Projects
PROJECT: Bloomington Ice Garden.
Hockey is king in Minnesota. Much of that sport is played in the City of Bloomington MN ice garden that hosts 800,000 visitors to the building each year. The building marked its 50-year anniversary in 2020 with a number of major upgrades. The most noticeable was new LED lighting, installed throughout the building by Apadana. Here’s a brief video from the city that highlights the improvements.
Project: Hennepin County Central Library
The Minneapolis Central Library, located at 300 Nicollet Mall in Minneapolis, MN, is a 539,487 gross square foot multi story facility situated on a 2.47 acre site. The facility includes 5 levels plus a 5th floor mezzanine level, and 2 levels of below grade parking that can accommodate 264 vehicles. The county launched a major renovation to re-purpose both public and staff spaces to reflect changes in library service since the building opened in 2006. A major element of the renovation was an upgrade to energy efficient LED lighting delivered by Apadana. Unlike most other projects, Apadana was challenged to accomplish this upgrade during hours when the library was closed. Further complicating matters was the huge atrium requiring a massive man-lift to reach existing light fixtures that were replaced. The new lighting is fully integrated into an advanced control system with occupancy sensors.
Anoka-Hennepin School District Air Quality Project
The Anoka-Hennepin School District is one of Minnesota's largest, serving approximately 38,000 students and 248,000 residents. Spread out across 172 square miles, the district is made of 13 suburban communities north of the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Anoka-Hennepin has 26 elementary schools, six middle schools (grades six through eight), and five traditional high schools, plus alternative middle and high school sites.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Anoka-Hennepin schools engaged Apadana to upgrade its air purification systems in all schools and administrative buildings across the district with the goal of improving the safety of students, faculty and administration,
Apadana installed a Needlepoint Bipolar Ionization (NPBI) system in each building’s existing HVAC system. NPBI works by safely introducing ions into the airflow, combining with particles in the air such as viruses, bacteria, odors, and other airborne particles, and then eliminating or neutralizing them. Furthermore, the systems do not produce harmful byproducts, are ozone certified and save on energy costs. Learn more on how the systems work by watching Global Plasma Solutions’ video.
The installation project started in October 2020 and was completed by year-end. The project cost of $1.44 million was funded through the federal CARES Act Emergency Relief dollars provided to school districts across the country.
Metro Transit Energy Efficiency Projects
Metro Transit is the transportation resource for the Twin Cities, offering an integrated network of buses, light rail and commuter trains as well as resources for those who carpool, vanpool, walk or bike. Metro Transit is developing a network of enhanced transitways throughout the region.
Since 2008, Metro Transit has invested in energy-saving measures at its facilities that save more than $1 million in utility costs per year that they will recoup in less than four years.
Apadana has worked closely with Metro Transit to deliver a number of high profile energy efficient lighting grades in lighting as well as renewable energy generation through Apadana Energy.
Transit Stations. Lighting at transit stations is a high priority for Metro Transit because better lighting can help improve rider safety. Apadana was engaged to upgrade eight transit stations on the Metro Transit Blue Line light rail, which involved replacement of over 750 exterior fixtures with energy efficient LED lights. The 5-month project was completed on time and on budget.
Photos: Nicollet Mall Station
Bus Garages. Apadana was engaged to upgrade the garage and office lighting in the nine massive Metro Transit bus garages. The lighting retrofit was implemented in active bus garages which required careful planning to avoid injury to Apadana installers or damage to Metro Transit equipment.
Metro Transit Police Department Solar
Metro Transit Police Department is one of the fastest-growing, most diverse police agencies in Minnesota. Operating on-board, on-foot or on-the-rail, the department operates a full-service 24-hour licensed police department that responds to, and investigates, all crimes occurring on Metro Transit property, including buses, light rail, commuter trains, facilities, and rights-of-way throughout eight counties and 85 cities. The 120 full-time officers and 60 part-time officers are fully-sworn peace officers with the same powers of arrest as other city or county law enforcement agencies.
Metro Transit together with the Metropolitan Council engaged Apadana Energy to install a 40kW roof-mounted “behind the meter” solar PV power plant on their secure facility in downtown Minneapolis. The system will generate $7,500 per year in renewable power for the building.
Lighting Retrofit Project
Ryerson Plymouth, MN Facility
For over 175 years, Ryerson has delivered metal customized to specification for customers in industries like packaging, oil & gas, heavy equipment, transportation, and more. We are one of the largest metal processors and distributors, with locations across North America and in China.
Apadana was engaged to upgrade the lighting in two of their Minnesota locations. These large factories require significant electrical power to operate the heavy machinery needed to move and customize their vast array of metal products. During the upgrade, Apadana encountered an unexpected electrical distribution network operating at 480 volts rather than the standard 277 volts. This challenge was handled through the specification of LED lighting fixtures and controls that were suitable for the Ryerson environment. Between the two facilities, over 2,000 fixtures were replaced and dimming control systems were installed in all offices.
