The Smart Buildings Center (SBC) and Building Operator Certification (BOC) program are proud to announce the 2026 BOC Operator of the Year: Michael Durham, Lead Mechanic 3 from Edmonds College
Each year, BOC requests nominations for people working to improve the energy efficiency of their work environment using skills they learned in the BOC program. We received many impressive 2026 nominations detailing how methods learned in BOC classes are helping people make improvements in their work environments, but this year Michaelâs work stood out among the other candidates.
At Edmonds College, Michael works hard to look for measures that will improve the collegeâs energy efficiency across all of their 25 buildings and 734,000 square feet of occupied space. In 2026 that meant reducing natural gas usage, replacing single building fans with fan walls in HVAC systems and replacing the plantâs cooling tower with an energy efficient induced draft model. Across the board, Michaelâs work saw the incorporation of 143 scheduled spaces throughout the campus and up to a 98% reduction in equipment run time. These efforts even helped inspire the State Board of Community and Technical Colleges to offer an incentive to other colleges to adopt a similar system.
Michaelâs hard work and application of concepts he learned in the BOC program resulted in the college saving an estimated 512,000 KWH in energy use over the course of the year. Michaelâs tireless dedication to BOC principles, ingenuity in keeping up with the latest trends in energy conservation and building operation, and leadership have been instrumental in the college’s success in reducing its carbon footprint. His BOC training and hard work created the following real-world impacts for Edmonds College:
- Energy savings totaling 512,000 KW Hours in a single year saving $41,000.00 in annual energy savings.
- Estimated energy savingsÂ
- 38%Â estimated total energy savings over the past year
- 15.4% reduction in electricity
- 52.5% reduction in natural gas
- 38%Â estimated total energy savings over the past year
- Estimated EUI Reduction
- Dropped by 24.56, or 38%
- Based on the energy data from Gazebo and an estimated 718,023 sq. ft. of buildings campus-wide
The SBC and BOC program applaud Michael on his efforts and congratulate him on being named as 2026 BOC Operator of the Year!
Know someone who deserves recognition for their work in the industry? Nominations will open for the 2027 BOC Operator of the Year award in April, so stay tuned!
