Our Customer

For this highly trafficked and heavily used sports practice facility at one of the Midwest's largest universities, the demands of its lighting system are many. So when maintenance is required, it can slow things down in a space where speed and agility are to be achieved.
Originally designed for indoor track and field meets, it now also acts as a practice facility for many varsity sports. As use of the space has evolved and expanded to accommodate as many as 50,000 users and visitors annually, so have its needs.

The Expectation

In 2013, university officials green-lit an energy-efficient lighting upgrade for the building. The university wanted to replace its legacy high-intensity discharge lamps with a modern lighting system that would increase the foot-candles (fc) throughout the 80,000-square-foot space while reducing maintenance needs and costs. Previously, bulbs were replaced each year, and ballasts frequently failed.

Our Solution

The retrofit project originally was designed with fluorescent lighting. Upon being introduced to GE's Albeo™ ABHX Series LED Luminaire, the engineer knew it was the ultimate solution, “especially after we factored in maintenance needs and how it would positively impact the lifecycle cost,” said Russell T. Edwards, president and senior electrical engineer with W. E. Monks & Co.
“I considered several options for the space,” Edwards said. “With its flexible, modular design and quality, uniform light, the Albeo fixture was the only LED lighting I would accept because it met the design specifications we required to fulfill the project's goals.”

Results & Benefits

With the Albeo LED high bay lighting fixtures, the university is expected to realize 34 percent greater energy efficiency with greater foot-candle performance as well as diminished maintenance needs and costs due to a rated fixture lifetime of 100,000 hours.

GE's Albeo™ LED high bay lighting fixtures score 34 percent energy savings for a university field house.

The university facility's previous lighting system provided 35 fc utilizing 400-watt and 1,000-watt metal halides. By contrast, the Albeo LED lighting, which includes 3-, 4- and 6-modular fixtures, produces 57 fc in the facility, utilizing existing mounting locations along the gabled ceiling ranging from 26 to 46 feet high. Albeo lighting fixtures were installed using a Y-cable suspended mount and a 120-degree beam spread.

GE's Albeo™ LED high bay lighting solution slashes maintenance needs and costs.

With a range of sophisticated and scalable features including wireless controllability with dimming capabilities, scheduling and remote access, the award-winning Albeo high bay lighting fixture further proved ideal because it allows for flexible, zonal lighting appropriate for non-sporting events such as presentations or meetings.

With Albeo™ LED lighting fixtures, the university is expected to realize greater energy efficiency.

The new system often is run at just 60 percent capacity—emitting about the same light as the previous lighting, thanks to the built-in energy monitoring system that allows for additional savings. This energy efficiency helped secure a $10,000 rebate for the university through the local electricity provider. At full capacity, the lighting's cool, white light lends a more outdoor feel and is a big improvement over the old drab, yellow light, Edwards said.