Power Plant


Building #: 53
Campus: Center
Built: 1921
Square Footage: 19,440ft²
Architectual Style: Colonial Revival

Location

42.38675, -71.20822

History

The 1921 power plant was the third and final boiler house at the Fernald campus, replacing the equipment in both Belmont and Storeroom. Although a number of buildings on the campus were serviced by individual oil boilers, the majority were heated by a centralized high-pressure steam-pipe system fueled by this oil-fired plant. The steam pipe system consists of asbestos-insulated iron piping in reinforced concrete utility maintenance tunnels. Connections to a few buildings are made above-ground or are direct-burial, without tunnels. 

The two-branch system directly served 38 buildings: the East Branch delivered steam to 18 structures and the West Branch connected to 20 buildings with a hydronic loop in the northwest quadrant of the campus. Linked at Greene to the high-pressure steam system, the hydronic loop served 13 buildings, including the cottage complex constructed in 1976, plus Brookside and Woodside. A majority of these buildings had steam-to-hot-water converters installed as a cost-saving benefit.

The power plant was equipped with five oil-fueled boilers, the newest being updated in 1976. Before this, two were installed in 1967, still operational with nine years of service anticipated as of 1995, while the oldest pair dated back to 1954 and were nearing the end of their functional lifespan. By 1995, their condition was assessed as merely "fair." To bolster fuel storage, two new 20,000 gallon oil tanks were added in 1997. Parts of the steam system that were utilized into the final years of the school were remediated of the asbestos which lined the piping, however sections which closed earlier still appear to contain hazardous (friable) material.

Architectural Description

The power plant, though utilitarian in function, was designed in Colonial Revival style. Banding is crafted in limestone accents, with handsome brickwork found on most facades. Large industrial windows are located on the boilerhouse, which rests on a concrete foundation. The smokestack, made of a different brick than the original building, is likely not original. A small creek runs past the building in the rear.


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