University of Illinois Facilities and Services

A university professor’s GPS research study has come to an end with valuable results, thanks to help from F&S’ Transportation Services.

In July 2012, Green GPS, a software interface designed by Illinois Associate Professor of Computer Science Tarek Abdelzaher, was installed in several F&S vehicles to collect data on energy consumption in transportation systems. The equipment used the vehicle’s on-board diagnostics system to upload information about engine performance and fuel efficiency to a cellular phone, which then used the data to calculate the most fuel efficient or “green” route.

“While we never rolled out the originally contemplated full-scale deployment, the small deployment we did have with F&S help was very valuable to our research,” Abdelzaher said. “The project ultimately resulted in an improved ‘GPS navigator’ that finds fuel-efficient routes for vehicles between user-specified end-points. The most fuel-efficient route was often shown to be different from the shortest or fastest route.  Furthermore, the savings when using our navigation software were shown to be better than some of the alternative fuel-saving navigation technologies, like Garmin Eco.”

 F&S knows how much waste is generated on campus in total, but doesn’t know specifically from where it is coming. That could soon change. At the suggestion of the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center, F&S is piloting a program to measure the quantity of trash in individual dumpsters.

Small, yellow wireless sensors, which can monitor the amount of waste inside, will be attached to the lids of eight dumpsters. With the push of a few computer buttons, Morgan Johnston, F&S director of Sustainability, and Tracy Osby, coordinator of Waste Management, will be able to access real time fill-up measurements right at their desks.

Armed with the data, F&S hopes to better understand where campus waste is coming from and use the information to improve campus recycling. Illinois currently has an 85%
diversion rate (how much waste is diverted from the landfill) for solid waste overall, but its municipal rate, which measures waste from campus buildings, is just 31%.

“We can definitely do better and these numbers will be the core of improving our diversion rate,” Johnston said.  “Our goal is to get municipal waste up to a 45% diversion by FY20.”

The pilot program also will help F&S determine how else the sensors could be utilized if they were installed in all campus dumpsters. For now, though, the information will only be
analyzed in terms of recycling.

“We could target specific buildings that have less recycling and institute programs to change behavior,” Johnston said of the collected data. “An awareness of waste habits in comparison to peers can also make a huge change.”

Ultimately if the pilot goes well, F&S will seek to identify sources of funding to expand the program to the entire
campus, she said.

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According to Japanese myth, by walking on a crooked bridge one can avoid evil spirits that flow in straight lines. If that is the case, visitors to the University of Illinois’ Japan House gardens should have nothing to fear because the bridge that F&S helped build there is not straight.

Instead the “yatsuhashi” features angles that form a jog in the structure. Yatushasi translates to “eight bridges” because traditionally the bridges were built from eight wooden planks.

The Japan House yatsuhasi has a few more than eight wooden planks, but still contains a jog in the middle as well as other traditional features.

Built to honor Kimiko Gunji, the former director of Japan House, the cedar bridge was funded by donations made when Gunji retired in 2011.

“We decided that having something permanent on the grounds to honor Kimiko would be most fitting,” said Cynthia Voelkl, assistant director of Japan House. “She was really the one who made this permanent facility happen. We wanted it to be something really special, and a bridge was something we always thought would be perfect in these gardens.”

Once the funds were raised, F&S managed the bid process and construction of the structure. Capital Programs project manager Jim Sims was involved with the bidding of the project before it was turned over to Construction Services where it ultimately was managed by Josh Rubin.

Japan House gardener Jim Byers created the design for the bridge and wanted to build something as Japanese as possible. He also hand-carved the bird cutouts on either the side of the bridge.

“Jim didn’t want an arched bridge, which you sometimes see, because that is actually more of a Chinese feature,” Voelkl said. “He wanted it to be strictly Japanese, and the jog in it was important to him.”

When the original construction bid came back over budget, changes had to be made to the design, ultimately pushing back its construction from last summer until July of 2015.

“Trying to match the cost of the design with keeping the bridge as traditional as possible was a long, slow process,” Voelkl said. “Everybody we dealt with at F&S was so respectful of Japan House and its aesthetics. Obviously it’s not a bridge you would build somewhere else on campus. There were a lot of considerations, and everyone we worked with was really thoughtful, and we really appreciate it.”

With the bridge finally complete at a cost of approximately $136,000, the Japan House staff is looking forward to showing it off to the campus and community.

“I think it’s going to become a really loved feature of the arboretum and the campus in general,” Voelkl said. “I foresee lots of wedding pictures and things over there. It’s the first step in the further development of these gardens.”