Sidney Lu MEB awarded for energy conservation

For the second year running, Sidney Lu Mechanical Engineering Building has won an Energy Conservation Incentive Program (ECIP) award from the university’s Facilities and Services unit.

Each year, ECIP recognizes campus buildings that demonstrate the greatest percentage of energy savings over the previous fiscal year. ECIP was developed in 2013 to recognize efforts that move the campus closer to achieving Illinois Climate Action Plan (iCAP) goals.

“By reducing our energy consumption, the campus can lower greenhouse gas emissions, reduce reliance on fossil fuels, and achieve carbon neutrality goals,” said MechSE Facilities Operations Coordinator Kyle Wilcoxon, who represented the Lu MEB at the April 2025 awards ceremony alongside Principal Research Engineer Joe Maduzia.

Awards are given in two categories—occupant action, which focuses on efforts that building users can make to collectively reduce energy use, and energy advancement, which includes energy conservation improvements to the building itself.

This year, Lu MEB again took third place in the energy advancement category, behind Wassaja Hall and the Illini Union Bookstore.

“In every research facility and every classroom, we have the opportunity to show that excellence includes stewardship,” Maduzia said. “Energy conservation efforts on campus are a way we can lead by example, demonstrating that innovation and responsibility go hand in hand in building a better world.”

Indeed, for the MechSE community, the award represents ongoing dedication to teamwork and excellence. As facilities coordinator, Wilcoxon oversees the operations and maintenance of the department’s two buildings – Lu MEB and Mechanical Engineering Laboratory. These responsibilities include coordinating and monitoring non-capital projects, ensuring compliance with safety regulations and building codes, and planning and allocating space while also forecasting future needs related to departmental growth and research.

“I strive to create strong, lasting relationships with faculty, staff, and students through effective communication and by responding to their needs accordingly within all of MechSE’s spaces and facilities,” Wilcoxon said. “None of these things are accomplished without the ongoing service and support of the men and women in the trades at campus Facilities and Services.”

Maduzia oversees daily operations, equipment maintenance, and research activities for the MNMS Cleanroom, a highly specialized laboratory space in Lu MEB that supports micro and nano fabrication.

“The most rewarding part of my role has been empowering researchers and students to turn their ideas into real, working technologies,” he said. “By maintaining and improving the MNMS Cleanroom’s capabilities, I help create an environment where innovations in micro and nano systems can actually happen and where new technologies can take shape to improve the world.”

With its hardworking community, MechSE promises to continue setting a strong example on campus.

“There is a sense of community within the department, and having an opportunity to interact within that environment allows me and others the ability to perform at our best daily,” Wilcoxon said.