Buildings Magazine - December 2015

LEDs for Parking Garage Lighting continued from page 10

ENERGY TOOL: THE RETROFIT SAVINGS ESTIMATOR IS A WEB-BASED ANALYSIS ENGINE THAT USES BASIC BUILDING DATA TO PERFORM CUSTOM ENERGY SIMULATIONS. TRY IT AT NEWBUILDINGS.ORG.

systems that can help guide customers quickly to empty spaces.

The structure of a parking garage also affects lighting. If your garage is constructed of precast concrete double tees, be sure that lights are installed properly for effective distribution. This structure can be identified in the field by its many deep, upright tees in the ceiling.

Fixtures should not be mounted up in the tee because they tend to over-illumi-nate one tee and under-illuminate others. Instead, fixtures should be dropped below or nearly below the tee. Garages built of cast-in-place concrete typically have flat ceilings that allow fixtures to be mounted directly to them. For both types, light-colored concrete improves light distribution.

With any LED proposal, test the aesthetics. Arrange for your contractor to install a series of at least four units so you can test the lighting in between fixtures. If you don’t like them, try others.

Also, insist on certification. Design Lights Consortium (DLC) is the LED standard for lighting. Utilities won’t give rebates unless the fixture selected is DLC listed. You can view the list of certified, high-quality lamps at designlights.org.

LEDs can be very attractive on energy savings, but insist on glare-free fixtures, test them in place, and by all means don’t delay. Even for garages using T8 fluorescents, great solutions are available to reduce lamp wattage from 32 watts to 18 watts with or without leaving the existing ballast in place.

Eric Woodroof is the Chairman of the Board for the Certified Carbon Reduction Manager program and has been a board member of the Certified Energy Manager program since 1999. Jeff Pinyot is the founder and president of ECO Lighting Solutions and ECO Parking Lights; he can be reached at jspinyot@ecoparking-lights.com.

CHP Projects Announced for New York Schools, Hospitals

➙Combined heat and power technology is growing at a
rapid pace in New York, with
over 50 state-supported projects now
underway or planned to improve the
resiliency and energy efficiency of hos-
pitals, schools and other buildings.

The projects are expected to increase the total number of CHP systems in the state by around 10% when completed and are projected to help cut total energy costs by 15-30%.

Also called cogeneration, CHP helps boost building efficiency by capturing exhaust heat and generating power on-site, a more efficient option than receiving electricity from power lines due to the estimated 6% loss from resistance.

While most of the systems use
natural gas, some use biogas produced
through digestion of waste water or
farm waste. When the projects have
been completed, the New York State
Energy Research and Development
Authority (N YSERDA) projects that
the CHP systems it supports will offset
over 200 M W of power, enough to
power more than 32,000 homes.

CHP USAGE IN NEW YORK is set to grow with Gov. Andrew Cuomo increasing the state’s commitment to the cleaner power source.

Massachusetts took top honors for the fifth year in a row in

2015’s State Energy Efficiency Scorecard rankings, an annual study by the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy.

State energy policies are assessed in six categories – utility programs, transportation, building energy codes, combined heat and power, state initiatives and appliance standards. High-performing states emphasize policies that not only save energy, but also benefit the environment and promote economic growth.

California followed Massachusetts closely in second place, while Vermont, Oregon and Rhode Island rounded out the top five. California, Maryland, the District of Columbia, Texas and Illinois were also recognized as 2015’s most improved states.