US-based supermarket chain Food City expects to save a little over US$337,000 in annual lighting and maintenance expenses, if results of the installation of new LED lighting products from GE go according to their estimates.
Lighting giant GE recently installed its RV40 LED lights in coolers spread out across more than 80 of the chain’s stores in Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia. The company predicts that Food City will save at least US$300,000 each year from energy bills, provided the lights are switched on 18 hours a day and the electricity rate is 0.11 per kWh.
GE adds that Food City decided to go with an upgrade of its lights after determining that stores could reap major savings in lighting and refrigeration costs from LEDs, which would spill over to a reduction in overhead expenses and maintenance calls. It’s worth noting that before the installation of LED lights, Food City spent around US$37,000 annually on sending contractors to its stores for service calls.
Food City’s choice of GE’s LED lighting system was partially due to visual appeal of the lights. The Immersion RV40 system uses advanced optics, which result in reduced glare and better luminosity and colours for food items.
GE’s been busy with lighting retrofit projects. Aultman Hospital, a healthcare centre in Canton, Ohio, recently announced that it is saving more than US$13,000 in annual energy costs after the refit from GE. Prior to the installation of LED lights, Aultman’s annual costs for illuminating its parking lot with high-pressure sodium light cost US$1,500 a month, which also includes the cost of service calls. After the LED retrofit, the hospital now only pays US$400 for the same area.
