Let’s face it: going green is fashionable. That’s why I’m skeptical when I see companies touting that they’re going green. It’s great PR, but what does it really mean?…that they’re turning off more lights at night and trying to use less paper? EWI believes in setting the bar a little higher. Recently we had all new LED lights installed in our parking lot. The 200W fixtures use half the energy of the old 400W bulbs. All of the bathrooms, hallways, and all other non-critical areas of our building also got new LEDs. Savings from the changeover is expected to be roughly $4k per year.
Even more impressive is the investment EWI made in a new, energy-efficient HVAC system last month. The old system brought in 20% outside air in order to maintain indoor air quality 24x7x365. So in the dead of summer, the building was drawing 20% of its air in from the 100+ degree roof and conditioning it. Talk about waste. The new system monitors CO2 levels in the building and constantly optimizes the amount of “make up” air. Thus, on weekends, the building may not pull in any make up air. The potential energy savings is dramatic. So is the potential dollar savings: $30k per year. Now we’re talking some real green…
If your company is truly interested in going green, check out this corporate pledge put out by the US DOE. If you’re a manufacturer and you need help understanding and meeting the new energy regulations, or want help figuring out how to make your operation more energy efficient, visit the EWI Energy Center or email [email protected].
