| Fluorescent Lighting and the Environment |
Energy shortages and pollution resulting from energy production are quickly becoming major global concerns as population growth and lifestyle improvements increase resource use. To stay competitive, commercial building owners are finding that they must upgrade their lighting fixtures to: 1. Lower energy costs and 2. Reduce their environmental impact and demonstrate their responsibility in an increasingly green market. A majority of building floor space in the United States is lit by fluorescent lighting, and because businesses are retrofitting their lighting while greening their buildings, it is important to recognize ways in which fluorescent lighting technology can be improved. In addition to ensuring that the fluorescent lighting that is installed in these buildings is energy efficient, it is imperative that upcoming generations of fluorescent lamps will also minimize the amounts of mercury and solid waste that are released into the environment. |
| LED vs .T5 Technology: The Advantages and Disadvantages |
LED technology can be extremely effective due to its long lifespan and increased efficiency. Many companies have successfully purchased LED exit signs and substituted other hard-to-replace lighting fixtures with LED lamps. While promising, current LED technology may not be the best solution to fix your company’s energy inefficiencies. If you are looking to retrofit your building from old T12 or T8 lighting fixtures to a more efficient technology, it is important to consider crucial factors such as the heat dissipation, CRI, efficacy, overall cost and lifespan of your lamps. |
| LED vs .T5 Part II |
In today’s market, businesses are offering LED commercial illumination products to the public almost two decades after white LED technology first emerged. But is LED technology truly ready for commercial illumination? Recent publications by the Lighting Research Center and the Department of Energy suggest that while LED performance has improved significantly since its advent, the technology is not yet ready for commercial consumption. |
| Introduction to LEED, ENERGY STAR and Lighting Upgrades: Navigating Successfully through Green Building Certification |
Roughly ten years after the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED and eighteen years after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR originated, both certification programs are respected symbols of businesses’ environmental responsibility. Research results demonstrate that buildings with LEED and ENERGY STAR labels show significant improvements in efficiency and reductions in environmental impact. Green certification’s marketing, financial and environmental benefits are vital to competing in the marketplace, but it is important to recognize that building performance can be improved beyond LEED and ENERGY STAR recommendations. Although LEED and ENERGY STAR do address efficiency and a few other lighting concerns, both certification programs fail to offer thorough guidance for the light quality issues, upfront costs and solid waste flow that is often associated with a lighting retrofit. Considering these three factors in addition to LEED and ENERGY STAR’s certification requirements will further maximize the profits of a lighting upgrade and earn the points necessary to achieve green certification for a commercial building. |
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