Lighting, Low-Carbon Means Low-Cost!

Lighting – Measure, Monitor, Minimise

Remember the three golden 3M rules, Measure – Monitor – Minimise!

These 4 lighting measures can be used to reduce your carbon footprint and save energy at little or no cost:

1. Daylighting – maximise daylight usage, after all sunlight is free! Open blinds or window shades, use skylights or other natural light sources effectively and switch off lights if you don’t need them to reduce electricity consumption during daytime hours. This is of course seasonally adjusted but will make a real difference if you implement a 3M approach. You may see between 10-40% reduction in your lighting bill.
2. Use task lighting where possible (point of use direct lighting for specific tasks) instead of illuminating an entire room.
3. Of course implementing a regular lighting maintenance plan is critical in ensuring the existing lighting is not only working at optimal performance, but to reduce down time through flickering or faulty light fittings. A good planned preventative maintenance regime will ensure this is done annually. And, don’t forget to maintain your emergency lighting.
4. Remove unnecessary lamps (de-lamp) in overlit areas. Check your light levels against standards from the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) to see if you have areas that are over- or under-lit, easy to do, quick to resolve and can deliver real savings.