Savings Case Studies

Case Studies

 Our Energy Efficient Lighting Swaps 

 Pay for Themselves

If you visited our energy efficient lighting page, you can see a list of different programs that will pay for a little to almost the entire project cost. Here at Lumatech, we're so confident in our energy efficiency that we've compiled a list of businesses that have done work with us and saved a huge amount of money. Keep scrolling down to see how Lumatech in Arkansas has helped save an outdoor shopping center and a small warehouse thousands of dollars in the years to come.

Eagle Mountain Shopping Center - Batesville, Arkansas

Before and after pictures of Eagle Mountain Shopping Center Lighting

Project Summary


The Eagle Mountain Shopping Center in Batesville, Arkansas was spending over $37,000 in annual energy costs alone for outdoor lighting. By upgrading the shopping center’s outdoor lighting and adding advanced controls, Lumatech cut the overall lighting energy consumption by 82%, at the same time we increased average light levels by 11%. Energy rebates covered 75% of the project’s initial costs, and the retrofit paid for itself with energy and maintenance savings in less than 6 months. The new lighting system now provides the shopping center with over $42,000 in annual savings.

Project Details


Lighting Fixture Retrofit

The shopping center’s single biggest source of outdoor lighting energy consumption were the 81 pole-mounted metal halide lamps in its parking lot. Each lamp used 1,080 watts of electricity.


Lumatech selected CeramaTek™ 375W ceramic metal halide lamps as direct replacements for the pole lights. The CeramaTek™ lamps have a rated life of 50,000 hours, more than 5 times longer than the lamps they were replacing, and they provide improved lighting distribution, color rendering and lumen maintenance. The new lamps are also highly energy-efficient, delivering over 120 lumens per watt and using 65% less energy than the originals.


In addition to replacing the parking lot’s pole lights, Lumatech performed a comprehensive retrofit of the facility’s outdoor lighting that included decorative wall sconces, décor poles and wall packs. The retrofit cut the overall system wattage by 65% and increased the average rated life of the system by over 27,000 hours.


Controls System Implementation

The Eagle Mountain Shopping Center’s lighting was controlled with photocells, designed to automatically turn the lighting on at dusk, and off at dawn. However, photocells are susceptible to significant error during rainy, hazy or cloudy weather, and have limited options for more complex control situations.


Lumatech replaced the original photocell system with an LCMS intelligent control system from Wireless Telematics. This system automatically adjusts for sunrise and sunset times based on GPS position, and allows for precise remote control of the system via computer or tablet.


We set the system to turn off the parking lot pole lighting at midnight every night, and as a result we reduced the annual burn hours by 50%.


Energy-Efficiency Rebates

The shopping center’s retrofit project was eligible for a $0.21 rebate for every kWh reduced through Entergy Arkansas. Our lighting retrofit reduced lighting energy consumption at the shopping center by more than 300,000 kWh, and the project received more than $60,000 in rebates.


We worked to keep the overall retrofit project’s costs low, and as a result, 75% of the project’s costs were paid for by rebates.


Results

The retrofit improved the center’s overall lighting quality and coverage, making it a safer and a more aesthetically pleasing place for shoppers to be.


Thanks to the control system, the lighting comes on every evening precisely when it’s needed, and turns off on precisely the right schedule. The shopping center owners also have the flexibility to adjust their outdoor lighting schedule for special events without having to request a service call.


Perhaps most important, the Eagle Mountain Shopping Center’s retrofit project paid for itself in energy savings in the first 6 months of operation. Now, with maintenance and energy costs, the retrofit is generating more than $42,000 in cost savings every year.

Energy-Efficiency


Pre-Retrofit Post-Retrofit
Annual lighting Energy Consumption 408,571 kWh 73,571 kWh
Annual Lighting Energy Cost $37,589 $6,769

Cost & Savings


Costs Savings
Project Cost: $83,883 Annual Energy Savings: $30,820
Rebates Received: $62,886 Annual Maintenance Savings: $12,600
Net Customer Cost: $20,997 Total Annual Savings: $42,580
PAYBACK PERIOD: 6 MONTHS
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Personal Security Products - Little Rock, Arkansas

Before and after pictures of Personal Security Products Lighting Project

Project Summary


With just $3,100 in annual lighting energy costs, many business owners might not think a retrofit of 11,800 sq. ft. of warehouse space would be worth considering. We thought differently. By upgrading the lighting in two warehouses and adding advanced lighting controls, we were able to cut lighting energy usage by 66%, at the same time as average light levels increased by nearly 300%. Energy rebates covered 66% of the project’s initial cost, and with maintenance and energy savings of $3,410 per year, the project paid for itself in less than 13 months.

Project Details


Lighting Fixture Retrofit

Personal Security Products had two warehouses with a total 11,800 sq. ft. of space. The warehouses were primarily lit with 28 metal halide fixtures, each using about 456 watts of electricity, as well as six T12 fluorescent fixtures.


LumaTech chose 6-lamp T5 high bay fluorescent fixtures to replace both the metal halide and T12 fixtures. The new fixtures use 351 watts, and LumaTech was able to use just 20 of the new fixtures to replace both the original 28 metal halide fixtures and the six T12 fluorescent fixtures. LumaTech also replaced the warehouse’s exit signs and wall floods with energy-efficient LED alternatives.


Even before adding lighting controls, the new lighting used 49% less energy than the original system. With lifespans that are, on average, more than 15,000 hours longer than the originals, the new fixtures deliver over $1,300 in annual lighting maintenance cost savings.


Light Level Improvements

The warehouses’ original lighting system only delivered an average of 7.6 foot-candles, well below the IES light-level recommendations for warehouse operations. Lumatech’s retrofit nearly tripled the delivered light in the warehouse, increasing the average to 21.7 foot-candles.


The retrofit also eliminated under-illuminated areas in the warehouses. Prior to the retrofit, some areas were illuminated with as few as 2.6 foot-candles. After the retrofit, the lowest light levels anywhere in the warehouse were 18.6 foot-candles.


Lighting Controls Implementation

The original system relied on manual operation. Since an entire warehouse is rarely filled with activity, this meant that significant amounts of energy were being wasted on lighting areas without any workers in them.


Lumatech installed occupancy sensors on the new T5 fluorescent fixtures, so that they’ll automatically turn on when someone comes into the area, and turn off when the area is empty. As a result, the annual burn hours of the primary lighting system decreased by 30%.


Energy-Efficiency Rebates

The warehouses’ retrofit was eligible for a $0.21 rebate for every kWh reduced, through Entergy Arkansas. Our lighting retrofit reduced lighting energy consumption by more than 27,000 kWh, and the project received more than $6,800 in rebates.


Results

Thanks to the retrofit’s improved light levels, the Personal Security Products warehouses are now a safer, more pleasant and more productive place to work. With the help of occupancy sensors, the lighting system is providing proper lighting to areas where workers are active, and saving energy in areas where they’re not.


Perhaps most importantly, the company is already seeing the results of the energy and maintenance savings on its energy and lighting service bills. The new system is on track to deliver over $3,400 every year in positive cash flow, for years to come.

Energy-Efficiency


Pre-Retrofit Post-Retrofit
Annual lighting Energy Consumption 41,305 kWh 14.208 kWh
Annual Lighting Energy Cost $37,589 $1,089

Cost & Savings


Costs Savings
Project Cost: $10,259 Annual Energy Savings: $2,077
Rebated Received: $6,803 Annual Maintenance Savings: $1,333
Net Customer Cost: $3,456 Total Annual Savings: $3,410
PAYBACK PERIOD: 1 YEAR & 5 DAYS
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