Before

Challenge:

To provide even lighting while considerably reducing energy consumption throughout the 150,000 plus square feet of exhibit and conference space, with sixteen loading docks and two drive-in doors. Also in its sister facility, the Garden State Exhibit Center in Somerset, there is an additional 70,000 square feet of ehibit and conference space. The goal was to drastically reduce energy expenses while increasing light levels substantially.  It was important to reduce the consumption of energy by using fixtures with limited wattage but versatile capabilities to provide powerful yet comfortable and warm light levels in both smaller conference rooms as well as in large wide-open exhibition spaces.

Solution:

The installation of 292 Semaphore T8 Series 6 Lamp fixtures with a Kanepi Innovations Wireless Network Control System. Rounding out the fixture is Light Corp’s Slip-Fit hanging system which allows for ease of installation in one-third of the time necessary to hang standard fluorescent or high-intensity discharge fixtures. The fixtures operate much cooler, reducing the cooling needs and background noise in exhibit halls. The system identified and offered a solution to the rising energy costs and reduced the carbon footprint through energy reduction. The combination of the new energy-efficient Semaphore lighting fixtures with the Kanepi wireless mesh network has proven to be very cost-effective. The NJCC currently saves around $40,000 a year with the energy saving fixtures and using the Kanepi system versus leaving the lights on 24/7. For example, activities such as load-in and set-up that previously required all lights operating at full output can now be accomplished with already energy-efficient lights dimmed to 50 percent. That capability, combined with the reduced consumption of the Semaphore Series fixtures and other energy-saving strategies the convention center team employ has made a measurable return on investment. For the New Jersey Convention and Exposition Center along with the Garden State Exhibit Center, the Semaphore Series and Kanepi system difference is in the numbers. The lighting retrofits working in concert with the Kanepi system is reducing their energy bills by approximately $2,400 and for GSEC $500 per month respectively. A significant payback for investing in energy efficient components provided by Light Corp and Kanepi Innovations.