The Lahey Clinic
The Lahey Clinic is a world-renowned medical center, teaching hospital and research center. Founded in 1923, it has earned a strong reputation for innovative technology, pioneering medical treatment and cutting-edge research. The physician-led, nonprofit Lahey Clinic employs nearly 500 physicians and more than 4,000 nurses, therapists and other support staff in 14 different locations who work together to provide compassionate care and superior patient outcomes.
The 886,000 g.s.f. Lahey Clinic Medical Center in Burlington encompasses an ambulatory care center serving more than 3,000 outpatients each day, a 317-bed hospital, 23 operating rooms and a Level II Trauma Center. The Lahey Clinic Medical Center, North Shore, in Peabody is 154,400 g.s.f. and serves more than 800 outpatients each day. In addition, twelve community group practices serve other northeastern and northwestern Massachusetts suburbs.
As a research center, Lahey Clinic offers patients access to clinical trials of new therapies for diseases such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease and cataracts. Among the Lahey Clinic’s 40+ specialty areas are the Landsmen Heart & Vascular Center, the Cerebrovascular Disease Center, the Department of Liver Transplantation and the Sophia Gordon Cancer Center.
The Need
The Lahey Clinic, as with other hospitals and treatment centers, is a large energy consumer. “Operating every day of the year 24/7, hospitals have very stringent operating requirements for indoor air quality; airflow; air exchange rates and specified temperature ranges for patients, equipment and medical procedure areas,” explains Ken Nix, Lahey Clinic Project Manager Engineering & Regulatory Compliance. In addition, new equipment and services mean that hospitals are constantly being retrofitted to keep pace with ever changing medical advances, sometimes compromising energy efficiency.
The Lahey Clinic is continually assessing and implementing the installation of the most energy efficient physical plant equipment for both new construction and maintenance projects. They have recently completed an energy efficiency lighting retrofit upgrade, and a water conservation and electrical power factor correction projects.
“Rapidly escalating costs, uncompensated costs and demanding regulations have magnified the need for us to focus on operating efficiently while at the same time continuing to provide quality care,” stated Ken.
The Solution
In 2006, the Lahey Clinic signed up for PowerOptions natural gas program for its Burlington and North Shore facilities. Over a 48-month period, the Lahey has saved almost $700,000 in gas costs.
“Cost is important, but reliability is even more important. A hospital simply cannot lose its ability to provide heat and process steam for their patients”, added Nix. “The PowerOptions contract assures of us that our continuous supply of natural gas will be delivered at a predictable and reasonable cost.”
It’s All About the Members
“With PowerOptions, it’s all about the members,” says Ken. “For the Lahey Clinic, the fact that PowerOptions is a nonprofit, working on behalf of other nonprofits speaks volumes. They are there for us everyday – working to get us the best value, to protect us with favorable contract terms, to find us the best vendors, to answer our questions and to keep us abreast of industry trends and legislation. The personal attention we receive from PowerOptions makes it clear that we are much, much more than a number to them.“