Denver International Airport (DIA) is retrofitting more than 5,400 lights located in the airport’s east and west parking garages with LEDs.
The majority of the lights – high-pressure sodium bulbs that are rated for 188 watts per fixture – are being replaced with 51-watt LEDs.
Combined with other lighting systems in the overall retrofit package, DIA expects a net energy savings of about 45 percent, resulting in energy cost savings of about $327,000 per year. Over the system’s estimated lifespan of 20 years, the airport expects to save more than $6.5 million in electricity costs. The new fixtures will also substantially reduce maintenance requirements due to the longer life of LED lights.
Construction on the lighting project will begin this month and should take about one year to complete at a cost of $2.7 million. The project also qualifies for Xcel Energy’s Lighting Efficiency rebate program. The airport anticipates that it will qualify for a rebate of about $630,000, which will reduce the project cost to less than $2.1 million.
The LED light fixtures will be assembled locally by Denver-based Cooper Lighting.
The project is part of a wider effort to upgrade lights throughout DIA, including lights on taxiways and pavement fixtures on the airfield. Of the nearly 24,000 airfield lights, about 4,000 have been upgraded to LED fixtures over the last four years by DIA’s Airport Infrastructure Management group. This summer, all the lights used on runway 8/26 will be upgraded to LEDs. Additional lights will be upgraded as funding becomes available.
Photo: DIA via Shutterstock