Carved into a granite cliff in the North Okanagan in close proximity to Vernon, British Columbia, Sparkling Hill Resort is celebrated for its organic and modern flair-notably its creative use of $10 million in Swarovski Crystal elements that provide an atmosphere of calm and serenity. Setting its sights on newly engaging, more energy-efficient LED hotel lighting, the European-influenced resort and wellness center recently specified 2,500 GE LED replacement lamps for its award-winning facility. The switch means an annual 828,000 kilowatt hours (kWhs) energy reduction at Sparkling Hill and will equate to $1.3 million in total lighting cost savings over 10 years.

A crystal clear choice
Incorporated throughout Sparkling Hill, Swarovski Crystal creations-designed exclusively for Sparkling Hill by the famous Austrian crystal company-emulate the coolness of waterfalls and warmth of fireplaces, emanating light and vibrancy to spaces with their extraordinary brilliance, purity, and absolute precise cut. Optimizing this synergy of light, water and other decorative elements with the effects of new illumination was, according to chief engineer Wolfgang Hoppichler, the foremost concern of Swarovski Crystal.

 "Sparkling Hill is the only place in the world outside of the Swarovski museum in Wattens, Austria, where one can truly experience the remarkable ingenuity, creativity and technical ability of these magnificent crystals," he said. "To make such a significant change to the lighting design, it has to be the absolute right thing for a resort as unique as ours."

 
GE's energy-efficient LED hotel lighting upgrade will save Sparkling Hill $1.3 million in energy and maintenance costs over 10 years.
 

Sparkling Hill engaged GE and Brite-Lite, a British Columbia-based lighting and electrical wholesaler, to better understand the best way to showcase the crystals. It was recommended that 50-watt halogen bulbs be changed to 7-watt PAR20 LED and 12-watt PAR30 LED replacement lamps-products of GE ecomaginationSM–in guest suites, penthouses and dining venues as well as meeting and activity rooms, among other areas, throughout the resort.

"We never had a concern about the quality of the lighting because we knew who was behind the product," added Hoppichler. "Having seen both, I can now say I prefer the whiter light of the LED lamps that better accentuate our three million adorning Swarovski crystals."

Sparkling savings
Following the installation of 2,200 PAR20 LED and 300 PAR30 LED replacement lamps, Sparkling Hill reduced its annual electricity use by 828,000 kWhs-a nearly $66,300 hotel lighting cost savings based on an $0.08 kWh rate and 24 hours of operation a day. Maintenance expense, meantime, has sharply fallen at the resort where staff had replaced 2,500 halogen bulbs a year on average.

"We were changing 10 to 20 bulbs every day just to keep up," Hoppichler said. "Since the swap we've replaced only five LED lamps in less than two years."

Including purchase, labor and disposal costs, Sparkling Hill is now spending $68,000 less in annual upkeep thanks to longer-lived lighting technology. Totaling electricity, maintenance and related lighting expenses combined, operating costs have fallen by $138,000 a year at the resort, or a projected $1.3 million over 10 years.

Rebates accelerate returns
GE and Brite-Lite also helped Sparkling Hill fund its LED hotel lighting upgrade-guiding the resort to qualify for rebates from the local utility company for each LED lamp installed. Factoring for the purchase price of the new LED replacement lamps, project payback was achieved after only three months.

"Everything at Sparkling Hill has been designed to fit perfectly into the landscape, just as GE's proposed lighting solution perfectly fit our one-of-a-kind luxury environment," Hoppichler added.

Since opening in the spring of 2010, Sparkling Hill has been recognized internationally for its location, design and unique offerings. It has earned the prestigious Senses Wellness Award for "Best Mountain Spa Resort" in 2011 as well as the Elite Traveler Award for "Top 101 Hotel Suites in the World" in 2012.

Most recently, Sparkling Hill was named one of 11 "Trendsetting" hotels by Fodor's Travel in its 2012 "Top 100 Hotels in the World" rankings.