Emergency Exit Lights - 3 reasons you should use LEDs

Use LED's for your Emergency Exit Lighting

Buildings accessible to the public, including office buildings, warehouses, retail stores, and manufacturing facilities, are required to have emergency exit lights to show the path to the emergency exits as well as the emergency exit doors.  It is important that your emergency exit lights be properly placed within your commercial building and it’s also important that your exit lighting function properly, even in a total power outage.
Emergency exit lights should be hooked up to a battery backup power source to ensure that when the power is cutoff the exit lighting will last several hours.  In addition to the power source and backup, you should also consider the type of materials and fixtures that will be used for your emergency exit lighting system.  You want your system to provide adequate illumination to assist people in case of emergency.
The most common solution today for emergency exit lighting systems is to use LED diodes.  We’ll examine a few reasons why LED’s are the best and most cost effective option for your emergency exit lights.

1. Minimum power consumption in an emergency: LED’s require much less electricity that most other forms of emergency exit illumination (incandescent; fluorescent).  Generally it takes a lot of electricity to generate light, but due to the efficiency of LED’s, they require much less.  That’s why LED’s have become so popular in homes and businesses.  The fact that LED’s consume much less electricity means that your emergency exit lights will continue to shine for a longer duration on the battery backup system, which is critical when the power goes out and there are still people in the building during an emergency.
2. LED’s are more cost effective: The purchase price for LED emergency exit lights is about the same as incandescent and fluorescent exit lights, but that’s where the similarity ends.  When you consider that the exit lights are on 24 hours a day, the amount of electricity it takes to power the incandescent or fluorescent systems is many times the amount that LED’s will consume.  Over the span of a year, that could amount to hundreds of dollars in savings by using LED emergency exit lighting.
3. LED exit lights have a long shelf life: Once installed you can almost forget about your LED exit lighting system as they have a shelf life of over 10 years.  It’s a good idea to inspect your emergency exit lighting system as part of your routine lighting maintenance throughout the year to insure that the system continues to function properly.

At PKK Lighting in Madison, WI, we’ve been installing and maintaining emergency exit lighting systems for 50 years.  We’d be delighted to inspect your emergency exit lighting system and make recommendations to improve your system while saving you money. Contact us today.

Tips from a Madison, WI Lighting Maintenance company

What to expect from a Lighting Maintenance Company

The interior and exterior lighting for your building or facility is an important area to stay on top of throughout the year.  In addition to the lighting needed for people to do their jobs and to navigate around your facility, there is also the emergency lighting in case the power goes out so that people can safely exit the building.
If you fail to properly maintain your lighting it could result in safety issues for your employees, tenants and visitors as well as fines from your municipality for violating local building codes, and even legal liability if someone gets injured.

Lighting Maintenance Services

In order to ensure that your facility is up to code and that your lighting system is working properly, you should schedule routine lighting maintenance throughout the year. That will make it easier to identify any problems more timely and give you the peace of mind that your lighting system is working as it should.

What is Lighting Maintenance and who needs it?

Any building or facility where people come and go is a candidate for a lighting maintenance plan.  Here are just a few of the entities that should have a plan in place to ensure that all of the lighting works as intended:

• Manufacturing companies
• Schools
• Retail stores
• Apartment buildings
• Supermarkets
• Office buildings
• Parking lot owners
• Churches

What services are included with Lighting Maintenance?

When you hire a professional to conduct your lighting inspection, they will walk through the entire facility and grounds to identify your existing lighting.  If desired, they can make recommendations for improvements as well as potential savings opportunities from more efficient LED lighting.  They will also help you put together a lighting maintenance plan to address your needs going forward.
A lighting maintenance plan should address all of the critical components of your lighting system.  These include:

• An inspection of your emergency exit lights (includes updating your National Fire Protection Association compliance logs)
• Interior/Exterior lighting inspection and maintenance (includes repairs/replacement of bulbs, lamps, fixtures and controls)
• Parking lot light pole inspections and maintenance (includes repairs/replacements of bulbs, lamps, fixtures and poles)
• Street light maintenance (includes repairs/replacements of bulbs, lamps, fixtures and poles)

Maintenance can be scheduled monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, or annually depending on your needs.

Hire a professional Lighting Maintenance company

At PKK Lighting in Madison, WI, we’ve been providing lighting maintenance services for 50 years.  We have fully stocked aerial lift trucks, full-time technicians with over 100 years of combined experience, an inventory of tens of thousands of light bulbs, and relationships with several national light fixture manufacturers to quickly get replacement parts/fixtures that we do not have on hand.
Contact PKK Lighting to discuss your lighting maintenance needs to see how we might be able to help you.
This post was originally published at https://www.pkklighting.com/tips-from-a-madison-wi-lighting-maintenance-company/.

6 things to know when shopping for High Bay Lighting

Consider LED High Bay Lighting for your project

Whether you are constructing a new facility that needs high bay lighting or looking to upgrade your current high bay lighting fixtures, there are a few things you should know before you make your final decision about the solution that’s best for you:

1. Lighting Technology: Conventional incandescent lamps put out 10 – 20 lumens per watt of electricity. High-intensity discharge (HID) lamps and fluorescents put out 50 – 75 lumens per watt.  LED high bay lights are constantly improving, with lumens per watt approaching upwards of 160.  So the best long run decision is to go with the high efficiency LED high bay lights.  The energy savings alone will more than offset the higher cost per fixture. Another benefit of the LEDs is that they are dimmable, so depending on your specific needs means that you can gain even more savings by dimming the lights or turning them on/off with the use of occupancy sensors.
2. Light Level: Depending how the facility is being used will help determine the desired light level you’ll need.  In a production facility where precision work is performed will need much higher light levels than a warehouse used for storage.  PKK Lighting can help guide you with the selection of the proper light levels based on how the space will be used. 
3. Dimensions of area: Knowing the length, width and height of the area to be lit will be critical as it will help determine the number and spacing of the LED high bay light fixtures. Ideally, a blue print of the facility will allow your lighting professional to properly design the solution.
4. Ceiling Type: The ceiling type will help determine how and where to mount the high bay fixtures. Some common types of ceilings include drywall, metal trusses, purlins, and corrugated metal.
5. Available Voltage: Before making a buying decision for your LED high bay lights, you need to know what voltage will be available to power the fixtures.  High bay light fixtures are specifically designed for a certain level of power and will underperform (or not work at all) if that level of power is not provided. 
6. Budget: How much budget is set aside for your lighting system? 

PKK Lighting has been designing, installing and maintaining lighting systems for our customers for almost 50 years.  We can consult with you on your LED High Bay lighting project and make recommendations on the best solution taking all of the above into consideration. 

Deciding between LED Tubes and LED Lighting Fixtures

If your organization is looking to get the benefits of upgrading your older linear fluorescent lights with LED, one of the decisions you’ll need to make is whether you will replace the fluorescent tubes with LED tubes or invest in new LED fixtures.
The decision is similar to whether you should continue to invest in your older model car and keep it running for just a bit longer or is it time to invest in a newer model.
There are several pros and cons to LED tubes and LED Fixtures, and we’ll explore those in more detail in a future blog post.  This post will focus on some of the things you should consider as you make your initial decision to use LED tubes or new LED fixtures.

1. What is the condition of your existing lighting fixtures?  Are they yellowed or have cracked lenses?  How easy or difficult is it to find replacement lenses or parts to keep them running?
2. Is the energy efficiency of the lighting and ease of future maintenance an important consideration?  There’s no doubt that LED fixtures will provide you with better energy efficiency and lower cost maintenance, so if that’s important to you then LED fixtures might be the way to go.  Having said that, there are some very good low-cost LED tubes that can save you money up front.
3. Do you plan to do a complete lighting retrofit (replacing all fluorescents with LED), or are you replacing fluorescents with LED’s as they burn out?  If you plan to replace as they burn out and avoid the upfront cost of a complete retrofit, then LED tubes are probably the right choice for you.
4. Do you need to meet building codes or energy control standards?  If you have strict efficiency or energy control requirements, the likely best solution is a complete fixture replacement with LED.  The newest LED technology can incorporate advance controls that will meet, and even exceed, building codes and energy control requirements.
5. Are there any rebates available for LED tubes or fixtures?  Wisconsin Focus on Energy partners with electric utilities to provide rebates to residential and business customers who invest in energy saving projects.  Your rebate may be the deciding factor of whether you decide to use LED tubes or new LED fixtures.  Let PKK Lighting walk you through the Lighting Incentive Catalog Supplemental Data Sheet to determine your potential rebate.

If you need help evaluating your situation, contact the lighting experts at PKK Lighting.  We’ve been assisting businesses like yours with lighting installation and lighting maintenance services since 1970.
This post was originally published at https://www.pkklighting.com/deciding-between-led-tubes-and-led-lighting-fixtures/

How to calculate ROI and payback period from LED lighting retrofit project

This is the sixth and final blog post in the series to calculate the total Return on Investment (ROI) that a business will generate from their LED lighting retrofit project. Previously, we published the following posts in this series:

1. How to calculate Material savings from an LED lighting retrofit project – June 2019
2. How to calculate the HVAC energy savings from an LED lighting retrofit project – April 2019
3. Energy Savings from an LED Lighting Retrofit project – March 2019
4. Labor Savings from an LED Lighting Retrofit project – February 2019
5. What will you save from an LED Lighting Retrofit Project? – January 2019

The previous five posts provide all of the calculations for the various aspects of your retrofit project so you can determine how much potential savings your organization will realize from your project.  But what does it all mean and will your business be better off?  This post will help tie all of the information together so you can actually see what this means for your business, how long it will take for the project to pay for itself, and your Return on Investment (ROI).
Payback Period and ROI
The Payback Period is the amount of time it will take you to recoup your original investment in the project.  The ROI is a ratio of the total savings from the project to the total project cost and it will demonstrate how profitable the project is.
For this post we will continue our example from the previous posts in the series where we are replacing a 90 watt PAR 38 bulb with a 14 watt LED PAR 38 and is operated for 12 hours per day for 250 days per year.
Step 1 – Determine Total Project Cost
Be sure to include all of the costs associated with the retrofit project, including the cost of new materials, installation costs, and any additional costs for disposal/recycling the old bulbs.  For our example we are using an all-in cost of $40 per bulb, which includes the cost of the replacement LED bulb, installation, and disposal of the old bulb.  For a project with a total of 100 old bulbs being replaced with LEDs, the total project cost would be $4,000 ($40 x 100).
Step 2 – Calculate Annual Savings
Using the calculations from the previous blog posts in the series, here is a recap of the savings:

• Energy Savings: $27.36 per light per year (See original post)
• + HVAC Savings: $3.45 per light per year (See original post)
• + Labor Savings: $25.86 per light per year (See original post) – note that in the original post we used 4,380 total operating hours. Adjusting that computation to be the same as the other savings calculations (250 days per year for 12 hours per day = 3,000 operating hours per year) results in labor savings of $25.86 per light per year.
• + Material Savings: $13.89 per light per year (See original post)
• = Total Savings Per Light Per Year: $70.56

For a retrofit project with a total of 100 lights, that amounts to Total Savings of $7,056 annually ($70.56 x 100).
Step 3 – Calculate Payback Period

• Total Project Cost: $4,000
• Divided by Total Annual Savings: $7,056
• Equals: Payback Period in Years: .57 years

That means that the project will pay for itself in just over 6 months!  What are you waiting for?
Step 4 – Calculate Return on Investment (ROI)
The final step in the process of determining the inherent value in the project is to calculate the ROI.  This might be a useful measure for the decision-makers that have multiple projects competing for limited funds.
Total Annual Savings: $7,056
Minus: Total Project Cost: $4,000
Equals – Net Savings: $3,056
Divided by – Total Project Cost: $4,000
Equals – ROI: .764; expressed as a percentage: 76.4%
Think if your retirement plan could generate a return of 76.4% year after year!  In this example it makes sense to invest in the project and start generating the positive returns. 
If your organization is considering an LED retrofit project, contact PKK Lighting in Madison, Wisconsin and our lighting consultants will be happy to walk you through the evaluation of your lighting project.
This post was originally published at https://www.pkklighting.com/how-to-calculate-roi-and-payback-period-from-led-lighting-retrofit-project/

How to calculate Material savings from an LED lighting retrofit project

This is the fifth blog post in the series to calculate the total Return on Investment (ROI) that a business will generate from their LED lighting retrofit project. Previously, we published the following posts in this series:

1. How to calculate Material savings from an LED lighting retrofit project – April 2019
2. Energy Savings from an LED Lighting Retrofit project – March 2019
3. Labor Savings from an LED Lighting Retrofit project – February 2019
4. What will you save from an LED Lighting Retrofit Project? – January 2019

This post focuses on the Material savings gained by a lighting retrofit project and the long-life LED products incorporated into the project. Most of the products you’ll be replacing during the project, like incandescent, CFL or halogen bulbs, have life-spans of 1,500 to 15,000 hours.  That means that if you operate your lights 12 hours a day for 250 days a year (3,000 hours), you’ll be replacing burned out bulbs up to 2 times per year.  Those costs can add up quickly, especially if you have hundreds, or even thousands of fixtures in your facilities.
LED lights, on the other hand, have life spans of 35,000 to 100,000 hours. At 3,000 hours per year, that’s 11 – 33 years!  An even then the bulb may not burn out but may just lose some of its’ output capacity, so your life spans could exceed the standard rated hours.
We will continue our example from the series in that we are replacing 90 watt PAR 38 bulbs with 14 watt LED PAR 38 bulbs that operate 3,000 hours per year. 
Step 1: Gather Data – the following information will be needed to start the calculations:

• Rated life for the current lights: for this calculation we will make an assumption that you are using a PAR 38 with a rated life of 1,500 hours.
• Rated life for the new lights: for this calculation we will make an assumption that the replacement lights are LED PAR 38 with a rated life of 50,000 hours and come with a 5-year warranty.
• Replacement cost for the current lights: for this calculation we will make an assumption that the replacement cost for a 90W Halogen PAR 38 is $7.50.
• Replacement cost for the new lights: for this calculation we will make an assumption that the replacement cost for a 14W LED PAR 38 is $18.50.
• Total Annual Running time: in this example the annual run time is 3,000 hours.

Step 2: Calculate the number of times you will need to replace the current lights per year, which is dependent on the rated life and run time per year:

• Total Run Time per year: 3,000 hours
• Divided by: Rated life of current lights: 1,500 hours
• Equals: Number of times per year you’ll replace each light: 2 replacements per year

Step 3: Cost of replacing existing lights:

• Annual replacements from above: 2 per year
• Times: Cost to replace from above: $7.50
• Equals: Annual replacement costs per year: $15.00

Step 4: Calculate the number of times you will need to replace the new LED lights per year, which is dependent on the rated life and run time per year:

• Total Run Time per year: 3,000 hours
• Divided by: Rated life of current lights: 50,000 hours
• Equals: Number of times per year you’ll replace each light: .06 replacements per year

Step 5: Cost of replacing new LED lights:

• Annual replacements from above: .06 per year
• Times: Cost to replace from above: $18.50
• Equals: Annual replacement costs per year: $1.11

Step 6: Calculate your savings per year:

• Annual replacements per year for current lights: $15.00 per year
• Minus: Annual replacements per year for new LED lights: $1.11 per year
• Equals: Annual material savings per light: $13.89

(Note that this calculation does not take into effect the normal 5 year warranty provided by the LED light manufacturer, so during years 1-5 of the project your replacement cost for the LED lights would be zero and you’d have an even larger annual material savings per year.)
Using the annual material cost savings per light ($13.89 in this example) you can determine the total material savings based upon the number of lights you’ll be replacing during your LED lighting retrofit project.  Multiplied over hundreds or thousands of replacements and the savings add up quickly.
The professional lighting installation experts at PKK Lighting would be delighted to talk to you about your LED retrofit project.  We can help you evaluate the opportunity, manage the entire project, and provide ongoing lighting maintenance of your system.
This post was originally published at https://www.pkklighting.com/how-to-calculate-material-savings-from-an-led-lighting-retrofit-project/

How to calculate HVAC energy savings from an LED lighting retrofit project

An LED Lighting Retrofit project will provide a significant ROI to your company

This is the fourth blog post in the series to calculate the total Return on Investment (ROI) that a business will generate from an LED lighting retrofit project. Previously, we published the following posts in this series:

1. Energy Savings from an LED Lighting Retrofit project – March 2019
2. Labor Savings from an LED Lighting Retrofit project – February 2019
3. What will you save from an LED Lighting Retrofit Project? – January 2019

This post will address how a lighting retrofit project will save you money on your HVAC costs.  The primary assumption behind this part of the overall savings is that the retrofit project is being done in an area that is air conditioned.
So, how would a retrofit project help generate HVAC savings?  Incandescent and halogen bulbs from older light fixtures do two things really well, produce light (which is what they are supposed to do) and produce a LOT of heat.  Dealing with that extra heat in the summer months is what takes extra energy.  The American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) has established a rule of thumb that it takes 30-35 watts of cooling to offset the heat generated for each 100 watts of lights within a space.  We will use 32.5 watts for our computation below.
We will continue our example from the last post in that we are replacing 90 watt PAR 38 bulbs with 14 watt LED PAR 38 bulbs that operate 3,000 hours per year. 
These step-by-step instructions will help your business calculate the potential HVAC savings so you can evaluate if it makes sense to include these savings in your overall ROI computation.
Step 1: Gather Data – the following information will be needed to start the calculations:

• Total energy savings per year per light: this is one of the outputs from the March 2019 post - 228 kwh saved per year per light.
• Percent of the year that a business operates its air conditioning.  According to a 35 year old study by the U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Civil Engineering Lab, CR82.028, 1982, Madison Wisconsin air conditioners were operational 38.85% of the year.  Granted, this data is old, and given the warmer temperatures over the last few decades, it’s likely that the percentage would be higher, but 38.85% will work for this calculation.
• Electricity Rate: $0.12/kwh is the average rate in Dane county.

Step 2: Energy savings from reduced HVAC:

• KWH saved per light replaced with an efficient LED: 228 kwh
• Times: % of the year that air conditioner is running: 38.85%
• Times: Cooling required per ASHRAE rule: 32.5 watts
• Equals: 28.79 kwh of HVAC savings per year per light

Step 3: Cost savings from reduced HVAC demand:

• HVAC savings from above: 28.79 kwh
• Times: Electricity Rate: $0.12/hwh
• Equals: Savings per light: $3.45/light per year

While a savings of $3.45 per light per year may not seem like much, if you have hundreds, or even thousands of light fixtures that you are replacing during an LED lighting retrofit project, the savings will add up quickly.
If you are considering an LED retrofit project and want to consult with a professional lighting installation company, contact PKK Lighting.  We can help you evaluate the opportunity, manage the project, and maintain the lighting system well into the future.
This post was originally published at https://www.pkklighting.com/how-to-calculate-hvac-energy-savings-from-an-led-lighting-retrofit-project/.