ABM Offers $3.7M in Energy Savings to Georgia School District

Facility solutions provider ABM recently announced that it will be partnering with the Dooly County School System in Vienna, Ga., to form an Energy Performance Contracting program. The program will save the school district about $3.7 million in energy and operating cost savings over the next 20 years, according to a press release. The savings will come primarily from energy-saving infrastructure solutions and custodial and maintenance services.

“Our students deserve state-of-the-art facilities,” said Dooly County School System Superintendent Dr. Craig Lockhart. “This project, through an innovative solution, helps our community achieve more for each school, to perpetuate success for every student.”

The energy savings and reduction in operating costs will come through improved lighting, HVAC equipment, and controls at the district’s K–8 Academy and high school. It will also offer larger space for bus maintenance and upgrades to student athletic facilities such as additional bathrooms, new lighting, and improved playing surfaces. The project will also entail installing a new roof for the high-school gymnasium and a reconfigured HVAC system to extend the roof’s life and offer interior climate control.

“We not only improve infrastructure through projects like this for our clients, but we also protect and preserve those investments for students, teachers, and staff with ongoing maintenance and custodial services,” said ABM President of Education Valerie Burd.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Year-Round Schools Require Year-Round Indoor Air Quality Planning

    While many schools are out for the summer, year-round schools follow a more “balanced” schedule with shorter, more frequent breaks spaced throughout the school year. Even though this offers educational benefits, these facilities have less downtime for building maintenance. This can become an issue when facilities managers overlook the importance of routine HVAC maintenance and air duct cleaning services.

  • GeoCam and UCLA: Modernizing Campus Accessibility Mapping

    In early 2025, UCLA partnered with GeoCam to capture and modernize its pedestrian infrastructure data. The goal was ambitious but clear: to produce a high-accuracy, imagery-backed digital map of every sidewalk, pathway, ramp, and ADA-related feature on UCLA’s 419-acre campus.

  • ZeroEyes, Academic Innovators Partner to Provide Safety Solutions

    ZeroEyes, which produces a multi-analytics weapons detection and threat intelligence platform, recently announced a partnership with Academic Innovators, according to a news release.

  • Q&A: How to Prevent Kitchen Grease Fires in Commercial Kitchens

    School cafeterias and university dining halls serve thousands of meals daily, relying on high-heat equipment like fryers, grills, and ovens. While these operations keep students fed, they also generate significant grease-laden vapors. Without proper controls, this grease becomes a silent fire threat. As a certified exhaust cleaning specialist and business coach who has helped hundreds of institutional facilities achieve NFPA 96 compliance, I emphasize that proactive grease management isn’t optional; it’s a core fire/life safety practice.