The implementation of energy-efficient innovations ensures that ageing buildings and campuses can modernize without resorting to full- scale equipment replacement.Modernizing Children’s of Alabama digital campus Children’s of Alabama, the third-largest paediatric medical centre in the US, partnered with Johnson Controls to enhance their ageing digital campus infrastructure while maintaining reliability for patient and staff safety. As their 20-year partner, Johnson Controls helped the hospital meet and exceed efficiency goals by retrofitting equipment, modernizing controls and applying OpenBlue Enterprise Manager (OBEM) smart building software. Using OpenBlue Enterprise Manager Central Utility Plant, Johnson Controls designed, built and managed a new central utility plant, resulting in significant cost savings and energy efficiency improvements. The company also retrofitted hospital equipment such as boilers, air handlers, heating coils and variable speed drive pumps, and replaced outdated control systems with its building automation system. The project was successful in addressing Children’s of Alabama’s goals: 1. Energy efficiency and infrastructure improvements: The project achieved a 76% reduction in natural gas use, resulting in annual savings of approximately $681,000. This was measured by comparing energy consumption before and after the implementation of a heat pump chiller, steam to hot water conversion, OpenBlue Enterprise Manager and the Metasys building automation system. 2. Operational cost savings: Modernizing infrastructure, including buildings from the 1960s and 1980s, led to significant operational cost savings. Strategic equipment upgrades and digital solutions streamlined energy efficiency across the campus, saving the hospital the cost of capital equipment and depreciation expenses. 3. Protecting and enhancing patient care and safety: By maintaining essential utilities and ensuring reliable access to critical resources, the project has increased the performance of buildings with specific needs, improving patient care and safety. This was measured by increased reliability and reduced system downtime, directly impacting the overall patient experience. With the data and insights from OpenBlue, the hospital’s facility team can more easily substantiate funding requests. If the team is seeking funding to tie chilled water into other buildings, they can demonstrate what the maintenance costs would be, the expected lifespan of equipment, and how much they could save from retiring older equipment and relying on the plant. Children’s of Alabama is building off these successes to explore new opportunities to use digital systems in critical care areas like operating rooms, catheterization labs, neonatal intensive care units, post anaesthesia care units or stem cell units to identify and correct any pressurization or airflow issues in real time. Models to scale innovation across building portfolios The Children’s of Alabama modernization project has uncovered key success factors that can be replicated across hospital networks, municipalities and educational campuses: –Building trust and long-term partnerships while taking a customer-centric approach to problem-solving –Reinvesting energy savings to expand services and improve patient outcomes –Designing adaptable solutions to create more flexible, resilient infrastructure39 The implementation of energy-efficient innovations ensures that ageing buildings and campuses can modernize without resorting to full-scale equipment replacement – saving costs that can be reinvested in future growth and essential services. Shaping Tomorrow: Responsible Innovation for a Brighter Future 22

Shaping Tomorrow Responsible Innovation for a Brighter Future 2025