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Facilities
New Employee Orientation
PETROLEUM FUEL REDUCTION PLAN
The University of North Carolina Greensboro along with all other state universities and agencies have resolved to help solve the energy issues.
One key component in managing transportation fuel use centers on Section 19.5 of the 2005 Budget Bill. This section states:
"All State agencies, universities, and community colleges that have State-owned vehicle fleets shall develop and implement plans to improve the State's use of alternative fuels, synthetic lubricants, and efficient vehicles. The plans shall achieve a twenty percent (20%) reduction or displacement of the current petroleum products consumed by January 1, 2010."
UNCG has submitted its displacement plan and is moving ahead with efforts to meet our displacement plan goal of 20% reduction.
Two strategies have already been initiated.
- Diesel fuel has been replaced by bio-diesel. (B-20) This is a blend of 20% vegetable oil and 80% diesel fuel.
- Unleaded fuel has been replaced by gasohol. (E-10) This is a blend of 10% grain alcohol and 90% gasoline.
New and current employee orientation is our next strategy. Education is an important step in making our employees aware of the importance of meeting our reduction obligation.
At times employees may be requested to drive university vehicles for one reason or another. As an employee we request your help in achieving our 20% reduction of petroleum products. The following driving tips will aide the university in our fuel displacement plan. These tips will also help you on your personal fuel efficiency.
- Avoid aggressive driving. "Jack-rabbit" starts and hard braking can increase fuel consumption by as much as 40%. Tests show that “jackrabbit” starts and hard braking reduces travel time by only four percent, while toxic emissions were more than five times higher. The proper way is to accelerate slowly and smoothly, then get into high gear as quickly as possible. In city driving, nearly 50% of the energy needed to power your car goes to acceleration.
- Drive steady at posted speed limits.
Increasing your highway cruising speed from 55mph to 75mph can raise fuel consumption as much as 20%. You can improve your gas mileage 10 - 15% by driving at 55mph rather than 65mph.
- Avoid idling your vehicle, in both summer and winter. Idling wastes fuel, gets you nowhere. Today's vehicles are designed to warm up fast, avoid idling when you can; idling is 0 miles per gallon. Unnecessary idling wasted more gas than turning off and restarting the engine. Idling consumes ½ to 1 gallon of gas per hour.
- Combine errands. Several short trips taken from a cold start can use twice as much fuel as one trip covering the same distance when the engine is warm.
- Reduce air condition use / close windows. Using the air conditioner increases fuel cost from 13% up to 21%. If it's cool enough, use the flow through ventilation instead of rolling down the windows or using the AC.
- Make sure your tires are properly inflated to prevent increased rolling resistance. Under-inflated tires can cause fuel consumption to increase by as much as 6%.
- Monitor power accessories. Be sure to shut off all power-consuming accessories before turning off the ignition. That way, you decrease engine load the next time you start up. Items that plug into your vehicle's cigarette lighter, such as TV consoles for mini-vans and SUVs, can cause the alternator to work harder to provide electrical current. This adds a load to the engine and added load increases fuel use, decreasing your gas mileage.
- Car Pool: If several people are traveling to the same destinations use one vehicle.