Group items tagged

As evidence mounts that excessive use of light is harming wildlife and adversely affecting human health, new initiatives in France and elsewhere are seeking to turn down the lights that flood an ever-growing part of the planet

mounts that excessive use of light is harming wildlife and adversely affecting human health, new initiatives in France and elsewhere are seeking to turn down the lights that flood an ever-growing part of the planet.

Philips provided the government of Madrid, Spain with 225,000 LEDs and other energy efficient lights to help the city upgrade 100% of its existing street lighting. The project is the world's largest street lighting retrofit and will reportedly result in energy savings of 44%.

By adding thoughtfully planned and well-timed daylighting fixtures, big-box stores see significant energy savings.

Nevada utility NV Energy helped a Las Vegas school district save $2.25 million and avoid 21.4 million KW-h of electricity consumption per year by installing energy-efficient lighting at 152 schools. The project also enabled the school district to earn $790,000 in utility rebates during the 2012 fiscal year

As more utilities make reliability and resiliency their twin mantras, none has had more success than Florida Power & Light

Finelite, a manufacturer of high-efficiency lighting systems, cut its waste production by 84 percent between 2005 and 2012 through using reusable packaging, Sustainable Plant reports. Through such innovations as replacing bubble wrap used to protect products with crinkled paper and so-called lean packaging, the company saved about $27,000 a year in garbage disposal costs, the article says.

Switching to LED fixtures will reduce energy use by more than 5 percent per store in the U.S. alone and will save an expected 340,000 kWh per store. That equals $34,000 in savings per year in each store - or removing 327,360 metric tons of carbon emissions from the atmosphere. The LED fixtures are expected to save a total of 620 million kWh over the next 10 years.

Ford Motor Company has begun installing 25,000 new LED fixtures to replace traditional high-intensity discharge and fluorescent lights, at its manufacturing facilities across the globe. The new fixtures, valued at over $25 million, are expected to reduce Ford's energy use at manufacturing facilities by 56 million kilowatt-hours annually - enough to power more than 6,000 average-sized homes per year.

Cutting costs is paramount for the offshore wind industry - as well as for the climate. The cheaper it becomes, the more green offshore wind capacity will see the light of day. A record-low price on the Dutch wind farm Borssele 1+2 marks a breakthrough for offshore wind costs....

Four mechanical engineering students from Nashik have invented a device which is an indicator for the vehicle driver about excessive pollutant levels, while driving. When the engine of the vehicle starts, the sensor fitted in the silencer will sense the exhaust particles and check the limit value. If it exceeds the prescribed limit then a red light will blink as the first indicator, for two hours. Even after the first warning, if there is no change in the limit then there are two more indicators that will blink within a gap of two hours after which the engine will automatically turn off. According to the four inventors, the device will help in tackling the pollution issue, especially in densely-populated and polluted areas.

People working in green buildings think better in the office and sleep better when they get home, a new study has revealed. The research indicates that better ventilation, lighting and heat control improves workers' performance and could boost their productivity by thousands of dollars a year. It also suggests that more subjective aspects, such as beautiful design, may make workers happier and more productive.

Most recently, social responsibility has become an issue as reports of labor abuses and unethical manufacturing practices have come to light. With growing consumer awareness of all of these issues, finding a path to sustainability is becoming increasingly important.

A shopping center in Thousand Oaks, Calif., has been named the first BREEAM USA In-Use certified building in the country, a designation for sustainability efforts at pre-existing nonresidential structures. The Oaks Shopping Center features 6,000 solar panels, LED lighting, a mixed-materials recycling campaign and more to help minimize the building's environmental impact.

Hotel chains and casinos are adding low-energy lighting to guest rooms, putting solar panels on roofs and using hotel limousines powered by compressed natural gas, but these sustainable practices could be bolstered by the use of third-party standards that measure hotels against one another, writes Marc Gunther. "[I]ndustry executives cite three reasons why they have begun to take action on the sustainability front: to save money, attract and motivate their employees, and respond to demand from business and leisure travelers," Gunther writes

IKEA is launching a campaign aimed at persuading its customers to stock up on energy-efficient light bulbs while highlighting the company's commitment to stop selling nonefficient bulbs by 2016. "This is a sustainability campaign but also a brand campaign. We need to explain what we stand for and celebrate that," says Peter Wright, IKEA's UK and Ireland marketing manager

Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS), an aerospace production technology, has the potential to build light, sustainable parts and reduce a company's carbon footprint, according to a study by EOS and Airbus Group Innovations, previously EADS Innovation Works.

Disney researchers in Pittsburgh have discovered a way to store energy in paper-like materials that can later be harvested via rubbing, sliding or tapping. The resulting energy can then be used to turn on LED lights, activate an e-ink display, or turn on other low-power devices.

When Mexico City's new international airport is finished in four years, it will be one of the largest in the world, spanning over half a million square meters. It will also be the most sustainable airport ever built. Instead of a group of average warehouse-like terminals, the airport will use a single giant structure wrapped in a unique skin that lets in natural light and air, collects rainwater, and provides incredible views of planes circling the sky.

Microgrids and cogeneration kept the lights on for NYU and a housing development while Sandy caused widespread outages

California's new environmental rules, which will mean much tougher efficiency standards for buildings and greater use of renewable energy, are good news for the state's businesses, some experts say. Many large new-energy and infrastructure projects will be needed to meet the mandates, and that means money and jobs. "The most important thing the businesses need is a market signal," said Steve Chadima, director of California initiatives for Advanced Energy Economy