Survey suggests 85 per cent of companies waste cash on unnecessary lighting

According to lighting controls specialist Ex-Or, 50 per cent leave lights on needlessly for up to eight hours a day. What’s hiding in your office? According to a recent survey by Ex-Or, potentially higher energy bills and increased carbon emissions. Ex-Or has released the results of a survey that polled respondents about lighting habits in commercial offices and warehouses. The results show that despite a tough economic climate, a significant portion of UK companies are potentially wasting thousands of pounds a year by leaving their lights on unnecessarily. According to the data, on average lighting is left on in the workplace for up to 12 hours a day unnecessarily – including in storerooms and warehouses. Just under a fifth (17 per cent) of those polled responded that their office lighting is sometimes needlessly left on for up to 24 hours a day. Furthermore, Ex-Or’s survey found that 44 per cent of respondents indicate that up to five unoccupied rooms at their workplace are left lit for significant portions of the day and nearly one in five admitted more than 20 rooms are lit unnecessarily.@page_break@Jason Ng, marketing communications specialist at Ex-Or comments: “With UK businesses tightening their purse strings and urgently eliminating costs from their organisation, wasting so much money on lighting empty rooms is almost a criminal drain on resources. Worse, most companies are completely unaware of the issue.” Statistics published by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (UK, July 2011) show that across a broad selection of non-domestic applications, lighting represents, on average, 21 per cent of a building’s total energy consumption. While some companies are taking steps to become more responsible others need to make moves or risk missing out on potential bottom line savings and increased energy efficiency. Batten-mounted sensors offer a simple solution for building and company administrators looking to save and increase energy efficiency, as they reduce the number of rooms and length of time lighting is left on unnecessarily. Ng continues: “Batten-mounted sensors offer advanced occupancy detection technology in a quick and easy-to-fit package and can help companies eliminate energy and money lost to poor lighting management.” Sensors like Ex-Or’s award-winning BattenFit range (pictured, top) can automatically switch the light on when someone enters an area, and switch the light off again when the area is vacated. More sophisticated variants, such as those detectors that are DSI and DALI-compatible, are capable of maintaining constant light levels by adjusting a luminaire’s output in concert with available natural light, further eliminate unnecessary use of energy. For further savings, pairing batten-mounted sensors with LED lighting provides a comprehensive solution to delivering decreased energy bills at the same time as reducing emissions and boosting energy efficiency. www.ex-or.com