The replacement of old corporate lighting with modern, cost-effective LED can pay for itself through savings
Lighting in many manufacturing and logistics plants in Slovakia breaches the requirements for lighting laid down by technical standards. Outdated lights, whose maintenance is overcomplicated or neglected, cause a lot of light to be wasted and lead to excessive energy costs. At the same time, inadequate lighting leads to bad working conditions, increasing the risk of accidents and fines. All these problems can be solved by a new intelligent lighting system based on LED technology.
LED technology is an ideal solution for replacing outdated corporate lighting. Its benefits will be most appreciated by firms that need intensive but economical lighting. The reasons are clear – affordable prices, low energy consumption and long useful life.
At first sight the new technology appears to be more expensive than the old, but real experience indicates that the investment can pay for itself through energy savings. This is because LED lights last much longer than the time it takes to achieve a return of costs. As experts from Slovenské elektrárne a.s. explain, in sectors where lighting makes up a significant part of electricity use, such as logistics, LED lighting reduces energy demands and the regular charges for reserved capacity.
LED technology is extremely efficient and flexible. Its capacity for instant-on and full dimming enable it to work well with movement and brightness sensors. For example, a movement sensor can be used to turn a light on only when it is really necessary. It allows maximum use to be made of daylight, reducing consumption and extending the useful life of the system.
LEDs also respond well to short-term power cuts. Lamps currently in use have to cool down before they can be restarted at full output, which can take up to 10 minutes.
How to do it? A specialised firm can arrange everything
Firms have a number of ways to go about modernising their lighting. They can carry out the whole project themselves. In this case they will not only have to find the initial investment, but also manage all aspects of the preparation and implementation of the project. Other costs to be taken into account are operation, maintenance and administration. These concerns, as well as the initial investment, are reduced if the project is entrusted to a company providing Energy Performance Contracting (EPC). Such firms take on not only the implementation but also the responsibility for operation and maintenance. “The basic principle of EPC is that the project is paid for from documented and achieved savings in energy costs,” says retail manager at Slovenské elektrárne, Andrea Pancotti. The client pays all costs connected with the investment and costs for the services of the specialised firm out of the resulting savings. After the investment costs are paid off, clients take over the system themselves with reduced operational costs.
