LED Lighting Creates Safer Environment at Self-Storage Facilities

When customers look for a self-storage facility to store old furniture or family treasures, they are looking for a place that looks clean, safe and has ample lighting at night. High-pressure sodium lamps produce a dim glow where thieves can hide in the shadows of the gloomy light. To increase security around the units, many companies have chosen to install LED lighting. The bright light allows customers to feel safer when accessing their units in the evening and lets them feel at peace when they’re away, knowing their valuables are safely stored. The increased light also allows storage facilities to see more detail on their security cameras.

Assured Self Storage in Duncanville, Texas, replaced its 150-watt metal-halide lamps with 20-watt LED wall packs, which reduced its energy costs by 80%. The new LED lamps have an estimated 50,000-hour lifespan and are made with durable die-cast aluminum housing that can withstand extreme weather conditions much better than traditional outdoor lamps. Assured Self Storage also just installed 32 security cameras inside and outside of the units, and the bright light from the LED wall packs outside will help capture footage of people inside and outside of the units. Security cameras are no benefit when they do not capture clear images. In fact having security cameras in a poorly lit facility creates a potential liability for self-storage owners.

As members of the International Crime Free Association we can help you assess your facility and look not only at maintenance and electricity savings but also at potential liabilities created by poor lighting. Your customers will thank you for it.

LED Lighting at Self-Storage Facilities Lowers Maintenance Costs

Self-storage owners know that one of their top priorities is spending as little money as possible on operational costs to keep prices low for their customers. One way to save money is by installing LED lighting. Not only are there thousands of dollars to be saved in energy costs, there is even more money to be saved in maintenance costs. Most LED lamps offer a lifespan of more than 50,000 hours, equaling years of maintenance-free operation. LEDs are also built to withstand extreme weather conditions and temperatures, and are sealed tightly so they do not have to be cleaned.

Many self-storage facilities on the East Coast have made the switch to LEDs. In Connecticut, Stafford Storage, a facility open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, retrofitted its 50,000 square-foot facility with 15-watt LED linear tubes, saving 60% on its lighting costs. The new lighting is expected to last nearly 80,000 hours, more than nine years, without maintenance.

In Mount Kisco, New York, Safe Haven Self Storage replaced its incandescent, fluorescent and halogen lamps with longer-lasting LEDs. Kristian Pariseau, Safe Haven director of operations, commented on saving a substantial amount of money not only on electricity, but also not having to replace lamps as often as they did with the old lighting.

If you are looking to not only improve the look of your self-storage facility, but also save considerable money in electricity and maintenance LED’s should be on the top of your list. Contact us to learn more.

Relumination Partners with Metro Tech High School to Promote Sustainability

Relumination was approached a while back to work with Metro Tech High School in Phoenix Arizona to help teach the students about sustainability and the positive impact of energy conservation. We worked with the students to learn how to identify conservation projects and how to calculate the potential savings and environmental impact.

In addition to working with the students in an educational setting we also provided them with LED lighting for their “eco-friendly” dining room project. Called “The Sustainable Table” the room was transformed into a green dining experience with everything from re-purposed building materials to locally sourced foods. The LED lighting reduced energy consumption in the room by 87% over traditional halogen and fluorescent products while giving them over 20 years of expected life and a beautiful warm feel without the heat emitted by halogens. The room is comfortable, bright and most important – sustainable!

You can read more about the project here: http://rakschoolsetc.wordpress.com/tag/the-sustainable-table/

The local Channel 12 news did a story on the project. You can check that out here:

US Cold Storage Warehouse Energy and Maintenance Costs Slashed with Intelligent LED Lighting

Hot, inefficient warehouse lighting is something many companies deal with every day but don’t put a lot of thought into. If a warehouse operates 24 hours per day, the lighting can be one of their biggest overhead expenses.

One solution to lower your energy costs, and HVAC costs, is to install LED lighting, and if possible, a lighting-control system. Earlier this year, Digital Lumens installed LED lighting with a control system in the United States Cold Storage Inc.’s Hazleton, PA warehouse. According to the case study, the old high-pressure sodium lamps consumed 465 watts each and were costing USCS $0.46 per square foot per year.

The new Digital Lumens Intelligent lighting consumes only 160 watts and only costs 3.5 cents per square foot per year, a decrease of 93% in energy costs! Also, with the new lighting, the warehouse was able to get rid of the chiller-load associated with the metal halide lighting and eliminated their lamp replacement and maintenance budget. USCS’s payback period for this project was just 14.6 months.

To contribute to the savings, Digital Lumens also implemented their LightRules system which uses a combination of fixture-based sensors and a lighting control system to dim or turn off lighting in areas of the warehouse that see sporadic activity. With this system, the lights are only on 22.17% of the time. Having the lights on when no-one was around was wasting a lot of energy and contributing to maintenance expenses.

Using the intelligence of the Digital Lumens Light Rules system, combined with the efficiency of LED Lighting, United States Cold Storage was able to slash their lighting overhead expenses by over 90%.

Relumination is a proud partner with Digital Lumens and we offer the Intelligent Light Engine and LightRules products to our customers. Contact us to learn more or for a free facility analysis.

Intelligent LED Lighting is the Answer in Warehouse Facilities

Traditional warehouse lighting is fraught with problems. The older “bell style” High Pressure Sodium and Metal Halide lighting is terribly inefficient, costly to maintain and emits a poor quality of light. Many warehouses have switched to linear fluorescent technologies like T8 and T5 lighting only to find out afterwards that any savings in electricity costs has been more than consumed by the additional maintenance related to these systems.

It seems like warehouse owners and operators just can’t win when it comes to lighting. Well that was the past. Facility managers now have a smart choice in lighting – intelligent LED Lighting.

Intelligent LED lighting combines the energy savings of LED’s (40-60% ) with the ability to manage the lighting system through technology such as 0-100% dimming, daylight sensing and occupancy monitoring.

Interstate Warehousing in Indiana, Ohio and Tennessee chose to upgrade to intelligent LED lighting from Digital Lumens’. In the new area of the Indiana facility, the LED system saves $30,000 per year in comparison to the older area of the warehouse. The secret to the cost savings in the Digital Lumens system is that the lighting can be programmed to conform to the warehouse usage, and can be set to dim or shut a light off in an aisle or area during periods of inactivity. Refrigerated warehouses will see even more savings because LED lighting gives off no heat, therefore lowering cooling costs!

Similarly, the Cold Canyon Material Recovery Facility reduced its energy costs by two-thirds by replacing more than 80 400-watt metal halide lamps with 148-watt LEDs, saving the company more than $13,000 annually! John Ryan, facilities manager, said the employees love the “brighter, whiter light.” With no maintenance costs and a 50,000-hour lifetime, Cold Canyon will see a return on investment in less than three years.

Reducing operating costs is top-priority for warehouse and distribution center owners. Maximizing efficiencies in all aspects of the operation are being used to squeeze as much cost savings as possible. Intelligent LEDs can reduce lighting related operating expenses by as much as 90% and often have a payback under 1 year. Over their lifetime, Intelligent LED Lighting costs 8-10 times less than traditional lighting. That’s money in the bank!

Big LED Installations = Big Savings!

China has always been on the forefront of large-scale LED lighting installations, and does not disappoint with its recent installation of more than one million Cree LEDs along 75 miles of highway throughout the country. The old high-pressure sodium fixtures had an orange glow, and the new LEDs shine a bright white and only consume 270 to 300 watts. The new lighting consumes 60% less energy and the savings will pay for the project in just four years. LEDs need little to no maintenance, which is one of the main advantages, according to a press release by Cree. Maintenance is costly, hazardous for workers and inconveniences drivers. Everybody wins!

From our research, the biggest LED street lighting installation in the United States was in Los Angeles in 2009. Los Angeles was planning on replacing 140,000 street lights in the city over the next five years, with an estimated project completion in 2014. LEDs, which are more durable than most outdoor lighting, will save the city at least 40% on electricity, $48 million in the next seven years, and reduce carbon emissions by 40,500 tons each year, equivalent to taking 6,700 cars off the road!

Focus More on LED Savings, Less on Lumens!

NorthShore University HealthSystem in Illinois was named one of the “Top 10 Health Systems” in the U.S., and was looking for a green change. The parking garage, built in the 1980s, was still using 175-watt metal halide lamps. The lighting was inadequate and was expensive to run and maintain, and people had even complained about the lighting.

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Study Shows People Prefer Artwork Accented with LEDs

The results of the Department of Energy’s second Gateway study say that people prefer artwork illuminated with LEDs rather than artwork with halogen lighting. The DOE replaced 50-90-watt halogen lighting with 12-watt LED PAR38 lamps in the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art in Eugene, Oregon. The new LED system in the gallery uses only 14% of the energy used by the halogens, and also lasts 10 times longer. In another gallery close by, another experiment confirmed people prefer LEDs. At the Gordon Gilkey Study Center Gallery, clusters of art pieces, including an oil painting, a black and white photographic print, and a checkered-color car, were placed on a grey wall. Each cluster was illuminated with one of four lamps. One group was lit with halogens, and the others lit with LEDs with different color temperatures. Artists, museum staff and visitors all preferred the LED lighting, and visitors commented on the way the LED lighting accented the blue colors in the artwork.

In the first Gateway study, 54 12-watt PAR38 LED lamps were installed in the Coeta and Donald Barker Special Exhibitions Gallery, along with 15- and 23-watt CFLs and 90-watt halogen PAR38 lamps. They concluded the LED light was of much better quality and used much less energy.

LED Lighting: An Excellent Choice in Sports Facilities

Sure, you’ve seen most of our blogs raving about the benefits of installing LED lighting in homes, office spaces, parking lots, grocery stores, hospitals and more. One application we haven’t spoken much about is sporting arenas! In fact, Light Emitting Designs installed high bay LED lighting in the Dyer Indoor Soccer Arena in Indiana, and the owner, Mike Ward, loves it! He says the arena is open seven days a week November through April, and after a year of having the LEDs, the arena has saved 60% on electricity alone. LED lighting was also convenient for the arena because the high bay lighting is placed so high that it is incredibly costly and difficult to replace the lighting.

Solnar Metrolight Technology Inc. just finished replacing lighting inside the Beijing International Club Tennis Court. This job was tough because the company had to match the same design and amount of light for an indoor sports arena as the old lighting gave off. The lighting couldn’t be too bright or too dark or it would pose a safety threat to players and spectators. In May, the tennis court replaced 40 1000-watt lights with 196-watt LEDs. The new lighting was brighter, used less energy and had a longer lifetime than the previous lighting system. Plus, players no longer have to wait for the lamps to warm up and turn on! LEDs turn on to full power with a flick of a switch!

Neither article mentioned this, but because LEDs give off very little or no heat, we bet both sporting arenas’ players and spectators are now enjoying cooler temperatures!

Phoenix Children’s Hospital Installing LEDs as Part of Expansion

Another prominent Arizona institution has chosen to install energy-efficient, sustainable LED lighting. In 2008, The Phoenix Children’s Hospital began a $588 million expansion to the facility, which includes an 11-story tower for the young patients, along with the hospital’s six centers of excellence. Another part of the expansion is installing LED lighting to the 770,000 square-foot hospital. Hubbell Lighting will be replacing old fluorescent lighting throughout the facility, including recessed downlights, LED exit signs, and LED outdoor garage lighting. Also, thanks to exterior LED lighting, people will be able to see the hospital from 25 miles away in any direction. As Arizona’s only children’s hospital, and one of the 10 largest children’s hospitals in the United States, the people behind the expansion plan were sure to keep their youthful patients in mind. In the atrium, LED lights were installed on the floor so children could watch the floor change colors as they jumped from panel to panel.