New light on energy use at UAA

The Social Sciences Building, room 118 lecture hall lighting upgrade project has just been completed. The lecture hall will be open for use again starting Monday, July 21.

Before the lighting upgrade was implemented, there were 105 light fixtures in the lecture hall. Twenty of those fixtures were operated by 150 watt household light bulbs that did not produce useable light and just used energy. The LPD (Lighting Power Density or watts per square ft.) was approximately 4.0.

With the lighting upgrade, there are only 47 light fixtures in the room. With the addition of lighting scene controls and settings, users can adjust the lighting to fit their specific need. The LPD is now between 0.048 and 1.3 depending upon the number of lights used--this is at least a 67 percent decrease!

The lecture hall has two primary light settings, "general" and "A/V." There are three sub-settings that enhance the function of the two primary settings and can be used separately. Using the "aisle light" setting during A/V presentations uses approximately 0.048 LPD and has a life expectancy of 40,000 hours. This setting replaces the twenty 150 watt light bulbs that produced no usable light and had a life expectancy of about 750 hours. UAA Maintenance will have time for other campus improvements now that they're not purchasing and replacing light bulbs so often.

Contact Patricia Baum at (907) 786-4918 if you have questions or need assistance with the new lighting system in SSB 118.