A Lighting Upgrade Success Story from the Folks Who Put Americans on the Moon
As a building owner or commercial energy manager, you’re probably more than interested in figuring out a way to make a lighting upgrade work for your building or portfolio of buildings. Not only will you save money in the long-term, but upgrading to more efficient lighting will save on energy costs right now. If you want hard data that might make your decision easier, just check out what Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas “the folks behind the lunar landings” was able to accomplish with its lighting upgrade.
In 2011, JSC decided to install HID high bay lighting in 24 buildings and re-retrofit over 18,000 office lighting fixtures (that were originally retrofit in 1999) with 28-watt T8 lamps and high-efficiency ballasts. Overall, the high bay lighting upgrade cut electricity costs by 50 percent and the office lighting upgrade cut costs by and additional 25 percent:
- Total Facility Size all areas retrofit: 1,250,000 square feet
- Facility Type: Manufacturing, Warehouse & Office
- Location: Houston, TX
- Annual Savings: $216,911
- Demand Savings: 359 kW
- Energy Savings: 2,078,504 kWh
- Project Size: $925,456
- EPACT Tax Deductions: NA
- Utility Rebates: $121,039
- Return on Investment: 27%
- Environmental Benefits: CO2 reduction: 3,117,756 lbs. annually
Sources
Maneri-Agraz, “Johnson Space Center Case Study.”
