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Lighting manufacturer Standard Products practises what it preaches

July 8, 2016 | By Anthony Capkun



July 7, 2016 – Saint-Laurent, Quebec-based Standard Products provides lighting solutions to the commercial, industrial and residential markets through the professional electrical and lighting channel.

Its stated mission is to provide complete lighting solutions that allow clients to improve the quality of their lighting systems and enhance overall ambiance while reducing energy, maintenance and operating costs.

And so, to practice what it preaches, the company embarked on a plan to incorporate “sustainable lighting and energy management practices” into its Saint-Laurent warehouse in August 2015. Besides striving for improved workplace safety, and energy and cost savings, the relamping project served as an in-field demo for customers of the company’s lighting options.

Previous high-bay HID lamp technology
A high-bay application is typically a space offering at least 5 to 7 metres of clear height. High-bay lighting is widely used in warehousing, big box retail and manufacturing spaces.

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The Standard warehouse was originally lit with:

• 148 HID high-bays (MH400 using MH lamps, each consuming 458 watts.
• 30 HID high-bays (MH875) using MH lamps, each consuming 900 watts.
• Several traditional fluorescent T8s, each consuming 32 watts.

Together, these lamps represented an annual energy consumption of 193,940 kWh.

Upgrading to LED tech
Over a period of two weeks, Sibenco Inc. worked to relamp the lighting system in the entire warehouse. All the work was performed at night over the course of the retrofit so as not to interfere with warehouse operations.

The traditional technologies listed above were replaced with 208 LED high-bay luminaires (LPHB/6MS), each consuming 175 watts. As for the fluorescent T8s, they were replaced with LED T8s that consumed 22 watts.

The new LED fixtures represent an annual energy consumption of 104,104 kWh.

Also, to avoid unnecessary lighting in the aisles, 60 occupancy sensors were installed to cover 180 luminaires within the main section of the warehouse.

Standard noticed a significant and immediate lighting improvement in the aisles: whereas the light meter previously averaged 108 lux under the old lighting, the lighting now averages 185 lux.

Recycling, rebates and savings
Provincial recycling programs in Quebec enable the recycling of all lamps and fixtures. The cost of these programs covered when the materials are purchased; thereafter, pick-up and recycling are free of charge. All materials that were retrofitted in this project were recycled, thereby preventing them from going to landfill.


As the Hydro Quebec rebate program is mostly based on kWh saved, Standard Products received financial support in the amount of $9896. Companies need to save at least 50,000 kWh to benefit from this program. These changes represent a savings of 89,836 kWh, or $9000 per year in energy costs.

And warehouse employees seem happy about the new lighting, too. “‘It changes everything. It’s brighter!” said one. “Now, we can clearly see the bottom row of the products, and we feel safer.”

— With files from Gaëlle Boulais-Dupas. Photos courtesy Standard Products.

This articles appears in the July 2016 edition of Electrical Business Magazine. Check out our ARCHIVE page for back issues.


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