LEDs Offer Schools Benefits Beyond Energy Savings

At any level of education, odds are that your school or campus has a variety of traditional HID lamps. They can often be found in light fixtures in gymnasiums or post top lamps on campus sidewalks. No matter the facility, replacing costly HID lamps with LED technology can have countless benefits to improve energy efficiency, safety and aesthetics. LED lighting has proven to provide longer life, better durability and easy controllability compared to traditional lighting sources. These benefits make LEDs the smart choice for schools and higher education institutions.  Longer Life and Less Maintenance LED lamps can last up to five times longer than metal halide or high-pressure sodium HID lamps while consuming up to 80 percent less energy. This can lead to numerous cost savings, the most obvious of which is reduced energy usage. However, less frequent re-lamping means lower maintenance costs as well. Plus, built with no moving components or breakable glass, LED lamps fail at a much lower rate than their HID counterparts. Replacing 100 post tops on a campus with LED replacement lamps can save over 60,000 kWh per year, and more importantly, save your facility hundreds of thousands of dollars over the lifetime of the lamps. A Safer, More Durable Option Safety is also an important consideration in lighting. HID lamps feature glass envelopes that pose shatter risks. Upon breakage of the envelope, mercury and other harmful gases present in traditional HID lamps can leak into the facility. LED replacement lamps are substantially more durable and made of plastic, with an ability to withstand an impact. Made with no hazardous materials, LEDs have no risk of contaminating your school’s environment. Replacing HID lamps with LED technology is a safe step to ensuring that your students and staff enjoy gymnasiums or other recreational facilities without the possibility of injury from lamp breakage. Creating a More Colorful Campus LEDs can enhance campus aesthetics. They feature precision optics, and many LED fixtures are controllable or dimmable. Also, LED lamps and fixtures are available in a variety of color temperatures, letting you create the look you want. Whether you are setting the right amount of light to hold an event or simply want well-lit paths on your campus, LEDs provide a higher level of controllability and reliability compared to HID lamps. Benefits for Students and Teachers Students and teachers maneuver throughout school buildings day in and day out, dealing with the dim fluorescent lit rooms and hallways. The fluorescent bulbs that are lighting these buildings and hallways may be dull and dated, causing discomfort and impairing task performances in students and teachers. Research has shown that adjusting the color temperature of lighting to match the time of day can have a positive effect on circadian rhythms, affecting everything from mood to sleep quality. It is also shown that LED lighting has positive effects on students’ concentration and relaxation, possibly affecting focus, retention and recall. Lighting the Future Lighting cost and color are often overlooked topics. Most people don’t consider how the lighting they experience every day affects them. LED is changing how lighting is perceived and can impact the quality of our lives. Replacing costly HID lamps with LED technology has many advantages to improve energy efficiency, safety, and aesthetics. There may be major improvements on educational campuses with the way students and teachers benefit from the future of LED. 

Who should be purchasing NSF-certified lighting?

Healthcare, foodservice and educational institutions often have different requirements for lighting technology compared to residential or commercial facilities. One such requirement may involve additional testing to ensure food, water and consumer safety. Products that are certified by the NSF International are proven to withstand the most extreme environments. Here we’ll discuss what the NSF International is and why choosing NSF-approved lighting is important in certain industries. What is NSF International? NSF International is an independent certification body that tests products to ensure consumer protection in applications where safety and quality are of the utmost importance. The organization was founded in 1944 as the National Sanitation Foundation, but changed its name to NSF International in 1990 as their interests expanded beyond sanitation. Today consumers, manufacturers and regulators look for the NSF certification as a standard for global health. NSF Lighting Certification NSF International provides lighting certifications for manufacturers whose products are used in industries where sanitation, structural integrity, and low air pollutant levels are essential. NSF-approved lighting products typically have designs and production methods intended to withstand abuse and avoid contamination of the area where the light is installed. The NSF has approved a variety of lamps and fixtures for these applications. NSF certification provides a way for purchasers and consumers to know that a certain lighting product is of the highest quality. NSF-certified lighting products are typically designed to reduce breakage and protect occupants from injury or contamination. They also have features designed to ensure the light’s performance when faced with contaminants often found in these environments. The Role of NSF-Certified Lighting Across Industries Foodservice and processing areas are most commonly associated with NSF-certified lighting, but medical and healthcare centers can also benefit from the additional protective features. In addition to durability, they meet standards to ensure bacterial resistance and they are constructed of non-toxic material. These items are also produced with the most robust construction methods available to avoid leaking, corrosion or other electrical problems. For tough environments such as foodservice and healthcare, choose NSF-approved lighting for strong, reliable and clean products that stand up to any challenge. Recommended Categories The opinions expressed in this piece are solely EiKO's. They do not necessarily represent WESCO’s views.