Facilities across the country have been retrofitting their lighting to LED fixtures, including a school district in Central Washington, just outside of Seattle. The Enumclaw School District finished its three year long, $68 million renovation in their high school. The renovation included brand new lighting fixtures complete with lighting controls. The school district also received incentives for the project from their local utility company. Since LEDs and lighting controls help conserve energy, the school district is predicted to save around $13,000 annually from lowering their energy consumption.

“The largest benefit is, of course, the energy savings but, the improved light quality and ability to tailor lighting levels to the occupants’ needs has also been a great success,” Enumclaw District Facilities Manager, Peter French said. “We also love having the look of the fixture match the new construction.”

The combination of LED retrofits and lighting controls can lead to huge benefits for commercial facilities.

LEDs have energy conserving qualities to them because they don’t consume as much electricity as alternative lamps. They also have longer lifespans, so they don’t need to be replaced as frequently. Installing lighting controls helps conserve energy as well. There are specific controls, like motion sensors and dimming controls, can lower the amount of electricity and help turn off lights when the room isn’t being used at all. Having LED retrofits in schools can improve the learning environment of the students meanwhile making the work life of teachers and staff more comfortable.

Click here to read the full article, originally published March 27, 2021, by Facility Executive.