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Demand for LED and Induction Lighting Remains Strong

March, 2014

By Jeff Pinyot

As sure as the sun will rise tomorrow, doing a relighting project on your parking garage or lot will pay for itself, over and over again. You can bank on it! Here are several examples to support that statement:



The Offices and Residences at 429 on the Park, a high-end, multi-use property in Downtown Indianapolis, was developed and is managed by the Stenz Corp.

The parking garage serving this property had been illuminated by 150-watt high-pressure-sodium (HPS) lighting drawing 180 watts per fixture. The yellow lighting was determined to be under-serving the security cameras, which love LED and induction lighting because their light quality allows colors to be properly shown. It also was underperforming in providing proper lighting due to outages and severe depreciation.

What Stenz wanted was a solution that provided the economic and maintenance benefits of LED, but demanded a glare-free solution that also provided uplighting, which is extremely beneficial on poured-slab-constructed garages.

Attracted by the generous $100 per fixture rebate provided by the Indianapolis Power and Light Co. and the federal EPACT incentive, it was a quick decision to use the cone LED fixture to do a one-to-one replacement of the fixtures.

In discussing the project, Beau Ansty, Director of Asset Management for Stenz, said: “We have received many compliments of the aesthetic quality of the new fixtures, and are already seeing a significant reduction in our energy spend for the garage. We are very happy with the Eco solution.”

The Walkway, a brand-new 92-unit luxury apartment gem in the Uptown area of Minneapolis, was developed by Uptown Gassen. Its underground parking, for residents and their guests, is home to a number of the Eco Parking Lights marquee product, the FlexTech LED parking garage lighting fixture.

Faced with a decision between using traditional metal-halide lighting or even T8 or T5 linear fluorescent fixtures, the owner was seeking a more upscale product on par with the residential development he was delivering to his clients. He requested a unique lighting fixture housing that would stand the test of time – an LED product that would be efficient, long-lasting, yet easy on the eyes!

After the owner got recommendations from various consultants, Eco Lighting was asked to provide pricing and a photometric study using its LED solution. Exceptional performance at a cost point that would save the owner significant money over the 10-year study period was confirmed. So the decision was made to use the FlexTech parking garage lighting fixture, a shielded, non-glare LED solution.

Despite a tight budget, saving money and buying metal-halide fixtures instead of the LED fixtures made no economic sense with the relatively small upcharge that was offered. Aided by a small rebate from Xcel Energy for its decision to pay ahead for future energy and maintenance savings, the decision was quite simple.

Asked about the installation, Regional Manager Damon Noga of Denison Parking, the parking operator, stated: “They are all installed, look great, and we are extremely happy. ...”

The Manor Complex Garage in Pittsburgh is a quintessential example of the city’s ruggedness. This Downtown parking structure, which sits across from the Allegheny County Jail, represents the harsh and “tough guy” image that this city has earned while churning out the steel infrastructure of our nation’s skyscrapers.

 Undergoing a renaissance of its own, Pittsburgh has cleaned up its image and now boasts an impeccable skyline.

In an attempt to clean up its Manor garage image as well, Alco Parking, working with GMI Electric, contacted Eco Parking Lights for a lighting solution to replace old, weathered 150-watt high-pressure-sodium fixtures. The yellow lighting, which reflected the fiery furnaces of Pittsburgh’s past, also emitted a loud buzzing sound that spoke volumes about the need for something to be done, and was the sound of money being poured down the drain.

Alco and GMI selected the Eco FlexTech induction solution for the Manor Complex Garage. With an actual train running through the structure and its proximity to high-volume highways, all involved wanted to make sure that these light fixtures would stay illuminated, no matter what.

With the “take a licking and keep on ticking” reputation of induction lighting, which has been proven even on the elevated Loop District section of the “L,” Chicago’s rapid transit system, the induction lighting solution was an easy decision.

Today, the Manor Complex Garage has been completely redone with 100-watt induction fixtures, yielding great energy and maintenance savings as well as a feeling of safety and security, city transit officials said.



Jeff Pinyot, President of Eco Parking Lights, can be reached at jspinyot@ecoparkinglighs.com.


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