100th CES member wins federal award for energy program

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Dillon Johnston
  • 100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
RAF MILDENHALL, England --  A civilian from the 100th Civil Engineer Squadron recently won the 2014 Federal Energy and Water Management award for his holistic energy program on base.

Steve Perry, 100th CES base energy manager, spearheaded the program which saved the Air Force a total of $1.8 million in energy costs in fiscal year 2013.

Perry's vision of energy conservation comes from an overall standpoint, rather than an individual section point of view.

"I'm trying to get people to think less about the problem in front of them, and think more about the peripherals," Perry said.

As a part of his holistic ideology, Perry wants everyone on base to be more aware of the energy they are using and how it affects other agencies on base, not only their own. On a base where energy is consumed by buildings, vehicles and most notably aircraft, Perry believes that to effectively save energy, all of these components need to be interconnected and communicate effectively.

"In the past, the base level civil engineer squadron was more facility driven," Perry said. "I approached leadership and said 'Wouldn't it be a good idea if we worked this holistically and thought more about aviation and vehicles, not just facilities?'."

This led to a widespread change in how energy on base was used and how its usage was reported to leadership. The 100th Air Refueling Wing commander now receives a monthly briefing on energy usage and distribution across RAF Mildenhall from all agencies and all energy sources. This allows a more tactical approach in determining where cuts can be made in order to make the base as energy efficient as possible.

Along with monitoring and properly distributing energy, the program also investigates ways of producing energy in a cost effective and renewable fashion.

"We are trying to push more and more into the avenues of renewables like solar energy," Perry said. "RAF Mildenhall has some projects we are trying to get out there that are in the early design to put solar panels on buildings."

Setting aside all the big plans, when it comes down to the big picture of saving energy, Perry is a firm believer that anyone can make an impact.

"I think it's important that everyone works cohesively as a team," he said. "Everyone has this idea that 'I don't make a difference,' but it's key that the individual realizes that they are part of a much bigger piece, and by them changing and getting everyone around them to change, and think differently about energy, it has astonishing results.

"If we all just change some small thing subtly, you may think it has no impact, but overall, in the big scheme of things it does make a big difference," Perry added.