Lighting is something that most people would admit they take for granted, and it probably doesn’t ever occur to a lot of us to question the quality or amount of light or how much it costs to operate and maintain.
To educate readers on the importance of light, both natural and artificial, is the lighting guide. This will help those thinking about their lighting to understand how they can choose an artificial lighting system that is the most energy efficient and doesn’t compromise on quality.
Upgrading lighting to a more efficient system requires an upfront investment but it will also achieve high energy savings. Choosing to use LED technology will decrease lighting electricity consumption by up to 80% over a conventional lamp, such as halogen, metal halide and old T12 fluorescent tubes. It is important to recognise that the savings for upgrading more efficient fluorescent lighting such as T8 or CFL lamps to LED will be smaller, but will still provide a good return on investment – a lighting supplier or specialist, like us at Ecolighting, can calculate this for you. Most luminaires can be retrofitted with LED technology without the need to replace the fitting. This includes the switching from fluorescent tubes and halogen GU10 spotlights to LED replacements.
Whilst retrofitting luminaires is a viable option as it allows individual fittings to be upgraded as and when they fail and offers a significant energy saving, it is less effective than a full luminaire replacement.
We would always recommend an entire luminaire replaced to get the best results. Doing this ensures that the new fitting has the correct wiring and control gear and also that the correct amount of lighting is provided.
PFSWeb
“The new system is energy saving and works well with the control system we currently have in place. We like that the lights time out when an area is not in use and found that Ecolighting were the best solution for our requirements. We are very pleased with the results and would highly recommend them to complete an installation for anyone in the market looking to upgrade their current lighting or to install a new lighting system.”
Lisa Cooley, General Manager
Easy, low and no-cost options that can help save money and improve the operation of a lighting system include:
First it is important to understand your energy use and find out what lighting you have, where it is and how it is used. Staff will need to report back on any lighting issues and act where necessary. The condition and operation of lamps and luminaires will need to be checked and how the lighting is used will need to be monitored to see which energy efficiency improvements can be measured.
Identify any opportunities to make savings. Compile an energy checklist of your lighting by walking around the building and completing it at different times of day (including after hours) to see where energy savings can be made.
Create an action plan with a list of improvements to be made and when they will be done and who will be responsible for them. Actions can include an awareness campaign, writing a usage policy and planning a large refit of lighting controls and zoning the lights.
Seek specialist help and discuss the more complex or expensive options with an expert after all in-house changes have been actioned.
Once the changes have been made its time to measure the savings with the newly implemented energy saving actions. Measure these against the original consumption figures and this will assist future management decisions. All that is left is to continue to manage the energy efficiency by enforcing policies, systems and procedures to ensure that the business operates efficiently and that the savings are maintained.
