Lighting Control Panels: Making Your Business Greener by Saving You Energy and Money
Lighting your building can consume just under 50% of a commercial facilities electrical load. Furthermore, the heating and cooling loads are also affected by persistent lighting. Therefore, one of the easiest ways to save energy costs is to simply turn the lights off when they are not needed. However, it’s not practical for you to hire an employee to walk around the building’s interior/exterior and turn lights off and on, or expect your current employees to be conscientious of this function. Therefore, lighting control panels offer that type of electrical ingenuity that can save you energy and money.
What is a Lighting Control Panel?
Lighting control panels are secondary panels that can be installed next to the buildings electrical panel or near the lighting it is controlling. For example, some facilities use small Lighting Control Panels on each floor that are programmed based on the individual tenant needs. They are often used for exterior lighting and are often overlooked for what they can provide when used in interior spaces. The lighting control panel controls a group of light fixtures by sending a signal to turn the lights on/off at pre-programmed times. They can be programmed in the field or at the factory prior to shipment. Another benefit to using lighting control panels is that they work in conjunction with other potential devices such as ‘day light harvesting’ and ‘occupancy sensors.’ Lighting control panels are easily adaptable into existing facilities and can provide the use with automated lighting controls for a minimal cost while gaining substantial energy savings.
Lighting Control Panels Start With a Comprehensive Facility Assessment
You’ve already decided that your building or office would benefit from a lighting control panel, now you need to more specifically analyze your space in order to get optimum lighting control.
-Look for areas of inactivity such as warehouses and storage spaces
-Look at individual spaces like private offices and conference rooms
-If facility lighting is turned off and on only by individual users, wouldn’t a programmed turn on/shut off be more efficient and maximize your energy savings.
Lighting Control Panels and Government Rebate Programs
Many companies are being encouraged to ‘go green’ these days, but need a little incentive to initiate the process. There is no doubt, that everyone benefits from energy efficiency, but most importantly, in the work environment, energy efficiency absolutely benefits the bottom line. As a result, government rebate programs are being made readily available and simple to implement to make the step to ‘go green’ easier.
More specifically, New Jersey’s Clean Energy Program will help commercial and industrial businesses to build a new structure with green energy or renovate existing buildings. These programs are available for several technologies including lighting control panels. The rebate amount varies according to the technology, but the maximum incentive is up to 80% of the project costs. Furthermore, there is a program entitled The Smart Start Direct Install Program that helps customers ‘go green’ by offering turn-key, energy-saving assistance for customers with peak electricity demands of 200 kilowatts or less over the preceding 12 months.
