4 Ways LED Sports Lighting Saves You Time And Money
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Ephesus President Mike Lorenz on the benefits of All Field LED:
In your time with Eaton’s Ephesus Sports Lighting, how has lighting evolved at all levels (municipal, college, and professional)?
After we illuminated the first professional-sports arena with LED lighting, an industry that had not changed for more than 50 years was suddenly disrupted. The first challenge was to educate facility operators about the benefits of LED lighting. Energy savings of 75% was the initial driver and was an easy sell for facility operators to convey to management. But once team executives learned that our LED-lighting solution could enhance both game presentation and fan experience, the floodgates opened—because professional and collegiate sports teams are very focused on providing the best environment for their players and fans.
How does high-end professional-sports-arena lighting trickle down to the high school and municipal levels?
Because municipalities are naturally more risk-averse, it was important to prove the technology on a big stage to allow municipal-sports-venue operators to see how the technology could benefit them. It was immediately clear to us that the needs of municipal-sports facilities were much different from professional-sports venues. That’s why we developed a product specifically for them—without many of the costlier features that were important to professional-sports venues. The Ephesus All Field Series is the first high-quality, cost-effective, versatile, and controllable outdoor LED sports-lighting solution for municipal fields, high schools, and colleges. Its multiple mounting options, low weight, and low effective projected area (EPA) make it the only LED fixture that is designed to easily retrofit into existing infrastructure to dramatically reduce installation costs.
What are clients’ major concerns when they undergo a lighting project, and how do you address those concerns?
The financial investment that it takes to install new lighting or to retrofit into existing solutions is still the primary concern. It is fully accepted that the technology is better; and in the long run, the savings in energy costs and maintenance will provide a positive ROI. But for municipalities on tight budgets, it’s not easy to justify the need. That’s one reason that we work closely with municipalities to help them take advantage of resources such as rebates and grants and to make sure that they understand the long-term cost savings.
From a parks-and-recreation perspective, what are some benefits that LED lighting can have on a field?
Directors and facilities personnel should be focused on satisfying three groups—players, fans, and their community. LED sports lighting can improve player safety because LEDs will often dramatically increase light levels—providing a higher quality and quantity of light so that players can see better. For fans, it provides the best stage for viewing an event. For the community and taxpayers, the system can be programmed in a variety of ways, including time-of-day scheduling, for certain fields to be lit only as needed, or only the infield versus the whole field, which contributes to operational flexibility. The fact that LED lights consume about 75% less energy than a traditional lighting system ensures that the organization is looking out for their community.