EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio---June 19, 2014---The roads throughout the city of Phoenix are being lit more efficiently through a more than 95,000-fixture conversion to LED street lighting---a move expected to save the Valley of the Sun upward of $100,000 each year.
To support a citywide Green Phoenix Initiative, the capital of Arizona plans to convert each of its high pressure sodium (HPS) fixtures to GE's LED street lighting, as well as use the more efficient fixtures for all street lamps installed in areas of new construction.
With new and continued construction and development throughout the city, Phoenix officials knew they had to identify a means for combatting subsequent skyrocketing energy costs. Partnering with electrical utility Arizona Public Service (APS), the city researched alternatives to standard high intensity discharge (HID) systems, comparing energy consumption, light intensity, color and ambient temperature---and overall value, said Jason Fernandez, principal engineer technician with the Phoenix Street Transportation Department.
"We reviewed more than two dozen fixtures and conducted controlled testing for nearly four years to examine characteristics such as lighting patterns, overspill and uplighting," Fernandez said.
APS led additional testing of fixtures in the field and installed five of GE's Evolve™ LED street lights, including the ERS1 and ERS2 fixtures, he said. The fixtures' heat sensitivity especially was a consideration for Phoenix, a city with average summer temperatures of 105 degrees and high temperatures often above 120 degrees.
"GE's Evolve LED street lighting is our new standard and will be installed anywhere a fixture needs replaced or where new construction and capital improvements occur," Fernandez said. "Additionally, with the energy and cost savings we experience from each new fixture, we're putting that money toward our investment for more LED street lights."
With 700 anticipated to be converted by year's end, the city is installing GE's Evolve LED Roadway Scalable Cobrahead fixtures. Officials anticipate the city's overall conversion to LED street lighting along its more than 4,800 miles of public streets will be completed around the year 2020, yielding a projected 60 percent savings in energy use compared with HPS. This will save the city more than $57,000 in annual energy costs, plus an additional $41,000 in anticipated maintenance savings from the Evolve LED Roadway Scalable Cobrahead fixture, which offers more than 11 years of reliable service, based on a rated 50,000-hour lifetime and 12 hours of operation per day.
To learn more about GE's outdoor lighting solutions, including lighting controls for street lighting fixtures, visit www.gelighting.com/roadway. For information about GE's commitment to innovative solutions to today's environmental challenges, visit www.ecomagination.com.
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. 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 Innovation
Oct. 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.
Christopher Augustine
GE Lighting
[email protected]
216-266-3477