By Tyler Follett
It might be cold outside today, but the college works a full season in advance on their heating systems to prepare the campuses for winter’s onslaught.
Similarly, the cooling systems are worked on during the winter to ensure their functionality for the summer.
The man responsible for the heating and cooling of the school, as well as the maintenance and preparations involved, is Enoka Bainomugisha, Manager of Technical Services and Energy Conservations Physical Resources. He has been in his position for eight years, which gives him experience dealing with all of the seasons.
“This is Canada, so you have to prepare but we know what to expect at this point,” Bainomugisha explained, pointing to his experience.
“As soon as the heating ends in around April we start to look at the heating systems, and any fixes and improvements we can make,” Bainomugisha added.
Bainomugisha pointed to the careful measures him and his colleagues take in ensuring safety and quality, using a “robust preventive maintenance program.”
The “biggest challenge” for Bainomugisha is the old, often outdated equipment that the school uses for heating and cooling.
“We have come a long way, but much of the equipment is 30 years old, the challenge is maintaining old equipment,” said Bainomugisha proudly.
This has been the first winter for Algonquin with students in the Student Commons building, which has been a big hit among students.
“First winter with students, and so far so good, no problems to report” said Bainomugisha, pointing to the success of the new student area.
While the majority of the school is older, the Student Commons is one of the newer buildings, which means it has newer equipment. The ACCE building is in its second winter with students, and has been a similar success.
The only minor issue to report thus far has been due to the older equipment requiring maintenance.
“An older, 100 horse power motor burnt out, so we dealt with that quickly,” explained Bainomugisha.
And while he and his team are busy keeping the college’s many buildings heated, there are students who turn to various other means to keep the cold out, such as keeping the warm in.
“When it’s cold, we sell lots of coffee and soup,” said Linda Joly, who manages First Cup in C building.
Professors and students alike have taken advantage of the many offerings on campus.
“It’s comforting, soup with this cold,” said Joly, clearly noticing a difference in business with the harsh conditions.