2003-09-25_PWETC_AgendaPacket - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

National Lighting Bureau . [iifiiii HOME IBOUlIIIB NIB NEWS SPONSORS omeE 1I0HrlNO INDUSJRIIU WlREHOUSIIIO 1I0HIIII0 REJ'IIIllOHTlNO mUClllOIIIU IIISJIIUTIOlIIl 1I0HIIII0 SlFEJ'Y/SEC URIJY 1I0HrlNO DIIRDS PROGRAM PUBlICIIIOIIS lIGHIING 1I11KS Page 1 of 3 HIGH-BENEFIT LIGHTING- PUBUCATlONS Lighting for Safety and Savings School crime is often encouraged by the way campuses are managed or maintained. Poor lighting often means poor security. The Clark School in Swampscott, Mass., was experiencing a security nightmare. Kids were climbing onto the roof and removing shingles. Leaks developed that required costly repairs. In other campus areas, kids lit fires. Windows near the boiler room door were constantly being used for target practice. Most of the problems were occurring at night, when darkness was an ally of the young vandals. Surveillance indicated that, although the school had security lighting installed, it was woefully inadequate. A facility manager directed that the existing security lighting be replaced. Although the new system provided significantly more and better directed light than the old one, it consumed far less energy. The end result? Security lighting operating and maintenance costs were reduced and, more important, the vandalism was ended. It's not unusual for schools to upgrade their lighting systems. For the most part, however, the upgrades are performed principally to lower the cost of energy consumption. While the amount of money spent on lighting is an important issue, the quality of lighting is a far more important matter. Quality determines how much lighting really costs-or saves. Consider the Clark School case. Suppose, for the sake of discussion, that the existing system already was efficient, and that the lighting needed would have increased the amount spent on operation and maintenance. Under these circumstances, would the lighting have been upgraded? In many cases, it would not have been. Generally speaking, the objective of facility managers is to lower costs, not increase them. What many school officials budget managers do not understand is that lighting should not be looked at as a cost in and of itself. Lighting is not an end; it is a means to an end. In the final analysis, better lighting very often saves far more than it costs. Quick return of investment Consider the case of Central Michigan University and its concern about campus crime. The facility manager determined that the existing mercury vapor lamps used for walkways should be replaced by more efficient high-pressure sodium lamps. Two choices were available: 150 watt lamps, which would have provided more light than before while reducing energy consumption by almost one-third, or 250 watt lamps, which would have no appreciable impact on energy consumption but would greatly enhance the lighting conditions on campus. The 250 watt lamps were chosen-not despite bottom line issues, but because of them. The new lighting provided such an improvement that students feit far more secure. The lighting allowed students to spot potential trouble before it confronted them, so they could take appropriate avoidance measures. The new lighting also permitted security patrols to better view potential problem areas, allowing them to react more quickly. htto:/ /www nib ora/oubli("ntinns/art snfp.tv html 7/1f./?OO'?