Step Up To 80% Savings With Stairwell Lighting Controls
May 16th, 2011 - by JThomason
Here is an article I found that I thought you would be interested in. Lutron just released their smart line of stairwell fixtures. Making use of a wireless occupancy sensor and dimming ballast, you can finally take control of the areas in your building that are constantly lighted. Thus reducing the amount of energy wasted by your building.
Light control manufacturer Lutron Electronics Co., Inc., is proud to introduce the new Stairwell Retrofit Solution that automatically adjusts light output based on stairwell occupancy.
The new Stairwell Retrofit Solution utilizes a lighting fixture with a Lutron digital dimming ballast preprogrammed to occupied and unoccupied light levels specific to a project’s code requirements. The fixture receives a signal from Radio Powr Savr™ occupancy sensors via reliable Lutron Clear Connect™ RF technology. The solution’s design features separate fixture and sensor components which allow for the flexibility to determine occupancy sensor quantities, mounting configuration, and placement requirements based on the stairwell design.
Through high-end trim and occupancy sensing, the stairwell retrofit solution provides the opportunity to save over 80% of lighting energy usage. Added benefits include simple installation, flexible grouping of fixtures and sensors, and the opportunity to meet codes and standards (ASHRAE 90.1 2010 and IgCC). Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: dimming ballast, energy audit, energy auditor, Kansas City Energy Auditor, Kansas City lighting retrofit, KCP&L rebates, lighting design, lighting efficiency, lighting retrofit, occupancy sensor, oliver electric, oliver energy solutions, Return on Investment, ROI, stairwell lighting design
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Economist Vs. Conservationist: Everybody Saves Money
April 22nd, 2011 - by JThomason
There are two types of people that are actively seeking a lighting retrofit. The first would be what I call the conservationist and the second is the economist. Each person has their own reasons for why they are seeking energy efficiency and the end result for each is the same. They both save on natural resources while simultaneously saving ones budget.
The Conservationist
Recognizing the need for a lighting retrofit may be different for the conservationist than it would be for the economist. The conservationist may be more concerned with the age of technology that is found in their facility. Outdated types of lighting can contain hazardous materials within the lamps and every time a lamp burns out you must recycle them to avoid these materials leaking back into our environment. Older technology is prone to having an exorbitant amount of these materials in order to make the lamps work. Plus they usually will have a poor lamp life thus meaning more maintenance is required to safely handle the materials. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: energy audit, energy auditor, Green Energy, Green lighting, greenlightkc, HID, Incandescent, Kansas City, Kansas City Energy Auditor, Kansas City lighting retrofit, lighting desing, lighting efficiency, lighting retrofit, Lower utility costs, manufacturing plant, office building, parking garage, restaurant, retail, T12, warehouse
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Low Hanging Fruit
April 4th, 2011 - by JThomason
If your responsibilities include overseeing your company’s operations or even managing the assets of a property, I’m sure you have heard of the “Low Hanging Fruit” concept. I’m going to show you how to think outside of the box and rethink your definition of “Low Hanging Fruit.”
It’s no secret that the lighting for a typical office building consumes 40% of its electric bill. So most of us would think the low hanging fruit can be found within the lighting, and that’s true. Anyone with a computer and an Internet connection can find out what the low hanging fruit is for your given lighting situation. A quick Google search shows us that if you replace all of the T12 lamps with T8 lamps in an office building, you can achieve energy savings of up to 50% or more. But what if you are managing the assets of several office buildings and you already tackled the T12 issue, what’s next? What if I told you to reevaluate your T8 lighting? What if I told you that replacing your T8 lighting with T8 lighting could save an additional 40% on your energy consumption, would you think that I was crazy? It even gets better, what if I told you that you don’t even need to replace your existing light fixtures and 99% of office buildings are great candidates for this lighting retrofit. Would you call that low hanging fruit, I would?
I would be glad to share some of these concepts with you in more detail, however every building is different. If you wish to discuss these concepts in detail or would like more information on how to tackle your low hanging fruit, feel free to contact me directly.
Junior Thomason, CEA
Energy Solutions Manager
Oliver Energy Solutions
jthomason@oliverelectric.com
Tags: certified energy auditor, energy audit, Green Energy, Kansas City Energy Auditor, Kansas City lighting retrofit, lighting desing, lighting retrofit, low hanging fruit, oliver electric, oliver energy solutions, T12, T8
Posted in Green Energy, Lighting Retrofits | No Comments »
Interview with the King!
March 4th, 2011 - by JThomason
Recently I had the pleasure of meeting one of the most iconic individuals in the “Green” community, Gary Walker, The King of Green. Gary and his wife Trish host the only all Green radio program here in Kansas City, “Going Green with the King”, as well as maintain the first all “Green” commercial janitorial business in Kansas City, Magic Touch Cleaning.
When I met with Gary to discuss my being a guest on his radio program, I immediately realized why they call him the King. As soon as I stepped into their production studio, Gary greeted me with a big smile on his face and he was wearing a huge pair of gold Elvis glasses. His jovial attitude toward his production crew, his wife, and myself made it really enjoyable to be a part of his radio program. He made the interview fun, not nerve racking.
Over the course of the next hour or so we discussed emerging trends in lighting concepts, design, and how to overcome some lighting challenges with simple design concepts for various real world applications. The radio program will air today, 3/4/11 at 12:30 p.m. (central) on KCXL Kansas City or stream it live at www.kcxl.com. In case you are reading this and you didn’t get a chance to hear it live, many of Gary’s radio programs are archived on iTunes.
Tags: CEA, certified energy auditor, Gary Walker, Going Green with the King, Green Energy, Green lighting, greenlightkc, Kansas City, Kansas City Energy Auditor, Kansas City lighting retrofit, KCXL, lighting desing, oliver electric, oliver energy solutions, Trish Walker
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Utility Rates on the Rise Again
September 14th, 2010 - by ADMIN
With all of the recent talk about KCP&L’s Iatan 2 power plant going over budget, now is a better time than any to discuss what happens to your operating expenses when your utility rates rise. It may seem like a now brainer, that when energy costs go up, your monthly expenses go up too. However, lets use some real world examples to show you how drastic it will affect your monthly and annual budget.
It’s no secret that KCP&L went over budget by almost 100% building the Iatan 2 power plant located near Weston, Mo. and the result of their mishaps resulted in an official request to raise rates in Missouri 14.5% and in Kansas 11.5%. Steve Everly from the KC Star said, “KCP&L is seeking rate increases of 14.5 percent in Missouri and 11.5 percent in Kansas, in part, to help pay for Iatan 2. If those increases are granted, KCP&L customers’ rates will have increased nearly 50 percent in the past four years.” Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2010/09/08/2209483/kcpl-faulted-for-mismanagement.html#ixzz0z8nIzcp7
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Green Energy, Green lighting, greenlightkc, Iatan 2, Kansas City Energy Auditor, Kansas City lighting retrofit, KCP&L, KCP&L rate increase, KCP&L rebates, lighting efficiency, lighting retrofit, Lower utility costs, oliver electric, oliver energy solutions, Return on Investment, ROI
Posted in Green Energy, Utility Bills | No Comments »
3 Things You Should Know When Comparing Energy Audits
September 3rd, 2010 - by ADMIN
There are three things every business owner needs to know when comparing multiple energy audits, their current fixture specs, the local utility rate, and their operating hours. I call these “The Big Three”, and they are crucial items not to be overlooked during any energy audit. The goal of an energy audit is to provide an end-user with actual data that represents the energy savings one can achieve when they upgrade the efficiency of their facility. However, if the energy auditor doesn’t pay enough attention to “The Big Three” the results can be devastating.
Each item is a variable and when altered, they will have a direct impact on the end result of an energy audit. Unfortunately I’ve personally seen audits where one or more of “The Big Three” have been incorrect, I’m not sure if it was for personal gain or just lack of experience. Either way, this is the reason why your energy auditor should be a certified energy auditor (CEA) and a very detail oriented kind of person. I will elaborate on each of these variables to give you a better understanding on the importance of them and to show you how to make sure you get the most thorough audit available.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: CEA, certified energy auditor, energy audit, energy auditor, greenlightkc, Kansas City Energy Auditor, Kansas City lighting retrofit, lighting desing, lighting retrofit, lighting retrofit 101, oliver electric, oliver energy solutions, turn key
Posted in Energy Audit | No Comments »
Induction vs. LED
June 15th, 2010 - by ADMIN
Knowing which is the best energy efficient product on the market today is a great advantage for energy auditors and end-users. Don’t be fooled by recent marketing campaigns, do a little research to decide for yourself which product will give you the most bang for your buck.
Who has heard of Induction lighting? (Maybe 25% of you?) Who has heard of LED lighting? It would be safe to assume that more than 98% of you know something about LED lighting.
LED is known for being a great replacement for various types of outdated – inefficient lighting applications. Since LED has been advertised as an excellent replacement for inefficient lighting, we must assume that LED is an energy efficient alternative. In this article I want to address a few issues that I have with the previous statement from a non-bias point of view. My goal by the end of this article is to have you decide which is really better, Induction or LED.
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Tags: energy audit, foot-candle, greenlightkc, Kansas City Energy Auditor, Kansas City lighting retrofit, lighting desing, lighting retrofit, lighting retrofit 101, lumen, oliver electric, oliver energy solutions, photopic, photopic lumens, pupil lumen, pupil lumens, scotopic, scotopic lumens, turn key, vel, visual effective lumen, visual effective lumens, visually effective lumen, visually effective lumens
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Photopic Lumens and Scotopic Lumens
June 11th, 2010 - by ADMIN
What are they and why does it matter to me? By understanding how the human eye registers light, an energy auditor can design an energy efficient project using less power and still achieve sufficient light levels. Thus meaning, more money back in your pocket at the end of a lighting retrofit.
Photopic lumens are the actual lumens read by any measuring device such as a foot-candle meter. Scotopic lumens (or Pupil lumens) is a measurement based on how the human eye registers light. The more “bright white” the light is, the brighter the light will appear to the human eye. A real world example would be this:
Late at night you are driving down the street and you notice two parking lots that have two different colors of light. One is more “bright white” and the other is “orange” in color, the “bright white” light source is called Metal Halide and the “orange” light source is called High Pressure Sodium (HPS). It would be safe to assume that both parking lots are using 400w lamps in each pole head, the 400w Metal Halide’s initial lumen output is 36,000 lumens and the 400w HPS’s initial lumen output is 50,000 lumens. Even though both parking lots have the same number of lights in them, the Metal Halide parking lot appears brighter than the HPS parking lot.
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Tags: energy audit, foot-candle, greenlightkc, Kansas City Energy Auditor, Kansas City lighting retrofit, lighting desing, lighting retrofit, lumen, oliver electric, oliver energy solutions, photopic, photopic lumens, pupil lumen, scotopic, scotopic lumens, vel, visual effective lumen, visual effective lumens, visually effective lumen, visually effective lumens
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Lighting Retrofit 101
March 19th, 2010 - by ADMIN
Some of you might be wondering what a lighting retrofit is. A lighting retrofit is the process of replacing outdated, inefficient lighting with more efficient technology in order to save money and reduce daily operating costs. If implemented correctly, a lighting retrofit can be a great investment, showing favorable payback terms and a generous ROI.
There are many steps that need to be done in order to achieve a well balanced lighting retrofit. The first is called the energy audit or lighting analysis, this is the most important process. This is when the auditor designs a well balanced blend between maintained light output and optimal energy savings. Remember that anyone can decrease the light output to save money, but only a qualified energy auditor can design a lighting plan that reduces the negative effects of worker productivity due to bad or insufficient lighting.
The next step is the install phase, this is just as important as the energy audit and design process. You want to make sure that your designer is involved heavily during the install phase, making sure the installers put the plan into action according to the design. They are hard to come by, but I would recommend finding a turn key electrical contractor that is capable of the energy analysis as well as having a qualified staff to follow through with the install. This way you will have a designer and an install crew that is working for your approval, whereas a designer may be more interested in his or her commission than the overall performance of the lighting retrofit as a whole.
Just keep in mind who will be preforming your audit and what their involvement will be after you decide to move forward with a lighting retrofit.
Tags: energy audit, lighting design, lighting retrofit, lighting retrofit 101, lighting retrofit basics, turn key electrical contractor
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Why a Lighting Retrofit?
March 12th, 2010 - by ADMIN
If you were able to cut your utility costs by as much as 50 percent, how would your business grow?
How much money is your company wasting because of inefficient lighting? It may seem like terms such as “green,” “carbon footprint” and “lower emissions” are of-the-moment buzzwords, but these terms are revolutionizing the industry and forever changing the way we build.
According to the DOE, lighting consumes almost 40 percent of the electricity used in buildings in the US. It also affects other systems through its electrical requirements and wasted heat, which makes it the first place to look for energy savings.
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