Page 54 - spaces4learning, Fall 2024

s p a c e s 4 l e a rn i n g MILITARY EDUCATION
basis, doubling the entire campus load. Weighing the existing
infrastructure on campus, the local costs for energy, and the port’s
proximity to other landmarks, systems, and structures, RMF re-
viewed its analysis with the lo-
cal utility and the ship’s crew
for specific operational input
to determine how best to meet
the demand increase. Ultimate-
ly, RMF worked closely with
the utility company to equip
SUNY’s campus with a second
electrical service.
Carefully considering the
site’s context in relation to future
campus resilience, RMF’s design
provided new main switchgear
to receive the new service feed-
ers on an elevated platform to
protect it from storm surge and
potential utility feeder failures.
Capitalizing on the existing
campus steam generation and
onboard steam-to-hot water
heat exchanger, RMF also de-
signed a replacement steam line
between the existing plant and
the pier—allowing facilities management to curtail the electrical
demand of the training facility in winter by providing supplemen-
tal heating via hot water.
As more information became available from MARAD while
TO BETTER EQUIP THOSE FIVE
INSTITUTIONS TO PROVIDE
THAT CRITICAL EDUCATIONAL
FOUNDATION, THE U.S.
MARITIME ADMINISTRATION
MARAD HAS BEEN
GRADUALLY WORKING
TO DECOMMISSION AND
REPLACE THEIR CURRENT
LEET O TRAINING SHIPS—
WHICH WERE ORIGINALLY
DESIGNED FOR THE USE OF
STEAM POWER AND HAVE
BEGUN TO AGE BEYOND THEIR
VIABILITY.
the infrastructure upgrades took place, however, it was deter-
mined that the existing pier structure would not be capable of
supporting the lateral loads of NSMV during heavy weather
mooring. RMF partnered with
McLaren Engineering Group
to design an upgrade to the
academy’s pier structure and
utilities to accommodate the
new vessel and future campus
growth. The pier upgrades in-
cluded new mooring dolphins,
new concrete piles, and new
pier deck including utility dis-
tribution trenches.
Massachusetts
Maritime Academy
Massachusetts Maritime Acad-
emy
’s current vessel, the USTS
Kennedy, entered service in
1967 and was converted into a
training ship in 2003. RMF En-
gineering partnered with GEI
Consultants to facilitate the
campus
’ transition in prepara-
tion for the arrival of its replace-
ment, the Patriot State II, which is anticipated by the end of 2024.
Leveraging its experience designing the upgrades at SUNY,
RMF led a similar comprehensive load analysis and review, in-
forming the institution’s determination that the shore power
54 FALL 2024 | spaces4learning.com