Furniture company Rooms To Go has converted 115 of its retail stores to LED lighting, reducing energy use an average of 35-45 percent in each store.
The switch to energy efficient 16-18 W LED track lamps from the 60 W halogen track lamps previously in use by the retailer started in 2010. Rooms To Go expects a project investment payback in less than 12 months.
Rooms To Go has also further reduced energy consumption by selecting a wider optical beam-spread for the LED lamps, using a 25-degree angle instead of the 12-degree angle employed for the halogen lamps. This change has allowed the retailer to decrease the number of lamps per store by as much as 10 percent, resulting in further energy savings. And since the LED lamps produce less heat, a decrease in air-conditioning demand has contributed to increased energy efficiency as well.
Rooms To Go worked with Real Win Win, an energy management company, to take advantage of more than 16 utility rebate incentive programs to help cover the initial cost of switching to LED lighting. Using Energy Star Certified LED lamps manufactured by Philips and MSI helped in the rebate application process, the company says.
More than 45 Rooms To Go store locations were awarded rebate program incentives for deploying energy efficient LED lighting. Participating utility partners include: Progress Energy, city of Austin, Duke Energy, Electric Power Board of Chattanooga – TVA, Middle Tennessee Electric Corp – TVA, Nashville Electric Service – TVA, Knoxville Utilities – TVA, Gulf Power, Georgia Power, CenterPoint Energy, AEP Texas, Lakeland Electric & Water, Pineville Electric, South Carolina Electric & Gas, and Gainesville Regional Utilities, CPS Energy.
According to Yolanda Slade, project manager for the CenterPoint Energy Commercial Standard Offer Program, which provided Rooms To Go with its single largest utility rebate, the conversion to LED lighting will also benefit utility companies. Lower energy consumption at the site means less stress on the electricity grid, which helps utility avoid building new power plants.
In late February, Walmart selected energy-efficient LED lighting by Cree to illuminate its Neighborhood Market store in Mt. Pleasant, Wis. Walmart estimates the retrofit will save the company about 30 percent in energy costs compared to interior fluorescent lighting.