by AF 0119 i5 — January 22, 2010—Renaissance Lighting, a leading innovator in the development and manufacture of energy-efficient, solid-state LED luminaires, is supporting the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, birthplace of the Light Emitting Diode (LED), in completing its largest sustainable energy/energy-saving lighting project to date at the Universitys Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, according to a recent announcement.
The centerpiece of the almost 600-fixture solid-state lighting initiative is Krannert Centers lobby, a mammoth 25,000-square-foot space shared by four separate theater and concert venues. For 40 years this lobby has been illuminated by 625 energy-gulping incandescent light fixtures, consuming nearly 573.8 million watts annually, says Renaissance.
Retrofitting the space with with Renaissance Lighting luminaires will decrease energy consumption by about 460 million watts annually, saving the Krannert Center $70,000 or more a year, says Renaissance Lighting.
The center can anticipate additional savings because solid-state LED luminaires produce virtually no heat below the suspended ceiling where they are installed. By contrast, 90 percent of the energy consumed by incandescent bulbs is in the form of heat rather than light, which in turn increases air conditioning load and related costs. LED Luminaires also far outlast their incandescent counterparts; 50,000-70,000 hours versus 2,000 hours for incandescent bulbs.
A key feature of the Renaissance Lighting color changing luminaires is the ability to produce more than 16.5 million different, colors including white. The simplicity of Renaissance Lightings Rhapsody Color Management technology relieves Krannert Center personnel from countless hours of tediously inserting multi-colored theatrical gels into and out of individual light fixtures in preparation for many of the 350 performing arts functions and the 100-plus special lobby functions held each year.
For more information, visit the Renaissance Lighting Web site.
