Monday, June 30, 2008

Energy crisis an international issue

NEMA Announces Industry Initiative to Stimulate Energy-Saving Lighting Upgrades

Craig DiLouie, Editor

Posted June 9, 2008

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) has announced a new initiative aimed at reducing energy use and costs in the 5 million existing commercial, industrial, and institutional buildings in the United States. The campaign, called “enLIGHTen America,” will target building owners, operators, and executives who make decisions about upgrading lighting products in unrenovated buildings.

“There are 71 billion square feet of space in nonresidential buildings in the USA,” said Evan Gaddis, President and CEO of NEMA. “Most of the lighting in this space is inefficient and contributes to our energy crisis every day. Building owners can save as much as 40% on their energy bills, green their operations, and get a two-year payback by investing in a modern lighting system with the latest sustainable technology. As a bonus, the 2005 Energy Policy Act is still in effect, which can provide up to 60¢ a square foot in tax incentives.”

The "enLIGHTen America" initiative, sponsored by NEMA on behalf of all of its member lighting companies, will raise awareness of its message among the target audience through such communications vehicles as press releases, feature articles, direct mail, trade show graphics, and a dedicated website. The campaign will also be supported by a personal message from Secretary of Energy, Samuel W. Bodman, who "invites our nation’s leaders to become full participants in a national effort to make our buildings more energy efficient.”

Interested parties in the lighting industry may obtain more information by e-mailing NEMA at

1 comment:

George Murphy said...

The Government should make it mandatory that nonresidential buildings who are ruled inefficient should have to implement a demand response system to cut back on their usage. This is a huge issue right now. Great post!