by Brianna Crandall — July 29, 2011—Acuity Brands, a global provider of innovative energy-efficient lighting and control solutions, recently announced that it has supported a major lighting renovation project at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in its Office of Special Services for Students/Testing Center and Division for Health Science Diversity. The company’s award-winning Lithonia Lighting RTLED luminaire was the primary fixture used in the project.
The RTLED is a high-quality, volumetric recessed luminaire that delivers ambient white light uniformly throughout an entire space while reducing energy and maintenance costs and a building’s environmental footprint. Powered by an advanced LED light engine, the RTLED luminaire delivers an expected 50,000-hour system life and a superior lighting environment, including high color rendering (80+ CRI), 3500K color temperature, and full-range dimming with 0-10V DC control. The RTLED comes factory enabled with an interface to the company’s Sensor Switch portfolio of sensors and control systems, which can complete an intelligent, cost-effective and integrated lighting and controls solution for a wide range of applications.
Initially, VCU’s modernization plans included upgrading only lamps and ballasts, but an analysis revealed that the more cost-effective and energy-efficient solution was to renovate with completely new lighting. The University challenged the electrical engineers at Hurd & Obenchain to investigate the viability of ambient LED lighting as a means to further reduce energy use and maintenance costs.
“We chose to evaluate the Lithonia Lighting RTLED based on our previous success with the Lithonia Lighting RT5 for office and general ambient lighting,” said Chad Nixon, electrical engineer at Hurd & Obenchain. “The RT5 is an exceptional fluorescent luminaire with an energy efficiency that enabled us to meet the new International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) watts per square foot requirements, recently adopted by the State of Virginia, while retaining high foot candle levels. As the RTLED uses the same volumetric lighting technology as the RT5, with an LED light source, it was a natural consideration. The volumetric lighting delivered by the RTLED was a perfect fit for the space. Additionally, the product outperformed all competitive LED luminaires we tested with Hurd & Obenchain’s photometric software,” continued Nixon.
“We installed LED lighting in the past, but the quality was lacking,” said Carl Beckelheimer, CEM, CRM, Virginia Commonwealth University Physical Plant energy manager. “The Lithonia Lighting RTLED is an attractive fixture and the lighting quality is exceptional. With the RTLED meeting the University’s needs, the first phase of the renovation has been completed and a second phase is currently underway. We are very pleased with our decision.”
