Cree Habitat for Humanity House Completed

In the beginning of September, we blogged about the ground-breaking of the first all-LED Habitat for Humanity home. In case you missed the blog, Habitat for Humanity is a non-profit housing ministry that builds homes for families in need. The family helps the volunteers build their new home, and their mortgage payments go toward the building of new Habitat homes. The all-LED Habitat for Humanity home in Durham, North Carolina, was sponsored by Cree and built by Cree employees and other Habitat volunteers.

After five months, the house is complete! The Rahlan-Ksor family, originally from Vietnam, used to live in a one-bedroom apartment, and now lives in Habitat’s three-bedroom home, complete with Cree’s award-winning CR6 downlights and other Cree LED products. Chuck Swoboda, Cree chairman and CEO, is pleased to say in a press release that the family can enjoy the new energy-efficient lighting that will not have to be replaced for the next twenty years. The family will also be saving $300 annually on electricity costs. Cree also made a three-year $1.5 million pledge to Habitat for Humanity to provide LED downlights in the kitchens of the new homes.

The volunteers also broke a record for the quickest building of a Habitat for Humanity home in Durham. We commend the volunteers for working so hard, and we also commend Cree for providing solid state lighting for these homes!

City of Pasadena Going Green with LEDs

Pasadena, California is making some big changes by installing solid state lighting in some of its public places. One mixed-use complex parking structure is replacing their 32-watt T8 fluorescent fixtures with 11.6-watt 4-foot LED tubes. The old fluorescent fixtures gave off an orange-greenish hue, while the new fixtures give off a bright, daylight-looking light. The installation of the LEDs is reducing carbon emissions by 17,723 pounds each year. The project cost the complex $1,096, but will be seeing a payback in only seven months and be saving $1,438 annually on energy costs!

The Pasadena Central Library also received an LED retrofit. The library had not replaced the 900-watt pendant lamps in the main common areas in the library because the fixtures are historic and the library wanted to preserve the historic-feeling. The problem was the old fixtures consumed 900 watts each and provided sub-par lighting. The light would get “buried” in the deep pendant fixtures and what light was left would bounce off reflectors to create ambient lighting for visitors. The library replaced the energy-wasting, dim lamps with LED lamps created by LEDtronics that would fit in place of the metal halide fixtures and allow the library to keep the old lamps. Now, more light from the LEDs shine on the reflectors, creating a brighter environment, including an addition 17-watt LED lamp placed on top of the pendants for even more light. The Pasadena Central Library is saving 788 watts per fixture, equaling thousands of dollars annually. They are also seeing thousands of dollars in savings in maintenance costs because maintenance crews do not have to be hired regularly to replace the high, hard-to-reach lighting.

In 2008, the Pasadena Central Library replaced 90-watt fluorescent fixtures in the downstairs document room with 40-watt LED fixtures, and has no problems or apparent dimming or burn-outs since the installation. Even libraries can benefit from LED lighting!

Recycling Tips for Incandescent and Fluorescent Lamps

It is just as important to recycle your old incandescent and fluorescent lamps as it is to purchase new, energy efficient and environmentally safe LEDs. Millions of light bulbs end up in landfills every year, and the toxins from the lamps contaminate the soil and other surrounding garbage at the dumps. If people continue to toss lamps in the garbage, we will run the risk of having our drinking water and soil contaminated from toxins and glass. Recycling light bulbs will help prevent the release of mercury into the landfills. Lamps aren’t built very durable and can easily break during transport to landfills, if not in them. Some parts of light bulbs can also be recycled, such as the glass and metals used to build the lamps. Also, some states require that citizens recycle lamps that contain mercury. California, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Minnesota are some of the states that have these laws.

So where should you recycle your light bulbs? Inquire within your community to see if there are recycling centers. If you visit www.earth911.com, you can enter what you want to recycle and where you are located, and the website generates locations of specific recycling centers. You can also contact your local hardware stores, which should have a light bulb recycling program. Many Home Depots, Ace Hardware stores, IKEAs, and Lowes have in-store recycling. Certain companies, such as Osram Sylvania, have mail-in recycling programs. You buy a bag or a box, you fill it with bulbs, and the company covers the cost of shipping the bulbs back! If there is absolutely no way you can recycle, at least put your light bulb in a sealed plastic bag before you toss it in the garbage. If it breaks, the mercury will be contained in the bag.

New Tariff Saves New York Even More with LEDs

In the state of New York, Central Hudson Gas & Electric applied and were approved for a tariff that will help the state save more money by installing LED lighting. Previously in New York, and currently in other states, the electric companies don’t necessarily meter street lights. They calculate energy consumption of each lamp, and then just charge the city that rate per lamp. With the new tariff designed to benefit LED lamp usage, the electric company will have to recalculate the amount of energy consumed by the lamps, which is significantly less than high pressure sodium and metal halide lamps, and adjust the amount the city pays per lamp. Central Hudson also wanted to be able to benefit from the American Recovery Reinvestment Act of 2009 funds with the LED lighting installation. Hopefully the new tariff in New York will convince other states to apply for an LED option tariff and take advantage of saving even more money by installing LED street lighting.

Renovation Projects in Arizona Choose LED Lighting

Many solid state lighting projects have been popping up all over cities in Arizona! As cities start to renovate and redevelop areas, they are choosing to replace their old lighting systems with LEDs, along with other “green” alternatives. Central Station at Central Avenue and Van Buren Street in downtown Phoenix is currently in phase II of a $5 million federal stimulus project to renovate the popular bus station. Renovations include energy efficient shades for passengers, solar cells of the roofs of the ticketing and administration buildings, sustainable plumbing in restrooms, Wi-Fi, LED lighting, and LED panels around the 2.6 acre station for entertainment and news purposes.

A $9.3 million project in Chandler has been completed recently. Arizona Avenue between Chandler Boulevard and Frye Road has been renovated and made more pedestrian-friendly over the past year. On May 21, Think Green – It’s Friday (T.G.I.F.) featured an article about the new LEDs. The General Electric Evolve LED Cobrahead street lighting installed downtown won a United States Department of Energy award because of the fixture’s efficiency and design. The lighting only uses a fraction of the energy of other popular street lighting fixtures. Chandler also gave its City Hall Complex a new look. The sustainable building is planning to get a Gold LEED Green Building Rating. The building will be conserving water, harvesting daylight, using high-efficiency windows, and most of all, installing LED lighting through the building!  Keep it up, Arizona!

Schools Practice Safety and Sustainability with LEDs

Schools are yet another important place for the growth and installation of LED lighting. Most elementary, junior high, and high schools have to be lit at least eight hours per day for students and teachers in class, not including the time spent by teachers before and after school preparing for class, and janitors after hours cleaning the campus. Also, with all the cuts to many states’ education budgets, having the most energy efficient lighting can allow the school district to spend their money elsewhere!

The first school to be lit entirely with LEDs is Thomas Jefferson Primary School in Peoria, Illinois. The school replaced T12 fluorescent fixtures around the campus with T8 LED dimmable troffers. The LEDs will reduce energy by 49% and eliminate 1.76 million pounds of carbon dioxide emissions over 10 years. Dave Ryon, District #150’s Director of Capital Programs said the LEDs will reduce the costs of operating the school, provide superior lighting for the students, and teach the students the importance of sustainability.

A school district in Bethany, Oklahoma, is finding another use for LED lighting. The school district is installing 52 solar LED flashing beacons in the city’s school zones paired with school zone signs to alert drivers they are approaching a school zone. The city has been having safety problems around school areas with roads from the school to residential areas. The drivers sped down the roads and there were no signs warning drivers to slow down. According to a press release by Carmanah, “Studies have shown that flashing beacons increase visibility of marked signage and reduce vehicle speeds by up to 5 to 7 miles per hour.” The beacons were also easy to install and didn’t disrupt traffic or the students. We hope to see more creative LED installations in the schools!

LED Market to See a Rapid Growth in 2015

A recent article by ElectroIQ predicts that the LED market will see a rapid growth over the next five years, specifically in solid state lighting. Dean Freeman, research vice president at Gartner, the world’s leading information technology research and advisory company, said the current driver of the LED market is LED LCD backlit televisions, which he predicts will be 60% more prominent in the market by 2014, growing from 25-26% in 2010 to 80% by 2014. The slim LED televisions have better picture quality than LCD televisions, and viewers are able to see shadows of characters on the television, which makes the images clearer. These televisions also use 40% less energy than traditional units.

The Gartner September 2010 forecast data graph included in the article shows the predicted growth of different sectors of the LED market from 2010 to 2020. According to the graph, there is going to be a rapid growth of LED lighting in 2015, predominantly in the commercial sector. We have already seen so many installations of LED lighting this year alone in warehouses, grocery stores, retail shops, gas stations, and other locations.

LED Lighting Popular Among Retail Businesses

We are excited to announce that more retail stores are making the switch to LED lighting! It seems a new business announces they are installing LEDs every day. We are glad company and business owners are seeing the ecological and monetary benefits of LED lighting at other stores, and if this trend continues, hopefully there will be a day that all retail locations will install solid state lighting. LED lighting is the best possible choice in retail stores because they create a pleasing and inviting atmosphere for customers and employees alike. The light isn’t harsh on the eyes, nor does it emit ultraviolet rays on customers. The directionality and conformity of light illuminates products and has even increased sales at some locations. Two retail stores have recently announced their plans for LED lighting.

The Timberland Company, a footwear and apparel retail store, partnered with Eco-Story, an LED company, and replaced 150 of their 50-to-90 watt halogen spotlights in each of its 50 stores in the United States with 10-watt PAR30 LED lamps. The expected lifetime of the lamps is six to ten years. Al Buell, store planning and construction project manager at Timberland, said Timberland decided to install LEDs because of the impact the lighting will have on the environment by reducing carbon emissions, lower electricity bills, federal tax incentives, and the financial savings advantages. The company also didn’t have to spend any money on installing the new lamps because the employees were able to switch out the old lights with the new lights. The company is expecting to save $100,000 from the LED installation!

Bassett Home Furnishings, a furniture showcase retail store in Fife, Washington, replaced their current lighting with Energy Star rated lighting. In order to be an Energy Star rated product, the lamp must be evaluated by Energy Star for light quality, energy efficiency, and lifetime. The store qualified for a utility incentive, and is planning on their monthly electricity bill to decrease by more than their monthly payment to finance the lighting. The new lighting is expected to reduce carbon dioxide emission by 311,000 pounds, sulfur dioxide emissions by 1,217 pounds, and nitrogen oxides by 772 pounds. We hope to keep seeing more LED lighting installations!

General Electric’s Breakthrough LED Announcement

General Electric celebrated World Lighting Appreciation Day on October 21st, marking the 131st anniversary of Thomas Alva Edison testing the first incandescent light bulb. In observance of this monumental day, GE took photos of Edison around its headquarters in Niskayuna, New York, and held a Lighting Redefined Symposium. At the symposium, GE made an announcement about a new breakthrough technology related to LED lighting.

As part of a two-year solid state lighting program with the United States Department of Energy, scientists from GE Global Research, GE Lighting, and the University of Maryland, scientists from these groups have constructed a 1,500-lumen LED bulb that uses one-third of the amount of energy, but produces the same amount of light equivalent to a 100-watt halogen PAR38 lamp.

You might be asking, “How does this work? How does a lamp that consumes so little energy give off the same amount of light?” Scientists working on this project have developed a new cooling technology fueled by tiny air jets blowing air on the LED chips in the lamp. LED chips do get warm, but not necessarily the LED lamp itself. With high speed winds coming from the jets onto the chips, the chips are able to run more efficiently. Scientists also say this will allow them to use less LED chips in the lamps, which will bring down the price of LEDs!

Mehmet Arik, the mechanical engineer at GE Global Research and principal investigator on the LED project, said the new cooling system will help increase efficiency and performance of LED lighting in the future. The technology will enable engineers and other scientists create more powerful lamps without sacrificing efficiency of the lamps or decreasing lifespan. Although these lamps won’t be on the market anytime soon, it’s crazy to think that the most energy efficient lighting available is still being modified to become even more efficient! We are eager to hear about more new developments from GE in the future.

LED Lighting Research in Greenhouses – Greenhouses Going Green!

Purdue University in Indiana recently received a $4.88 million grant to study LED lighting in greenhouses. The United States Department of Agriculture Specialty Crops Research Initiative Award for $2.44 million and equal contributions of equipment and services from industry partners will help researchers from Purdue, Rutgers University, University of Michigan, Michigan State University and Orbital Technologies Corporation to develop and improve LED lighting in greenhouses. “Developing LED Lighting Technology Practices for Sustainable Specialty Crop Production” will be a four year project in which researchers will tour greenhouses to figure out a way to make the lighting more efficient and produce more products. They are planning to test LED lighting on high wire tomatoes, which can grow taller than 20 feet. Because current lighting in greenhouses usually doesn’t reach the bottom of the plant, it will not grow to its full capacity. Researchers think future developments of LED lighting will shine light all over the plant, helping it grow and increasing the amount of tomatoes grown on the plant while reducing energy costs!

LED lighting is an optimal choice for greenhouse owners. LEDs give off light similar to sunlight and their bright light can shine on all parts of the plant instead of just the top. They also consume less electricity. Statistics show that greenhouses can save 75% on electricity costs with LEDs. LEDs also give off a cool light, which most plants need to grow. The heat from fluorescent lamps is too warm for greenhouses, causing plants to wilt. Fluorescent lighting also has a buzzing sound when the lamps are turned on. Greenhouse workers can have a more comfortable working environment with quiet LED lamps. Most LED greenhouse lighting claim to have a lifetime of 100,000 hours, which is six times longer than CFLs. According to Robin Khan, an LED lamp with a 100,000-hour lifespan that is only used half a day will last 22 years!

We hope the researchers in the project at Purdue University make great discoveries that will help encourage all greenhouse owners to switch to LED lighting!