National Museum of Marine Science and Technology maximizes energy savings based on weather forecast

In Taiwan, many tend to shy away from the topic of “energy conservation” as they feel that it is an extremely difficult task. For example, not turning on air-conditioning in the hot summer or increasing its temperature might make one very uncomfortable.

Striking a balance between the comfort of the human body and energy-saving puts one in a dilemma. However, it does not mean that turning off air-conditioning is the only way to conserve energy. Sometimes, simply adjusting the operation of these energy consuming equipment can also produce some effect, and the National Museum of Marine Science and Technology (NMMST) is a good example of what could be done. 

NMMST is located in Keelung’s Badouzi, close to the sea and has a climatic condition that brings plenty of rainfall. In fact, this factor poses a big challenge to NMMST in terms of energy-saving as it has to turn on the air-conditioning both during good weather due to the high temperature, and during bad weather due to nearby fog and high humidity. Hence, the museum’s electricity bills for the entire year can hit an astonishing NT$24 million.

In the past, the museum mainly relied on replacing old equipment to save energy. However, in the long run, if the operation model of energy consuming equipment remains unchanged, it is difficult to reduce further energy consumption. Hence, last year, Delta Foundation suggested to NMMST to adjust the time for turning on the water chiller by referring to microclimate data, so as to achieve energy savings. The museum then started to refer to Badouzi Weather Station’s climate data and turned on the water chiller at an earlier time of 7 am during summer to cool the museum in advance. This will not only make visitors feel comfortable after they enter the museum, the full operation of the water chiller during the peak demand time at noon to reduce temperature is not required too. Electricity consumption during the peak period reduced significantly by 10%, and the excess capacity charge also decreased by 20%!

Coincidentally, the month during which the water chiller was replaced also saw the highest number of visitors to NMMST since its establishment. However, during the entire month, there were no complaints from the visitors about the air-conditioning not being cold. In addition, as 7 am is an off-peak period, the rate of electricity was lower, and less excess penalties were incurred, which made the overall electricity bills and consumption decreased by 11% and 5% respectively. 

Similarly, during spring and autumn, NMMST adjusts the operation of the water chiller based on climate data. As it is cooler during this period, the decision is not about turning on the air-conditioning in advance, but the choice of chiller in terms of tons of chiller capacity. The museum has long been using an energy-intensive 500 tons chiller. After examining climate data, they realized that a 200 ton chiller is sufficient to achieve cooling effect during autumn. With these adjustments, both electricity consumption and bills can be reduced by 30%! 

From this example, we can see that electricity consumption and carbon emission can be reduced just by following to the weather forecast closely, thereby saving the cost for the museum. Most importantly, NMMST does not trade off indoor comfort to yield energy savings during peak periods. On the contrary, it even improves the comfort of visitors.

The existing mini weather station outside NMMST capturesmicroclimate data of the building’s surrounding at all times