The LED City program was created in February 2007 to drive the adoption of LED lighting in cities around the world. That initiative, founded by Cree, a leader in light-emitting diodes and LED lighting, started the dialogue about the importance of LED lighting to an energy-efficient future. The program garnered interest from universities and colleges that wanted to use energy efficient lighting to support their own sustainability goals as well as save on energy and maintenance costs. Building on the popularity of LED City, Cree started the LED University program on Earth Day 2008. It quickly became an expanding community of schools and LED industry leaders and innovators that work to significantly reduce the amount of electricity used to power lighting on campuses around the world.

North Carolina State University, Marquette University, University of California at Santa Barbara, University of Arkansas and Tianjin Polytechnic University in China became the first schools to join the program. Each has begun evaluating and deploying LED lighting in areas such as offices, dormitories, parking garages, walkway lighting and streets across their campus infrastructures. There are now 10 universities and colleges in the LED University program, and the latest additions demonstrate the versatility of LED lighting. From the snowy peaks of Alaska to the sunny sands of Florida, the University of Alaska at Anchorage and the University of Miami are the latest schools changing the way campuses think about lighting.

A Seven-Step Plan

As Cree’s LED Programs Evangelist, I’ve had my fair share of discussions with schools about the best ways to evaluate and deploy more energy-efficient lighting. Based on my experiences, I’ve developed the following steps to join the LED University program:

1. The first step is to acknowledge the need for improved lighting. I know that sounds like the start of a 12-step program, but I’ve found this can be a sticking point for a lot of campuses. Certain applications just lend themselves better to LED lighting right now. New applications are being enabled all the time, but I suggest that schools begin by looking at exterior applications like parking lots or garages, pedestrian street or pathways, or interior spaces like conferences rooms, cafeterias or dormitories.

Administrators at the University of Miami realized the school had virtually no lighting around the main quad in Coral Gables, Fla. It was a perfect, high-impact application to begin evaluating LED lighting.

For the University of Notre Dame and its managing director of sustainability, James Mazurek, interior lighting in two prominent locations were the first places identified as needing better-quality, more-efficient lighting. “Our sustainability team was already on the lookout for ways to conserve energy and resources, and evaluating LED lighting was one of our top targets as part of our ongoing initiatives,” Mazurek explained. “We knew we wanted to find places that immediately needed better lighting -- namely one of our main libraries as well as an often used conference room.”

I encourage universities to approach LED lighting implementation the same way these two universities did. Look around your school and pick a few distinct locations and applications, particularly those sites with safety concerns or where buildings are kept lit around-the-clock.

2. Once you’ve assessed various places LEDs could be installed, contact LED fixture manufacturers to discuss the pilot application. They will be able to provide application, product and pricing information as well as help calculate potential energy and maintenance cost savings. The following link provides contact information for a number of LED fixture manufacturers: www.ledcity.org/fixture-contacts.html

Kevin Orth from BetaLED, along with their local representative, worked with the University of Miami during its transition to LED lighting. “Once Miami narrowed down the best lighting locations, we were able to provide advice on specific products and on potential cost savings. Helping universities find cost-saving solutions for utilities as essential as lighting is easy when you look at the benefits of LEDs -- improved lighting that’s energy efficient.” Orth recommended 20 BetaLED LEDway fixtures to illuminate walkways, providing improved visibility and safety for the students, faculty and visitors of the University of Miami.

3. After you talk to LED fixture vendors, you can select the actual LED lighting products. Don’t forget to take some photos of the “before” lighting. Then comes the fun part -- starting your pilot projects.

According to Nick Brown, executive assistant for sustainability at the University of Arkansas, he turned to LEDs because of their durability and the high quality of light. “The earlier we adopt this technology, the better our decisions are as the industry matures,” he stated. “Payback, of course, depends on how long the lights are turned on, but LED can lights may be one of the cheapest ways of reducing carbon emissions.”

4. Once the pilot project is under way, contact me (to discuss joining the LED University program). One of the reasons I love my job is that each installation is different, and I’m always excited to hear about and share my advice on LED projects from around the globe.

5. Get agreement from the president’s or chancellor’s office to participate in the program, share results of the pilot, commit to evaluating LED lighting across the campus infrastructure, and deploy LED lighting where it makes good business sense. Sounds like a mouthful, but it’s imperative to secure approval from up top. In fact, you can take a leaf out of N.C. State’s book and start your installation in the chancellor’s office!

N.C. State started by placing recessed downlights from Cree in the chancellor’s office, and then moved on to the Bragraw residence hall and student apartments. The university also placed BetaLED lights in campus parking garages to improve the quality and strength of the lighting. The result? According to students, The Dan Allen parking garage on campus is their preferred place for parking due to the improvements in lighting.

6. Next, it’s time to evaluate the pilot installation. How do you do this? Confirm energy savings, energy cost savings and maintenance cost savings and compare them to your old traditional lighting solutions. Look at initial purchase costs and overall lifetime savings to determine your return on investment. This information will be valuable in helping all stakeholders decide where additional LED lighting makes good business sense.

The University of Arkansas installed the first wave of an expected 1,700 recessed LED downlights in 2008, including installations in the chancellor’s residence and other university facilities. In the chancellor's residence alone, energy savings of up to $800 per month are being reported with the new LED lights, helping the school justify the business case for more installations around campus.