A respected expert in defense and national security, Pamela Berkowsky has decades of federal and territorial government experience and has recently been certified as a Climate Communicator by the CLEO Institute. As the President of Blue Sapphire Strategies, a Miami-based public affairs and business consultancy, Pamela Berkowsky serves as a senior executive defense consultant to the South Florida Defense Alliance (www.southfloridadefensealliance.org). Her SFDA work focuses primarily on resiliency and the national security implications of climate change, particularly the impacts on U.S. military installations, personnel, readiness, and operations. In mid-2021, the US Defense Department (DOD) announced that it would undertake a comprehensive upgrade of energy infrastructure at Hurlburt Field, the Destin, Florida military base which hosts the headquarters of Air Force Special Operations Command (HQ AFSOC). The Energy Savings Performance Contract (ESPC), awarded by the Defense Logistics Agency – Energy, provides Schneider Electric Buildings Americas with a $22.6 million task order to bring Hurlburt Fields’s infrastructure up to standard, aiming to ensure that grid stability and critical power supply needs are fully met. The work is also expected to have a positive budgetary impact, with $1.5 million in annual energy savings forecast across the 22-year contract term – a projected annual 17.7% reduction in energy costs. The project is one of a new breed of long term ESPC contracts that strive to boost facility efficiency while also improving mission readiness and 24/7 energy reliability. Among the upgrades spanning more than 375 structures planned at Hurlburt Field are a canopy solar PV system that will supply 240kW of electricity, airfield LED lighting upgrades, enhanced HVAC capacity, and duct sealing. In addition, a microgrid control-outfitted battery energy system with 200kW/112kWhr storage capacity will boost operational resilience and help ensure mission-critical reliability. Construction is projected for completion in early 2023 and will significantly enhance HQ AFSOC’s stability and resiliency.

1. Hurlburt Field in Florida to Undergo Energy Efficiency
Upgrades
Pamela Berkowsky

2. Introduction
A respected expert in defense and national security, Pamela Berkowsky has decades
of federal and territorial government experience and has recently been certified as a
Climate Communicator by the CLEO Institute. As the President of Blue Sapphire
Strategies, a Miami-based public affairs and business consultancy, Pamela
Berkowsky serves as a senior executive defense consultant to the South Florida
Defense Alliance (www.southfloridadefensealliance.org).

3. Her SFDA work focuses primarily on resiliency and the national security
implications of climate change, particularly the impacts on U.S. military
installations, personnel, readiness, and operations. In mid-2021, the US Defense
Department (DOD) announced that it would undertake a comprehensive upgrade of
energy infrastructure at Hurlburt Field, the Destin, Florida military base which
hosts the headquarters of Air Force Special Operations Command (HQ AFSOC).
The Energy Savings Performance Contract (ESPC), awarded by the Defense
Logistics Agency – Energy, provides Schneider Electric Buildings Americas with a
$22.6 million task order to bring Hurlburt Fields’s infrastructure up to standard,
aiming to ensure that grid stability and critical power supply needs are fully met.
The work is also expected to have a positive budgetary impact, with $1.5 million in
annual energy savings forecast across the 22-year contract term – a projected
annual 17.7% reduction in energy costs.

4. The project is one of a new breed of long term ESPC contracts that strive to boost
facility efficiency while also improving mission readiness and 24/7 energy reliability.
Among the upgrades spanning more than 375 structures planned at Hurlburt Field
are a canopy solar PV system that will supply 240kW of electricity, airfield LED
lighting upgrades, enhanced HVAC capacity, and duct sealing. In addition, a
microgrid control-outfitted battery energy system with 200kW/112kWhr storage
capacity will boost operational resilience and help ensure mission-critical reliability.
Construction is projected for completion in early 2023 and will significantly enhance
HQ AFSOC’s stability and resiliency.