CASE STUDY
DETROIT YACHT CLUB
Location: Detroit, MI
The Client
The Detroit Yacht Club's (DYC) clubhouse, located on an island along the banks of the Belle Isle Park in Detroit, was built in 1922. The club’s members and foundation continue to maintain and preserve the historic legacy of the building so it may continue to delight guests for years to come. The DYC is one of the oldest and most prestigious private Clubs in North America serving as a destination for boaters and socialites alike. The DYC offers their guests a first-class dining experience, an outstanding variety of social/recreational events, is an exclusive wedding venue, and offers many athletic, health and fitness activities.
The Challenge
The DYC’s historic facility requires attentive maintenance and restoration. The Club’s foundation continues to make investments in the building to improve and preserve the structure. Plug Smart was able to help in this effort by completing a thorough engineering study. The study showed the DYC’s board how using energy efficiency savings they could make necessary infrastructure improvements to the building’s boilers, lighting, refrigeration, and building controls in a cashflow positive manner.
The Solution
Plug Smart outlined a plan for the DYC to implement energy conservation measures to their lighting, replace end of life boilers, replace expensive water-cooled refrigeration, and add direct digital controls to improve the buildings comfort all while saving energy and money. By converting all of their interior lighting to LEDs, the club was able to reduce their energy use and improve lighting quality. By replacing the end of life boilers, the club has reduced the risk of catastrophic failure and has improved the facilities heating system for years to come. The new refrigeration equipment is far less expensive to operate and easier to maintain. The new controls system improves comfort while reducing waste. With all of these improvements, the DYC will have continued energy savings and improved equipment reliability.