No matter where you turn, the data is overwhelmingly clear that traditional lighting is a massive energy hog. When given the choice, wouldn’t you rather fire a kilowatt than an employee?
Whether to meet business objectives, sustainability targets or both, the question is not whether to address lighting but how to go about it most successfully. Since lighting retrofits are one of the easiest ways to have a positive impact on your sustainability targets, it’s a no-brainer. But you want to reduce energy consumption without compromising light quality, right? No problem.
The Process
To ensure that you simultaneously reduce energy use while providing necessary light levels, you have to engage in a comprehensive process. Like any type of successful project, a lighting retrofit effort should have a clearly defined set of objectives, involve all the key stakeholders, include a thorough analysis of the options and reflect the implications of each possible choice.
Goals should be tangible. A good example of this is, “Reduce kWh consumption by 75 percent, and ensure light levels of 15 foot candles on the target surface.” Foot-candle targets (the amount of light) should be within the ASHRAE range for the facility type and the facility staff who experience the light in their daily work environment. The management team, engineering staff and senior management should be incorporated into this decision-making process.
A lighting retrofit is multi-stepped but not complicated. It starts with a complete facility audit, which includes layout, purpose, occupancy patterns, map of existing lighting (type, age and foot candles), and a snapshot of the kWh rate. The next step is an analysis of the target light levels in the facility given what kind of work is done and the occupancy rates in the various parts of the facility.
Evaluating the Options
With concrete project goals, a comprehensive audit and a thorough understanding of the light levels needed across the different areas of the facility, you can now move into a survey of the available options. Fluorescents and LEDs (light-emitting diodes) are the front-runners, but in more and more applications, LEDs are taking the lead.
While more expensive at initial purchase, LEDs’ energy efficiency gains offset the higher price even before accounting for a longer life expectancy, reduced maintenance and re-lamping costs. With an expected lifetime of 10 years or greater, LEDs eliminate the bi-annual re-lamping schedules. They also do not generate the heat levels of other lighting types, which reduces cooling costs and BTU load in cold-storage environments. An additional maintenance advantage for LEDs is in manufacturing facilities that work with heavy metals. In those environments, disposal of fluorescent bulbs must be accounted for in the hazardous materials plan, which can have further cost implications.
Be Choosy
Selecting a reputable energy efficiency consultant to guide and manage a lighting retrofit project is an important part of the effort. These professionals are knowledgeable about the range of rebate programs and how to best meet objectives. However, if a prospective partner only offers solutions from a single vendor or doesn’t have access to a broad portfolio of products, look for another provider. One-size-fits-all will not work, even in a single facility.
You may also find that the savings from a lighting retrofit project can underwrite the costs of other improvements in your facility. An effective retrofit project will reduce your facility’s overall kWh demand so that other measures (solar, wind) can then supply a greater percentage of the facility’s energy requirements.
Controls
Integrated controls are an essential element of any successful retrofit. With well-implemented controls, facilities can manage lighting behavior, have lights on only when needed, turn them off automatically, and gather data about run time and kWh usage to report back to a central system. These capabilities may seem more advanced than necessary, but the benefits are immediate and lasting, and the time to implement controls — preferably as an integral part of the lighting system, rather as an add-on — is during the retrofit.
Funding
The widespread commitment to reducing the nation’s energy usage has translated into an array of utility rebate and tax incentive programs that make a significant contribution to offsetting the initial project costs. Those initiatives, combined with the dramatic energy savings the lighting retrofits bring, make the financial dimensions more manageable.
The Double Win
Day-to-day facility operations consume the lion’s share of managers’ time and attention, leaving little room for additional projects. But the double benefits of an efficiency driven lighting retrofit — making a major contribution toward sustainability targets and aggressively reducing energy costs — make it well worth the effort. Don’t put off a lighting retrofit project — make a great choice for your facility and start saving immediately.
Your facility is a great candidate for a lighting retrofit if:
Current lighting is HID, HPS, T5 or T8.
Your facility is larger than 50,000 square feet.
You operate multiple shifts, either five or seven days per week.
Your utility offers rebates for energy efficiency improvement projects.
Your kWh rate is high.
Tom Pincince is the President and CEO of Digital Lumens.
Blog Sponsor: Value Energy Solutions
One of the easiest ways to save energy is to retrofit lighting with energy efficient lighting upgrades. Experts all agree that energy efficient lighting retrofits are the first step to reducing your energy consumption. Value Energy Solutions was formed to help companies achieve energy savings through energy efficient lighting retrofits. They offer the widest selection of energy efficient lighting and best pricing based on the volume purchases because they are one of the largest energy retrofitting companies in the nation.for more information please visit their energy efficient lighting website or call (678) 501-4880
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