some energy pricing but knew that they lacked expertise in rate analysis
- UMS completed the off-site audit and uncovered an issue on ACPS equipment that was causing excessive charges
- The equipment change and pricing plan changes resulted in $40,000 in savings with no operational changes