May 2011 - Illuminating Engineering Society

ENERGY ADVISOR
ing “net-zero-energy-use” schools.
Back to the recent past, NEMA reported
that 103 million T12s were sold in 2010 for
replacements, down only eight percent from
2009. T12 lamps represent 52 percent of
all the 4-ft linear lamps sold last year for
replacements. There are approximately 500
million T12 lamps still out there, driven by
Come visit us at
Booth # 404
May 17-19, 2011
Pennsylvania Convention Center
about 300 million magnetic ballasts, each
one wasting 30-40 percent in energy. T12
lamps will be banned in July 2012 and incentive
programs curtailed because we’ll have
no choice but to upgrade to T8 lamps and
electronic ballasts. As we reported, New
York City must remove all existing luminaires
in approximately 700 schools because they
SUSPENSION
SPECIALISTS
have magnetic ballasts with PCBs in their
capacitors. The least expensive way to
raise more than $500 million to upgrade the
schools is by financing the upgrade with
municipal bonds and amortizing them with
the energy cost savings. Some states are
doing the same thing with ARRA money.
Employing “demand response” is another
self-amortizing investment. About 30-40
percent of an office building’s electric bill
is for the demand charge. For hospitals
it’s about 50 percent and for schools the
demand charge is about 50-70 percent of
the bill due to the low operating hours of
elementary schools. Some utilities have rate
schedules with ratchet clauses that require
the payment of 80 percent of the highest
monthly demand charge for the following 11
months—even in the summer when schools
are closed. There are controls that can easily
monitor and prevent excessive peak demand.
Many customers pay time-of-day (TOD)
rates of as much as $ 1.25 per kWh during
peak load periods, which should encourage
load shedding, and Independent System
Operators (ISOs) credit users who return
unneeded demand back to the electric grid
system. While there are still incentives, now
is the time to upgrade with controls, save
more than 50 percent in energy, and put
people back to work manufacturing and
installing high-performance lighting systems.
And if SSLs meet our expectations, we can
reach the net-zero usage of energy using
low-voltage DC electrical systems to drive
them. It’s the best investment we can make,
both financially and environmentally. To their
credit, lighting equipment manufacturers
and electricians are born “shovel ready.”
Rize Enterprises, LLC - PO Box 1311 Brentwood, NY 11717
Phone: 631-930-7532 Fax: 631-249-8976
www.rize-enterprises.com
Willard L. Warren, PE, Fellow IES, LC, DSA,
is principal of Willard L. Warren Associates.
32 May 2011 | LD+A www.ies.org