The Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA) and the DesignLights Consortium (DLC) recently released the results of a study that strengthens the case for expanding use of networked lighting controls (NLCs) to significantly drive energy savings in the commercial and industrial sector. The report found that energy savings enjoyed by adding NLCs to LED lighting projects approach 70% for some building types, with savings across various categories of buildings averaging 49%.
Prepared for the DLC and NEEA by Energy Solutions, “Energy Savings from Networked Lighting Control Systems with and without LLLC” details the results of a one-year study that examined the impact of nearly 200 NLC systems installed in eight different building types, almost doubling the data set from the 2017 study. The findings strongly reinforce the savings estimates from the DLC’s 2017 report, further enabling utilities, manufacturers, design professionals, specifiers, ESCOs, contractors, building managers, and others to plan for lighting solutions with better estimates of energy savings from NLC technology.
The study at NLC savings potential in eight building types: assembly (i.e., auditoriums, theaters, etc.), education, health care, manufacturing, office, restaurant, retail, and warehouse. The project collected, aggregated, and analyzed building-, zone-, and fixture-level energy monitoring interval data from NLC systems with and without LLLC capabilities for an average of 13 weeks per building.
Overall average energy savings from all NLC systems were 49%, but results were highly site specific — ranging from 28% for assembly buildings to 64% and 68%, respectively, for office buildings and warehouses. The study also found variations in energy savings in sites implementing aggressive strategies, such as high-end trim and other LLLC capabilities, to achieve deep savings versus those that solely use the basic capabilities of NLC systems.
For more information, visit the DLC website to download the full study