ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, Tenn. – It wasn’t long after AEDC Commander Col. Michael Panarisi started driving his new hybrid car that he realized he had something else to do while he was behind the wheel: find ways to get as much gas mileage as possible.
“It’s neat to drive,” he said. “It’s almost a challenge to maximize the little economy meter and learn what you have to do to do that.”
After some tweaking he was able to get his mileage up to 41 miles a gallon, and that took only a few simple changes in his driving habits. One was gentle acceleration. Another was taking advantage of the regenerative braking system that recharges the car’s battery when the brakes are applied.
“The biggest behavioral change is when I see the stop sign, I get off the gas,” Colonel Panarisi said. “It will coast quite nicely for some period, and then you can gently apply the brakes and immediately the little economy meter turns green, meaning it’s charging the battery as you’re approaching the stop. It’s amazing how far out from a stop sign you can get off the gas and not hinder traffic behind you.”
The commander’s new hybrid is a 2011 Ford Fusion, one of two hybrids recently leased for the base fleet. It will take the place of his Ford Expedition, which he says was getting an average of 16 miles to the gallon.
“The hope is the long-term fuel savings will result in overall savings across the life of the lease,” Colonel Panarisi said.
The new additions to the fleet are the response to an Air Force energy plan that requires a two percent reduction in petroleum use, according to AEDC Logistics Manager Erik Wineland.
Most Air Force bases have responded to the requirement by switching to “flex fuel” vehicles that are capable of using E-85 fuel, Wineland said. That’s what the Air Force has recommended. The problem at Arnold is there’s no convenient place for the base’s vehicles to fill up on E-85.
“We don’t have E-85 tanks here, so that means I have to drive off base to fill up our vehicles with E-85,” Wineland said. “It just so happens if we go to the nearest E-85 station, it winds up costing us more money than we save. So it still doesn’t relieve us of the responsibility to try and save fuel.”
That’s when ATA Transportation Manager Renee Gunn came up with an alternative to the alternative fuel.
“This award fee period ATA was asked by the Air Force to develop an implementation plan for energy conservation for AEDC, and alternative fuels for transportation was one of those projects in the plan,” Gunn said. “This is part of that alternative fuels plan. We’re also looking at hydrogen fuel cells, methanol and compressed natural gas. This is just a small piece of some of the things we’re looking at.”
The Fusions were leased from the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) Fleet. Right now, the commander is driving one; the other is being used in AEDC’s investments area. Two more are on order from GSA.
For Colonel Panarisi, the hybrid is a step in the right direction – and he wants to be the one setting the example for everyone else at AEDC.
“If you want to change the culture, you have to lead by example,” he said. “There’s no doubt about it. Everybody knows what car the commander is driving, so there is a message there that I’m taking steps to save fuel in the car that I’m driving, and let that be an example to everyone.”
Wineland is a believer. The same day he drove the base’s new Fusion, he went out and bought a hybrid to offset the cost of his 120-mile round trip commute from DeKalb County to the base. He’s now spending a fraction of the $200 it cost him in gas each week to drive to work. He wanted to keep money in his wallet as gas prices climb, and he says everyone at AEDC has been doing the same.
“Now you’ll see everybody else scramble to get the hybrids and we’re already there,” Wineland said. “Sometimes you run into the problems where you try to convince people there’s a need way before there’s a need, and they don’t realize how important it is until you’re there and it’s too late. That’s the good thing about AEDC; the way we’re set up with best commercial practices and with our contract, we can react a lot quicker than a regular Air Force base can and do neat things and do them faster.”
Gunn said some of the credit lies with GSA’s representatives, who even gave one of the hybrids their office was using to support AEDC with its energy goals.
“GSA has also demonstrated their commitment to energy conservation by the outstanding support they have provided and continue to provide by our regional fleet manager, Debbie Tague, and field representative Tabitha Boyd, to assist AEDC in reaching some of their clean energy goals in fleet management,” Gunn said.
Mike Ramsey, ATA’s branch manager of logistics, says ATA has taken the lead in the last year on energy efficiency, putting AEDC on the forefront when it comes to savings.
“I’d say on average we’re at least on par or ahead of many facilities, commercial and government,” Ramsey said. “It’s just exciting to see what’s out there and what’s being improved right now.”
And there are other steps being taken to address the need in conserving fuel. Two above-ground storage tanks are scheduled to be installed at AEDC in 2014; one will store E-85 and the other will hold biodiesel. To prepare for that, ATA has been adding vehicles capable of burning E-85 to the fleet over time. Out of the 428 vehicles on base – which includes forklifts, cranes and bulldozers – there are currently 47 that can use E-85.
There are also two electric utility vehicles being used in the base’s Roads and Grounds section, which Ramsey says were cheaper than the diesel equivalents that were previously used. Gunn says they have performed well.
“With the data collected so far, we have documented an estimated 86 percent savings in annual energy consumption,” Gunn said.
These are just some of the ways AEDC is trying to save energy. Colonel Panarisi keeps the lights off in his base office and uses natural light from his windows whenever possible. Every other light in the hallways of the A&E building is turned off to cut back on energy consumption. Those are two examples of the free and easy-to-implement strategies, and his new car is another way he’s championing savings.
“It’s just another part of our never-ending effort to find efficiencies, and I’m more than happy to do my part,” he said. “It’s a zero-sum game. Every dollar that we don’t consume in energy, we can use to preserve or maintain our capabilities. We can leave no stone unturned as far as that goes.” |
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