Ann Arbor Cuts Energy Costs in Half Using LEDs

Jan. 29, 2009
BETHESDA, MD, January 19, 2009 –- Energy is too precious to waste, and so are taxpayer dollars, which is why the city of Ann Arbor, Michigan, looked for ways to get more bang for its streetlighting buck. How the city is applying the latest in LED ...

BETHESDA, MD, January 19, 2009 –- Energy is too precious to waste, and so are taxpayer

dollars, which is why the city of Ann Arbor, Michigan, looked for ways to get more bang for its

streetlighting buck. How the city is applying the latest in LED technology to light its streets and

reduce power consumption by 50 percent is among the highlights in the latest edition of

ElectricTV.net.

Across the United States, local governments are slashing budgets, presenting significant

challenges to those entrusted with providing services to the community. The city of Ann Arbor

suffered a 60 percent reduction, spurring the search for areas to cut costs, including the city's power

consumption. Just to light the streets, the city was spending more than $1.4 million a year.

Says Andrew Brix, acting director of the city's energy program, “We're talking about

taxpayer dollars, and the money we spent on streetlights every year was a big chunk of

change.” Rather than simply letting the streets go dark, the city embarked on a pilot program to

replace its 6,600 streetlamps with energy-saving LEDs or Light Emitting Diodes. The measured

result after installing an initial 1,000 LED lights was a decrease in energy use from 120 watts

per fixture to 56. As a result says Brix, “We cut our overall bill in half,” with the savings paying

for the replacement program in just four years.

A joint production of the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) and the

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), ElectricTV.net is the only web TV

program dedicated to reporting the latest developments in the electrical construction and

information systems industries.

Also on this edition of ElectricTV.net is a virtual worksite tour that helps building owners

be more proactive in identifying job hazards; a segment on how NECA/IBEW's unique training

programs are preparing the green workers America needs both today and tomorrow; and a

spotlight on the many advantages a design/build electrical contractor brings to a construction

project.

To view, visit http://electrictv.net/ledstreetlights.aspx.

ABOUT NECA AND IBEW

Through their joint marketing organization – the National Labor-Management Cooperation

Committee (NLMCC) of the organized electrical construction industry – NECA and IBEW

together work to:

• Reach customers with accurate information about the industry; and

• Achieve better internal communication between labor and management.

NECA has provided over a century of service to the $130 billion electrical construction

industry that brings power, light and communication technology to buildings and communities

across the United States. NECA's national office and 119 local chapters advance the industry

through advocacy, education, research and standards development.

With 725,000 members who work in a wide variety of fields – including construction,

utilities, telecommunications and manufacturing – IBEW is among the largest member unions in

the AFL-CIO. IBEW was founded in 1891.

For more information, visit www.thequalityconnection.org

Contact:

Mark Walston

Phone: 301-919-8755

[email protected]

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of T&D World, create an account today!