GE News Release:

Grocer Finds GE's New LED Fixture IS the Answer for Lighting That Lasts

May 29, 2014

  inShare0 

 

EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio (May 29, 2014)---Staying on the cutting edge of technology is one way Heinen's Grocery Store creates an experience that keeps shoppers coming back, and lighting is essential to this equation---minus the time and cost of replacing lamps. When the Northeast Ohio grocer went looking for lighting that could last, it found an ally in GE---and an answer in LED---that together keep the ladders and lifts tucked away.

"We were always relamping," said Bill Wells, director of store planning, regarding some Heinen's Grocery Store locations. "In the aisles we used a pendant-mounted HID fixture that was fine for many years. The thing was, half the lamps died before their rated life, while others lived well beyond it. We don't fight that anymore.

"LED got rid of lamps---now we have assets."Heinen's Grocery Store first developed plans to refashion many of its 19 neighborhood locations nearly five years ago. As efforts progressed, so did the grocer's interest in the latest energy-efficient innovations for commercial buildings, particularly LED lighting.

"When LED came on the scene, it allowed us to deal with the issues of specialty lighting," Wells said. "It gave us the color we wanted, and our replacement lamp orders went way down. It's a hassle to drag a lift on the floor and wheel it around just to change lights. We were burning too many resources on burnt bulbs."

In four stores, Wells first opted for a T5 solution, making Heinen's Grocery Store an early adopter of thehighly efficient fluorescent technology. In the center ceiling, overtop of main aisles, 350-watt HID fixtures were converted to single lamp high output (HO) T5 arrangements.

"Our ceilings are pretty high, around 16 to 18 feet. With HID you have to generate a lot of light at the source to get it to the floor. And there's glare---almost a haze," said Wells. "We brought the new T5 fixtures down several feet, which helped to hit the bottom shelves, and it gave us a good, even light on all the product surfaces. Overall it was much better than HID.

"But we were still hoping for an LED solution."At last, at Heinen's Grocery Store in Twinsburg, Wells' patience was rewarded with an LED fixture that promised to leave replacement lamps in the past. Leff Electric, a long-trusted electrical supply distributor, presented him with GE's new Lumination™ IS Series LED Luminaire, a product of GE ecomagination℠.

"GE jumped ahead with this suspended linear fixture---my first reaction was 'wow!'" Wells said. "It's cool and cutting edge. In fact, we were about to go with another option until Leff said to us, 'Hold on, GE has something we really think will work for you.'"

Unlike traditional fluorescent lamps, GE's Lumination IS Series Luminaires provide an indirect light source for a more sophisticated appearance. The suspended LED fixtures are highly energy efficient at 105-115 lumens per watt (LPW) and offer long 65,000-hour life to slash relamping costs. Both 1'x4' and 1'x8' models snap together to create long continuous runs.

"The price was right, the product fit our needs, and we knew GE would stand behind its commitment, so we decided to go with the Lumination LED fixture," said Wells. "GE also presented different lighting designs and helped determine the final layout. And still, you just don't know what you're getting into until you install it, so having Leff there to see that everything went smoothly was a benefit.

"The first time I looked at the aisles versus those that didn't have the light---it was a double wow!"Wells notes that while he has designed buildings and worked with lighting professionals for 30 years, some things, like great service, never change.

"Someone to do the lighting design, and who can give me accurate light levels, then turn around and sell me those products and stand behind them---that's what I want."

Moving ahead, Heinen's Grocery Store will evaluate additional LED lighting options from GE includingAlbeo™ high bay fixtures to add "punch" in its produce departments. Already, GE's Evolve™ LED Area Lights have been installed in one store parking lot and soon will be added to a warehouse location as well.

As for Wells, he believes Heinen's Grocery Store has found its answer.

"If I can cut my electric cost and my maintenance cost, who wouldn't do that? It just makes good business sense.

"If it's not an LED solution, we're not interested."To learn more about supermarket lighting that lasts, visit www.gelighting.com/grocery. To learn more about GE's commitment to innovative solutions to today's environmental challenges, visitwww.ecomagination.com.

About Heinen's Grocery StoreJoe Heinen opened his first Heinen's supermarket in 1929 as one of the best meat markets in Cleveland. Nineteen neighborhood stores later, and now in the Chicago suburbs, Heinen's is a family-owned and operated chain of grocery stores offering an entire line of fine foods. Heinen's employs over 3,000 associates. Today, Joe Heinen's twin grandsons, Jeff and Tom Heinen, carry on the family legacy of unrivalled quality food and world-class customer service. Visit www.heinens.com to learn more.

About GE Lighting
GE Lighting invents with the vigor of its founder Thomas Edison to develop energy-efficient solutions that change the way people light their world in commercial, industrial, municipal and residential settings. The business employs about 13,000 people in more than 100 countries, and sells products under the reveal® and Energy Smart® consumer brands, and Evolve™, GTx™, Immersion™, Infusion™, Lumination™, Albeo™ and Tetra® commercial brands, all trademarks of GE. GE works on things that matter to build a world that works better. For more information, visit www.gelighting.com.

Tags

• Business Unit: Appliances and Lighting

NREL: News Feature - Climate Change Shifts Focus for Energy System

The U.S. National Climate Assessment report states bluntly that streets in coastal cities are flooding more readily, that hotter and drier weather in the West means earlier starts to wildfire seasons, and that every region of the nation already is seeing real effects of climate change.



NREL: News Feature - Climate Change Shifts Focus for Energy System

Duke Energy proposes Indiana energy efficiency programs - Duke Energy

PLAINFIELD, IND. -

Duke Energy is asking state utility regulators to approve a comprehensive portfolio of energy efficiency programs for its customers.

Current energy efficiency programs offered by Energizing Indiana will continue through Dec. 31, 2014.

Duke Energy proposes Indiana energy efficiency programs - Duke Energy

Boeing Expands Customers Fuel-Efficiency Capabilities by Acquiring ETS Aviation - May 23, 2014

SEATTLE, May 23, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Boeing (NYSE: BA) today announced an agreement to acquire ETS Aviation, a provider of fuel-efficiency management and analytics software. ETS Aviation solutions lead the market, providing more than 120 airlines and corporate flight departments the tools necessary to accurately monitor fuel consumption, identify fuel savings opportunities, and track and report carbon emissions. 

ETS Aviation's fuel efficiency solutions support more than 600 commercial aircraft across nearly 900,000 flights annually. 

Boeing Expands Customers Fuel-Efficiency Capabilities by Acquiring ETS Aviation - May 23, 2014

Cut your cooling costs by 30% or more - May. 23, 2014

Cut your cooling costs by 30% or more - May. 23, 2014

GE News Release:

5 Consumer Trends Driving GE LED Lighting Design, Consumer Adoption

May 22, 2014

  inShare0 

 

EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio (May 22, 2014)---GE Lighting introduces its most incandescent-like consumer LED portfolio yet, including more than 40 new LED products and fixtures, to meet consumer demand to adequately fill every socket in their homes with energy-efficient LED lighting.

"We know the light consumers love, and we've reinvented and perfected the LED to emulate incandescent light," says John Strainic, General Manager, Consumer Lighting for GE in North America. "We know that when consumers think about energy-efficient lighting, many are deterred by the memory of early CFL bulbs produced by some manufacturers, and we want them to know that with GE LED lighting -- there are no tradeoffs."

When the first CFL bulbs came to market nearly 30 years ago, consumer adoption was slowed by the fact that many of these products didn't meet consumer expectations of light preference and home application needs. GE Lighting has applied these learnings to its LED product portfolio with design, light quality and performance capabilities as the primary considerations. GE LED bulbs provide instant brightness, energy-efficiency, using 80 percent less energy than old incandescent bulbs, and long life, lasting fifteen times longer---all with the same quality of light consumers love from GE's original incandescent.

To shed more light on the top consumer trends that shape GE's LED expansion and why the right time to consider LED lighting is now, we turn to Tom Boyle, GE Lighting's Chief Innovation Manager, and GE Lighting's retail partners.

1. As LED prices dramatically decrease, consumer adoption reaches tipping point

LED sales will continue to accelerate this year as prices continue to come down. For A-line shape LED bulbs commonly used in table lamps, these LED bulbs will become the most popular technology in this application by 2016, according to projections by IMS Research, an electronics research firm. Consumers can find GE Lighting's full breadth of LED products at major retailers, like Walmart.

"Together with GE, we are working to make an energy-efficient lifestyle affordable and accessible to all," says John Prince, Senior Buyer Hardware Consumables at Walmart. "We work with GE Lighting and more than 85 utilities to make LED light bulbs more affordable, helping our customers save money and light their homes more efficiently."

2. Meeting consumers' desire to integrate more lighting control, wirelessly

GE Lighting and lighting control manufacturer, Lutron Electronics, developed GE 'telligent wireless dimming LED embedded with Lutron's Clear Connect™ wireless technology. This indoor floodlight LED product is great for those the do-it-yourselfer who doesn't want to rewire a space---the bulb screws into the socket the same as a standard bulb. The dimming capability is built into the bulb itself and the remote controls up to 10 light bulbs, providing instant dimming. This product is available at select Sam's Club stores.

"Our members want greater control and flexibility to create a customized lighting experience based on their unique needs," says Clif Cooper, Senior Buyer at Sam's Club. "Lighting homes and small businesses shouldn't be a complicated task, and we're working with GE to provide our members with the right energy-efficient lighting options, like GE 'telligent -- giving simple, convenient dimming capabilities for sockets that are not connected to dimmer switches."

3. Consumers' preference for quality of LED light matters
Ultimately, a consumer will be able to tune, or adjust, LED bulbs to emit a 'cooler' white light in the kitchen or a 'warmer' soft white light in the living room, based on preference, the task at hand, functionality or time of day. Until this capability becomes more affordable for mainstream adoption, GE will continue to develop soft white, daylight and reveal LED options.

"Stop & Shop and Giant customers want to implement environmentally sensitive practices in their homes for a good value, such as energy-efficient LED lighting, but that shouldn't mean compromising on quality," says Jim Wonderly, Vice President of General Merchandise at Ahold USA, parent company of Stop & Shop, GIANT/MARTIN'S and Giant Foods. "We teamed up with GE Lighting to give customers the highest quality LED bulbs from a brand they trust with optimal energy savings, making an energy-efficient lifestyle convenient and attainable."

4. Consumers want practical LED options for every application
Consumers need LED bulbs to work with their existing home lighting applications---from table lamps to recessed lighting. Up until now, consumers didn't have realistic LED options for enclosed fixtures and linear work lights. With its latest LED portfolio, GE Lighting is offering LED options for ceiling flush-mount fixtures, or enclosed fixtures, and LED work lights with hardwire connections, making an all-LED lit home possible. GE Lighting has proven success in the commercial space with these types of fixtures and is now offering residential LED options.

"When customers enter our lighting aisle, we know their primary concern is to find the right light bulb for a specific functional need," says Jamie Akemann, Vice President - Hardlines at Meijer. "Our customers are not necessarily concerned with the science behind lighting -- they simply want to know which energy-efficient LED light bulb fits a particular socket and will give them that cozy feeling in their living room. Working with GE, we're creating an in-aisle experience that provides the information our customers need while demonstrating how lighting can help create an overall mood in a room."

5. To further propel consumer adoption, recognizable lighting shapes are vital
Familiarity of light bulb design and shape is still vitally important to avoid confusion and to spur continued LED adoption. While LED lighting gives us exciting new capabilities to light our homes in new ways without using conventional lighting fixtures, this transition will take time. With this in mind, GE Lighting continues to develop LED bulbs in A-line and other incandescent shapes.

Consumers can find our newly designed A-line ENERGY STAR®-qualified LED products at major retailers, like Walmart and Sam's Club. Our third generation 40- and 60-watt will be available in May, and our second generation 75- and 100-watt replacement LEDs will be available this summer.

"While no other technology has enabled us to explore these exciting, new opportunities with lighting, we know we need to guide consumers through this fundamental lifestyle shift from the way they've lit their homes for more than 100 years," says Strainic. "We'll continue to put consumer needs and preferences first as we develop our LED lighting products."

To calculate a home's energy-saving potential by switching to LED lighting, GE Lighting has developed a new tool, an LED energy-saving calculator. This tool translates energy savings into relatable terms for consumers, making the switch a no-brainer.

To learn more about these and other innovative consumer LED products, visit GE Lighting's website.

About GE LightingGE Lighting invents with the vigor of its founder Thomas Edison to develop energy-efficient solutions that change the way people light their world in commercial, industrial, municipal and residential settings. The business employs about 13,000 people in more than 100 countries, and sells products under the reveal®and energy smart® consumer brands, and Evolve™, GTx™, Immersion™, Infusion™, Lumination™, Albeo™ and Tetra® commercial brands, all trademarks of GE. General Electric (NYSE: GE) works on things that matter to build a world that works better. For more information, visit www.gelighting.com.

Tags

• Business Unit: Appliances and Lighting

GE News Release:

GE's Own LED Lighting Provides Energy and Cost Savings in Newly Renovated GE Offices in Chicago Skyscraper

May 22, 2014

  inShare0 

 

EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio --- May 22, 2014 --- (NYSE:GE) --- As part of considerable renovations at GE offices in Chicago, GE's LED lighting with wireless controls is offering reduced maintenance, improved aesthetics and energy savings, demonstrating that GE does more than just talk the talk---it walks the walk when it comes to its energy-efficient office lighting solutions.

Headquartered at 500 West Monroe in Chicago's West Loop, GE Transportation and GE Antares Capital, a unit of GE Capital, committed to major renovations spanning more than 400,000 square feet among a dozen floors.

The new layout now comprises an open workspace design with more natural light while incorporating offices, conference rooms and a café. In addition to contributing to the new look and feel of the space, GE's LED lighting provides energy savings that equate to more than $55,000 in annual cost savings compared to traditional lighting, including T8 and T12 linear fluorescent lamps, used before construction began.

While original construction plans called for traditional LFL lighting with controls, GE Lighting identified an LED-based office lighting solution at the same budget, providing a better return on investment over the life of the product. LED lighting fixtures have a significantly longer life than fluorescent products and up to 50 times greater lifetime than traditional incandescent lighting. Among the LED lighting fixtures installed were the Lumination™ LED Suspended Luminaires, Lumination LED Recessed Troffer Luminaires and downlights with Infusion™ LED Modules.

Additionally, GE's Lumination BL Series LED Luminaires, integrated with USG's Logix™ Integrated Ceiling System with Halcyon™ ClimaPlus™ Acoustical Ceiling Panels and DONN® Fineline® 1/8 DXFF Acoustical Suspension System, provide long, narrow bands of light for a uniform and contemporary look at 500 West Monroe.

"We wanted a low-maintenance option that would help us keep costs down. GE Lighting presented an LED solution with Lutron lighting controls that also gave us the best look," said John Craynon, global site optimization manager for GE Transportation. "The ceiling is neat, clean and uniform throughout the entire area. Plus, the LED lighting fixtures provide good light levels for employees, who have responded with very positive feedback about how beautiful their workspace is now."

Since installation was completed earlier in 2013, employees also have been pleased their work hasn't been interrupted by lighting repairs or replacements, Craynon said.

"Every time there is a maintenance issue with the lighting, it causes disruption," he said. "With a much longer life expectancy for our new LED lighting fixtures compared to the old traditional lighting, we know we can minimize these interruptions."

Craynon also noted the ease of fixture installation and GE Lighting's commitment to ensuring the office lighting meets Chicago's strict electrical codes, which help ensure the safe installation of lighting and other systems.

"GE Lighting found a total solution that saved energy over the original lighting design and provides a brand new aesthetic to the space while reducing maintenance requirements," said Sam Grebe, director of strategic accounts for GE Lighting. "Together with our GE partners, we have implemented innovative solutions that have helped create a better work environment for hundreds of employees."

To learn more about GE's commercial office lighting solutions, visit www.gelighting.com/office. For information about GE's commitment to innovative solutions to today's environmental challenges, visitwww.ecomagination.com.

About GE LightingGE Lighting invents with the vigor of its founder Thomas Edison to develop energy-efficient solutions that change the way people light their world in commercial, industrial, municipal and residential settings. The business employs about 13,000 people in more than 100 countries, and sells products under the reveal® and Energy Smart® consumer brands, and Evolve ™, GTx™, Immersion ™, Infusion ™, Lumination™, Albeo™ and Tetra® commercial brands, all trademarks of GE. General Electric (NYSE: GE) works on things that matter to build a world that works better. For more information, visit www.gelighting.com.

50 Years of LED InnovationOct. 9, 1962, GE scientist Dr. Nick Holonyak, Jr., invented the first practical visible-spectrum light-emitting diode (LED). In the 50 years since, GE has been on the forefront of LED innovation. The company has released inspired LED products for both residential and commercial settings, from the first ENERGY STAR®-qualified A19-shaped LED bulb to LED street lighting that illuminates cityscapes the world over.

Tags

• Business Unit: Appliances and Lighting

Top 100 U.S. Organizations Using Renewable Energy | 2014-04-23 | Pollution Engineering

The EPA’s Green Power Partnership released an updated list of the Top 100 organizations that are choosing to use electricity from clean, renewable sources like wind and solar power.

“By using green power, these companies and organizations are showing that business can flourish while taking meaningful steps to reduce carbon pollution,” said Gina McCarthy, EPA administrator. “Making cleaner choices to power our communities, institutions and businesses reduces the pollution that contributes to climate change, protects America's health and environment, and supports continued growth in the green power sector."

Top 100 U.S. Organizations Using Renewable Energy | 2014-04-23 | Pollution Engineering