Energy News
Timely information about the energy market by Bill Attardi.
Summit recognizes the importance of energy management and the impact it can have on your business. In response, we have partnered with Bill Attardi, a nationally recognized expert in energy management, to provide you with timely information about the energy market. Bill is widely respected in the field of energy management. An executive in the lighting business for 40+ years, he has held positions with Westinghouse, Philips and USI Lighting.
National Energy News
Highlights of What DOE’s SSL Program Has Planned for 2012
Posted February 21, 2012- The ninth annual SSL R&D Workshop, which will be held in Atlanta from January 31 to February 2.
- January publication of two key DOE reports: Energy Savings Potential of Solid-State Lighting in General Illumination Applications estimates the national energy savings that could be realized through the market penetration of energy-efficient solid-state lighting if the technology achieves price and performance objectives; The 2010 U.S. Lighting Market Characterization estimates the number of lamps installed in the U.S. and their related energy consumption in 2010.
- DOE’s Municipal Solid-State Street Lighting Consortium with the release of a new tool called the Lighting Retrofit Cost Model
- A guidance document to help users customize the recently published Model Specification for LED Roadway Luminaires
- DOE will publish the latest Product Snapshot report from the LED Lighting Facts® program
- DOE’s CALiPER program will continue its ongoing testing and reporting, and plans to release two special reports in 2012
- The Next Generation Luminaires design competition is expanding in 2012
DOE Releases Report on SSL Energy Savings Potential
Posted February 20, 2012The U.S. DOE has published a report forecasting the energy savings potential of LED white-light sources compared with conventional white-light sources. Energy Savings Potential of Solid-State Lighting in General Illumination Applications compares the annual lighting energy consumption in the U.S. with and without the further market penetration of LED lighting. Among the highlights:
- LED lighting is expected to represent 36 percent of lumen-hour sales on the general illumination market by 2020, and 74 percent by 2030.
- By 2030, the annual site energy savings from market penetration of LEDs will be approximately 300 terawatt-hours, or the equivalent annual electrical output of about 50 1,000-megawatt power plants. At today’s energy prices, that equates to approximately $30 billion in savings in 2030 alone.
- Assuming the same mix of power stations, these savings would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 210 million metric tons of carbon in 2030. The total energy consumption for lighting would decrease by roughly 46 percent relative to a scenario with no additional LEDs on the market – enough electricity to completely power nearly 24 million homes.
To download a PDF of the report, go to www.ssl.energy.gov/tech_reports.html
DOE Report Characterizes Lighting Market
Posted February 19, 2012The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has released a report detailing the characteristics of the U.S. lighting market by technology and sector. The 2010 U.S. Lighting Market Characterization provides comprehensive and detailed estimates of the national inventory of installed lamps as well as their associated energy use and lumen production. It focuses on four sectors: residential buildings, commercial buildings, industrial buildings, and outdoor. The new report is an update to a similar DOE report that modeled the 2001 U.S. lighting market inventory. During the intervening decade, two overarching trends emerged:
- Push toward higher-efficacy lighting. The average system efficacy of installed lighting increased from 45 lumens per watt in 2001 to 58 lumens per watt in 2010, due mainly to a move from incandescent to compact fluorescent lamps in the residential sector, and from T12 to T8 and T5 fluorescent lamps in the commercial and industrial sectors.
- Increased demand for light. The total number of lamps installed in U.S. stationary applications grew from just under 7 billion in 2001 to more than 8 billion in 2010, with most of this growth occurring in the residential sector.
- To download a PDF of the full report, go to www.ssl.energy.gov/tech_reports.html
Energy Independence by Jim Hartung
Posted February 18, 2012The US consumed approximately 7 billion barrels of liquid fuels in 2010. Of this, over 4 billion barrels were produced in the US or imported from Canada. The remainder (less than 3 billion barrels) was imported from other countries. Oil imports from countries other than Canada could be reduced to near-zero in the next 25 years. This can be achieved as follows: 1) increase US oil production by 1 billion barrels per year, 2) increase oil imports from Canada by 1 billion barrels per year, and 3) decrease US oil consumption by 1 billion barrels per year through improved efficiency and use of alternative fuels. This will make the US and Canada essentially energy-independent — and provide a solid foundation for sustainable economic growth for many decades, while alternative energy resources and technologies are developed.
Federal Buildings: Leading in Energy Efficiency
Posted February 17, 2012The White House recently pledged $2 billion for energy efficiency improvements in federal buildings, underscoring efforts already underway to save energy in several government facilities. The government is the largest user of electricity and fuel in the United States, and buildings account for about 30% of the government’s energy use. To cut down on energy use – as well as save taxpayer money and help the environment – nearly all government agencies are adopting energy efficiency measures.
http://ase.org/efficiencynews/federal-buildings-leading-energy-efficiency
State Energy News
Ameren Missouri Proposes $145 Million Efficiency Plan
Posted February 21, 2012The program proposed on Friday would more than double what Ameren Missouri was spending on energy efficiency before the cuts and Ameren wants ratepayers to finance them. From 2013 through the end of 2015, Ameren would collect the cost of implementing the plan through a surcharge on customer bills that would equal a rate increase of a little more than 3 percent.
1/21 St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Kentucky Adopts 2011 NEC
Posted February 20, 2012According to a recent Code Alert issued on December 16 by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), the state of Kentucky approved adoption of the 2011 NEC without amendment. This version of the Code will become mandatory for all buildings in the state on February 1, 2012.
1/05 ECM Codewatch
Ohio State Loans to Aid Energy Savings
Posted February 19, 2012To help finance the projects needed to reduce energy consumption and costs, manufacturers, small businesses, nonprofit groups and government agencies have access to a new source of low-interest loans. The Ohio Department of Development has started the Energy Loan Fund that can lend money for projects such as installation of insulation, new lighting, more-efficient heating and cooling systems, renewable-energy projects and improved production processes that could cut energy consumption. The program will use more than $7 million in state funding from the Advanced Energy Fund that came from a utility-bill fee that expired last year. The state also will tap federal funds from the State Energy Program.
1/07 Columbus Dispatch
First Energy Paid Millions in Lighting Rebate Incentives to Cleveland and Akron Area Businesses
Posted February 18, 2012ROI Energy reports their lighting retrofit installations are up over 300% due to Illuminating Company and Ohio Edison lighting rebate incentives. First Energy provided millions of dollars directly to businesses who agreed to have lighting retrofit projects performed in 2011, in their effort to reduce energy use. ROI, Inc. Energy Solutions of Hudson, Ohio www.ROI-Energy.com specializes in providing turnkey lighting retrofit projects for Ohio area factories, warehouses and distribution centers. Their specialty is retrofitting industrial, 400 watt metal halide high bay lighting to energy efficient T-5 and T-8 high bay fixtures.
1/10 PRWeb.com
Energy Efficiency Global Forum 2012, March 27-29 in Orlando, Florida
Posted February 17, 2012This will be the fifth EE Global, and the first to be held in Orlando, Florida. The international forum has been held twice in Washington, D.C., and also in Paris, France and Brussels, Belgium. Over 70% of attendeees at EE Global identify as Director-level or above, making it the most concentrated gathering of influential energy efficiency professionals worldwide. The Peabody Resort, one of Orlando’s most luxurious hotels, is the location of this year’s event, and just happens to be minutes away from famed amusement parks.
http://eeglobalforum.org/registration.html
Monthly Special Feature
ZigBee Light Link: LED Lighting Control Standardized
Posted February 15, 2012San Ramon, Calif. – Jan. 4, 2012 – The ZigBee® Alliance, a global ecosystem of companies creating wireless solutions for use in energy management, commercial and consumer applications, today announced it is developing a new open standard designed for LED lighting control – ZigBee Light LinkTM. This forthcoming standard will help manufacturers develop a variety of lighting and control products, giving resellers and consumers a wide selection of interoperable wirelessly controlled lighting products for the home.
The Alliance is creating a standard that will be as easy to use as a common dimmer switch. Light bulbs, LED fixtures, sensors, timers, remotes and switches built using ZigBee Light Link will not require special devices to coordinate in a home’s network. Consumers will be able to easily install and add extra devices to their home lighting network. Like all devices in the ZigBee portfolio, ZigBee Light Link devices can be controlled over the Internet through connected computers, tablets and smart phones. Development of this standard is being steered by industry-leading lighting experts such as GE, Greenwave Reality, OSRAM Sylvania and Philips.
“ZigBee Light Link will be the industry-wide solution for the home market,” said Jos Bruins, ZigBee Light Link working group chair from Philips. “ZigBee Light Link is being vigorously tested and will provide the simplicity consumers need and the helpful features they’ve been hoping the industry would develop.”
Products built using ZigBee Light Link can earn the ZigBee Certified product seal. When completed, this open standard will be one of the industry’s first standardized wireless networking solution for interoperable lighting applications between different manufacturers.
“Having so many lighting industry heavyweights working together to leverage the benefits of ZigBee for ZigBee Light Link will help consumers realize the convenience of standards-based wireless lighting control,” said Bob Heile, chairman of the ZigBee Alliance. “ZigBee Light Link will give consumers a simple way to control lighting from anywhere in their home, or even if they’re at work or on vacation.”
Since ZigBee Light Link will be an interoperable ZigBee standard, lighting products using this standard will work together and coexist with other ZigBee standards already in consumers’ homes. To see more information about the benefits and features of ZigBee Light Link and download, visit: www.ZigBee.org/LightLink
ZigBee: Control your world
ZigBee offers green and global wireless standards connecting the widest range of devices to work together intelligently and help you control your world. The ZigBee Alliance is an open, non- profit association of approximately 400 members driving development of innovative, reliable and easy-to-use ZigBee standards. The Alliance promotes worldwide adoption of ZigBee as the leading wirelessly networked, sensing and control standard for use in consumer, commercial and industrial areas. For more information, visit: www.ZigBee.org