By Joe Ruff
Omaha News
Omaha, Nebraska
Jerry Banks knows firsthand the cost savings of energy-efficient lighting.
“It's done everything they said it would,” Banks said of renovating the lighting eight years ago in Weitz Plaza at 107th and Pacific Streets. “We've done it to two additional buildings since then.”
Renovation cost $53,087. More efficient lighting cut the utility bills by more than $11,000 annually, paying for the project in less than five years. The building's owners and tenants continue to benefit from the lower costs.
Banks, who is portfolio director for NewStreet Properties in Omaha, which is the majority owner of the plaza, said he would recommend similar projects for all businesses.“Our first motivation was to save money and reduce operating costs,” Banks said. But NewStreet and its tenants recognize that reducing energy consumption also helps the environment, he said.
It is difficult to directly compare newer, more efficient styles of lighting with less efficient models because variables include fixtures, how often the lights are on, how bright they have to be and whether automatic shutoff or dimming controls are used, experts say.Broadly speaking, however, new linear fluorescent fixtures are about 30 percent more efficient than older versions, said Chad Ballain, a senior technical analysis engineer at Omaha Public Power District.
Initial costs to install more efficient lighting can seem daunting. However, more businesses are recognizing the long-term benefits. They also are being encouraged even directed by increasingly stringent regulations and building codes, as well as incentives from governments and local utilities.
“The bigger ‘green goals,' while everyone loves them, they are not driving it,” said Bill Worthen, the American Institute of Architects' resource architect for sustainability. The real impetus comes from energy codes, cost savings and a desire to earn the nonprofit U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design plaques for energy efficiency to demonstrate that companies are good stewards of the environment, Worthen said.
Martin Patzner, vice president of the Omaha property management and real estate firm The Lund Co., said his company helped convince Banks to renovate Weitz Plaza. It has helped manage lighting renovation projects for other properties as well.
Every building is different when it comes to precise cost savings, but changing the lighting is “low-hanging fruit” when it comes to increasing efficiency, Patzner said.
Changing regulations include the U.S. Energy Department phasing out less efficient types of commercial fluorescent and incandescent lighting. The Energy Department has $37 million in funding for research into product development and improved manufacturing of high-efficiency, light-emitting diodes (or LEDs) and organic light-emitting diodes.
Lighting accounts for about 24 percent of the electricity generated in the U.S. Development and widespread use of LEDs could reduce that by one-third, the department estimates.At the local level, the Omaha Public Power District is offering rebates of up to $20,000 a year per building toward the cost of renovating commercial lighting. A pilot project last year cut energy demand by more than 1 megawatt. The goal for 2010 is to reduce demand by another 1.5 megawatts, the equivalent of taking a 300,000-square-foot, 12-story building off the grid.
For complete article www.omaha.com
Sponsor: Value Energy Solutions is an Atlanta based lighting retrofit firm that has more than 30 years experience helping companies and building owners save on their energy bills by retrofitting their lighting to more efficient lamps and fixtures. They have the expertise, wide selection and value pricing that few companies can match. For more information please visit their new lighting retrofit website-www.valueenergysolutions.com
No comments:
Post a Comment