2. White Paper 2010
Converting traditional lighting to high efficiency LED in area applications
Action Services Group - Aston, PA
Author
Te d S t o u c h
President / CEO
800.223.0982
tstouch@actionservicesgroup.com
w w w. a c t i o n s e r v i c e s g r o u p . c o m
Company
Action Services Group has over 20 yrs of experience in interior and exterior lighting
programs, services, maintenance, installation, energy impact evaluations, and return
on investments analysis.
3. White Paper:TFM 2.12.10
Executive Summary
Problem: Lighting in commercial buildings account for over 70% of the overall lighting elec-
tricity used in the United States. Rising energy and maintenance costs are hurting profits of
commercial and industrial facilities and their carbon emissions must be dramatically
reduced to halt global warming issues.
Background: Increasing energy efficiency in lighting systems will impact reducing the overall
environmental effects, such as greenhouse gas emissions, and CO2 emissions. The reducution
of greenhouse gas emissions and an energy-efficiency focus will be crucial to businesses in
the United States if the Federal Climate Change Waxman-Markey Bill passes, as businesses
will be taxed on greenhouse gas emissions.
Solution: LED lighting offers significant energy, maintenance and recycling savings. When
retrofitting with LEDs, with good lighting design and LED product selection, energy con-
sumption in most commercial and industrial facilities will be cut 50-80% while maintaining
improving lighting quality. Three factors are accelerating for the use of large scale deploy-
ment of LED products for general area lighting applications:
1) Retrofitting an existing lighting system with quality LEDs will make the facility
more energy efficient and yield costs. LEDs have the best return on investment
(ROI) of any energy-efficient technology.
2) The aesthetic quality of a facility’s environment will be enhanced and productivity
increased without sacrificing the lighting system performance.
3) Federal and state governments are making laws regarding lighting, and
associations are taking action towards quality products. All to make the United
States more energy efficient and responsible. With support and encouragement
through grants, and departments such as the DOE, an LED lighting system becomes
even more advanced and cost effective.
LED Lighting Retrofits 1
4. White Paper:TFM 2.12.10
Introduction Converting to LED Lighting
Light-Emitting-Diodes are solid-state semicon- Retrofitting conventional lighting technologies
ductor devices that convert an electrical LED light fixtures commonly replace:
current through the diode, the recombination T-12, T-8, & T-5 Fluorescent
of positive and negative charges within the Incandescent
different compositions results in the emission High Intensity Discharge (HID)
of light. Mercury Vapor
Metal Halide
LEDs have a lifetime that can last from 30,000 High & Low Pressure Sodium
hours to 100,000 hours (depending on the
manufacturer), almost 10 times longer than LED luminaries use different optics than HID
fluorescent lighting, and 15 times longer than lighting. Each LED diode is, in effect, a direct
HID lighting. They are durable, reliable and point of light. Effective luminaire engineering
have safe operations due to low voltage secu- utilizes the directional characteristics of LED
rity and no ultra violet or other harmful emis- light emission, in turn decreasing optical
sions. They’re instantaneous, flicker-free and losses while increasing luminaire efficacy and
start in temperatures ranging from -20°c to providing more uniform light distribution
70°c depending on the fixture. LEDs have none across a targeted area.
of the fragile glass coverings or filaments,
characteristics of conventional lamps that can LEDs are energy efficient and environmentally
fail during shipment or installation. LED's can friendly. They operate with 50-80% less of
withstand physical shocks that would typically energy usage compared to standard HID light-
shatter conventional lamps. ing and have up to 80% in energy savings.
Almost all of the energy in an LED radiates
Lamps are the removable and replaceable within the visible spectrum. By contrast,
portion of a luminaires that convert electrical fluorescent and HID lamps are discharge
energy to both visible and non-visible electro- sources which have a higher efficiency but still
magnetic energy. Common characteristics used have loss mechanisms in the electrodes. LEDs
to evaluate lamp quality include efficiency have no hazardous materials such as lead and
measured in lumens per watt, typical lamp life mercury and require no special disposal proce-
measured in hours and color rendering index dures.
(CRI) on a scale of 0 to 100. Cost of replace-
ment lamps are also an important factor in Best applications for LEDs
design. There are a number of measures that Current LED technology enables quality
can be implemented in a facility that will fixtures to be suitable for exterior and interior
upgrade lighting quality and improve energy area lighting applications. These applications
efficiency and costs related to the overall include but are not limited to:
lighting system.
Exterior
Parking lots
Parking garages
Canopy lighting
Pathway lighting
Street lighting
Perimeter lighting
LED Lighting Retrofits 2
5. White Paper:TFM 2.12.10
Interior quantitative measure of light to reproduce
Warehouses colors of objects in comparison with ideal or
Manufacturing plants natural light sources. The light emitted by
Gymnasiums LEDs provides an accurate rendering of the
Sporting arenas object’s natural color. LED lights have been
Office lighting designed to produce a cool, white, light that
range from 85 to 90 (on a scale of 100) on the
However, with the growing availability of color rendering index (CRI). Compared to
solid-state lighting technologies, lighting conventional HID lighting, there is a 20%
controls, LED lighting systems, and improve- improvement in an observer’s ability to discern
ments on traditional sources, the search for color difference in objects. The most efficient
lighting solutions and the best LED products white LEDs at this time emit light between
for facilities are growing more complex and 4500K to 6500K correlated color temperatures
must be researched for adequate product (CCT). This renders the light from white to
selection. bluish-white in appearance.
Superior lighting quality
LEDs light up very quickly and are ideal for use
in applications that are subject to frequent
on-off cycling. Comparing LEDs to other light-
ing technologies, fluorescent lamps tend to
burn out more quickly when cycled frequently,
where HID lamps require a long time before
restarting. LEDs can very easily be dimmed
either by pulse-width modulation or by lower-
ing the forward current. In contrast to most
LEDs - A Better Light Source light sources, LEDs radiate very little heat in
the form of infrared (IR) that can cause
LEDs create a better environment damage to sensitive objects or fabrics. Wasted
Lighting is a critical component of energy use, energy is dispersed as heat through the base of
especially in large commercial and industrial the LED.
buildings. High-efficiency lighting systems
reduce glare, which helps to reduce eyestrain,
boosting oc¬cupant productivity. Electronic
ballasts do not flicker or hum like magnetic
ballasts, improving the quality of the facility’s
environment. Light levels must be maintained
at certain levels for particular surface areas.
(Metal Halide Lamps-Before Retrofit) (LEDs - After Retrofit)
For example, the number of foot-candles at
the desktop level for proper work is different ICE LINE, a hockey rink located in southeastern
from the number of foot-candles needed at the PA, used 400 watt Metal Halide lighting
floor level a building or exterior area. fixtures over their ice arena, which uses 458
watts of energy. Some ice rinks are retrofitting
LED fixtures deliver better light levels over their Metal Halides to T5 236-watt lighting,but
typical HID lighting fixtures. LEDs have a high the installed LED lights that reduces that to 91
CRI (Color Rendering Index), which is the watts, providing a more efficient solution.
LED Lighting Retrofits 3
6. White Paper:TFM 2.12.10
Also, the type of lights utilized is very impor- Emission Reductions Are:
tant because some lights render color more Equivalent to saving 15,610 trees
effectively than others, and operations often annually
require a color rendering index (CRI) of close Or approximately 1,300 trees per
to 100 (CRI of daylight). The LEDs are more month
energy efficient, have no anticipated mainte-
nance costs for 10 years, and have a longer LED lighting also leads to decreased demand
life expectancy of 20 years. They are brighter, on heating, ventilating and air condition¬ing
whiter lights compared to the prior Metal (HVAC) systems. For commercial facilities,
Halide lamps with less lumen depreciation. lighting is the largest source of waste heat,
The lighting retrofit will immensely reduce also called heat gain. For every 3 watts of
energy consumption and heat output which lighting load reduction, the air conditioning
decreases HVAC costs. load is reduced by 1 watt. Lighting also affects
the power quality of a building’s electrical
Energy consumption & cost savings distribution system. Poor power quality is a
The emergence of efficient LED devices signals concern because it wastes energy, reduces
a shift in lighting technology. The goal of electrical capacity and can harm equipment
these efforts is to save energy and gain market and the electrical distribution system. Upgrad-
share in the emerging SSL industry. LEDs con- ing with LED lighting systems can free up
tain no mercury, lead or hazardous materials. valuable electrical capacity.
The reduction in energy consumption also
decreases the carbon emissions associated LED lighting retrofits have the best return on
with powering the existing conventional light- investment (ROI) of any energy-efficient tech-
ing. This environmental benefit eliminates any nology. Once the payback is realized, the
costs associated with proper disposal at the savings will continue, creating a sound invest-
end of its useful life. ment in the future. It must be understood,
too, that energy savings should be monitored
LEDs are an environmentally friendly option on a consumption level, not a dollar level.
for many lighting needs. A single kWh of elec- Energy costs fluctuate; the amount of energy
tricity will generate 1.34 lbs (0.6 kg) of CO2 saved is the true telling measure. Below is a
emissions. Assuming the average light bulb is ROI chart for Appalachian Lighting System’s
on for 10 hours a day, a single 40 watt high bay LED lighting fixtures.
incan¬descent bulb will generate 196 lbs (89
kg) of CO2 every year. The electricity needed
High Bay & Low Bay Fixtures - 50 Fixture Qty
to operate a 13 watt LED equivalent will result
in the emission of 63 lbs (29 kg) of CO2 over HID LED
the same time span.
Year 1 $16,604 $1,993 $14,611
Year 3 $52,343 $6,283 $46,061
Annual Emission Reductions
Year 5 $91,746 $11,012 $80,734
Pollution Type Reduction
Year 7 $135,187 $16,226 $118,961
Greenhouse Gases 637,595 pounds
Year 10 $208,839 $25,006 $183,773
Nitrogen Oxides 934 pounds Year 15 $358,284 $50,474 $307,809
Sulfur Dioxide 2,591 pounds Year 20 $549,017 $82,902 $466,115
$446,115
Mercury 4,386 milligrams
Calculated with the online “Emissions Reduction Calculator”.
Numbers based on LED Retrofit using 400 (250w) Street Light LEDs.
LED Lighting Retrofits 4
7. White Paper:TFM 2.12.10
lighting, $0.60 per square foot for HVAC and
Government is Leading the Way $0.60 per square foot for the building enve-
lope. Building envelope investments can
The emergence of efficient LED devices signals include roofs, walls, windows, doors, floors
a shift in lighting technology. The goal of and foundations. To achieve the maximum
these efforts is to save energy and gain market deduction for lighting, $0.60 per square foot,
share in the emerging SSL industry. The LED is a 40 percent reduction from ASHRAE 90.1-2001
an environmentally friendly option for many is required. A $0.30 per square foot ($0.03 per
lighting needs. square meter) savings can be achieved for
lighting when the 25 percent reduction of
Future national energy law changes ASHRAE 90.1-2001 is met.
On June 30, 2009, US President Barack Obama
passed legislation that called for stricter Local utility incentives
energy-efficient lighting standards. Solid state Depending on your location, there is a good
lighting was a part of this initiative. Products chance your local utility provider has a rebate
made in the United States or imported for use program set up for energy-efficient upgrades.
in the United States are required to meet new The rebate could be per-fixture, per-kW saved
energy parameters starting in 2012. According or per-sensor; the possibilities vary with every
to the United States Department of Energy provider. The key is to know what's available.
(DOE), the changes in lamps and lighting Any incentives you can help your customer
equipment would prevent the emission of attain will do at least two things: shorten the
about 594 million tons of carbon dioxide all-important payback period and cement your
between 2012 and 2042. This is roughly equiva- status as a strong energy partner with your
lent to removing 166 million cars from the customer.
road for a year.
A helpful resource for finding information
EPAct 2005 law updates about energy-related financial incentives is
Also, the Energy Policy Act (EPAct) 2005 con- DSIRE: Database of State Incentives for Renew-
tains a number of provisions that directly able & Efficiency, www.dsireusa.org. DSIRE is a
affect lighting. These include new lighting comprehensive source of information on state,
products subject to federal efficiency stan- local, utility and federal incentives and poli-
dards, a new tax deduction provision for cies that promote renewable energy and
energy-efficient lighting in commer¬cial build- energy efficiency. DSIRE is an ongoing project
ings, the establishment of a solid state light- of the North Carolina Solar Center and the
ing program at the DOE and promotion of the Interstate Renewable Energy Council funded by
American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and the United States Department of Energy.
Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and Inter-
national Energy Conservation Code (IECC) Department of Energy’s programs and testing
standards. The US Department of Energy developed the
“Solid-State Lighting Quality Advocates” pro-
Tax incentives available under EPAct 2005 gram. The SSL Quality Advocates program
pro¬vide a tax deduction of up to $1.80 (US showcases LED luminaire manufacturers who
dollars) per square foot ($19.40 per square commit to testing products and reporting
meter) for building investments that achieve performance results according to industry
specified energy cost reductions beyond standards. DOE’s Lighting Facts program is
ASHRAE 90.1-2001.Of the $1.80 per square factually derived and audited from IESNA
foot, $0.60 per square foot can be used for LM-79 test reports, from a DOE certified test
lab.
LED Lighting Retrofits 5
8. White Paper:TFM 2.12.10
The new “Lighting Facts” performance label Conclusion
was created to give a quick summary of perfor- Well-designed LED luminaires will provide the
mance data – such as light output and color. required surface luminance while consuming
Accurate and consistent reporting of product less energy and improving lighting quality and
performance is a foundation for product qual- uniformity. LED luminaries also have signifi-
ity and will increase consumer satisfaction and cantly longer rated life (30,000 -100,000,
accelerate market adoption. Quality LED compared to 15,000 to 35,000 hours of conven-
products where the manufacturer submitted tional HID lighting) while also drastically
their fixtures into the program, will have the decreasing maintenance costs. LED environ-
current IESNA LM-80 test reports available. mental benefits include: no mercury content,
lead, or other known hazardous materials that
are often associated with conventional outdoor
area lighting; while using less power to
distribute more light.
LED lighting retrofits will save commercial and
industrial facilities on operating, maintenance
and energy costs. To fully realize the cost
savings, energy efficiency, and low mainte-
nance LEDs offer, it is important to convert to
LED with the most advanced and capable
technology on the market. With performance,
lifetime, cost, safety, and theft-deterrence
advantages, LED lighting is the best choice
when retrofitting with energy efficient tech-
nology. Depending upon the technology being
replaced, potential energy savings, rebates,
and incentives, a lighting retrofit could be a
low-cost implementation.
Lighting Fact Label is for LED
Highbay fixture manufactured by
Appalachian Lighting Systems
With emerging resources and organizations
defining LED lighting standards, verifying the
quality of LED products is essential. Evaluating
the economic payback, based on wattage,
energy use, maintenance savings, operating
hours and operating costs for the application
will justify the specifications of LED technol-
ogy.
LED Lighting Retrofits 6
9. White Paper:TFM 2.12.10
References
Appalachian Lighting Systems (2010).
www.appalachianlightingsystems.com
Dark Sky Society (2009).
www.darkskysociety.org/handouts/LightingPlanGuidelines.pdf
Lighting Facts (2010). Products with the Lighting Facts Label.
www.lightingfacts.com
United States Department of Energy EERE (2009). Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
www.eere.energy.gov
Resources
ENERGY STAR
www.energystar.gov
National Lighting Bureau
www.nlb.org
Solid-State Lighting
www1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/ssl
United States Department of Energy
www.energy.gov
United States Environmental Protection Agency
www.epa.gov
Utility Rebates
www.dsireusa.org
About Action Services Group
Action Services Group provides interior and exterior lighting services, maintenance, installation,
energy impact evaluations, return on investment analysis and many other comprehensive turnkey
capabilities. We offer numerous lighting programs and LED opportunities to cost effectively manage
your facility’s lighting, resulting in reduction of energy related costs.
LED Lighting Retrofits 7