US cities focus on centralized streetlight control
A recent article in Washington Post describes how streetlights are a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions. The newspaper quotes Robert Grow, director of government relations at the Greater Washington Board of Trade, for estimating an annual reduction of 1.2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions if the 10 largest metropolitan areas of the US switch to a centralized solution and LED streetlights. This is equivalent to taking 212,000 cars off the roads and save an additional 90 million taxpayer dollars annually.
In his report on streetlight savings, Grow recommends a centrally controlled streetlight solution with dimming and optimized maintenance functionalities.
According to the Post, Grow was surprised that more hasn’t been done already to improve the efficieincy of streetlight.
As previously described in this blog, the most efforts have been made in the town of Ann arbor, Mich. where all streetlights have been converted to LEDs.
Centralized streetlight solutions are offered by companies such as US-based Echelon with installations in e.g. Oslo, Norway, and Danish company Amplex with installations in e.g. Scandinavia, the United Arab Emirates and Asia.
April 29th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
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May 22nd, 2008 at 2:23 pm
Dear gentlemen,
I am very interested to find out who are the best and reliable US manufacturers of street light centralized and non dimmers.
Could you help me, please?
Thanks and best regards
Armando Stavole, Ret. Col. - Gen. Mgr.
Int’l Consulting Agency
Italy
June 4th, 2008 at 12:28 pm
Dear Mr. Stavole,
We are the best and most reliable european (not US) manufacturers of centralized streetlight control:-)
Feel free to vist our website at www.amplex.dk, alternative give me a call at + 45 87304500.
Lars Kiær - Amplex A/S (Denmark)
June 23rd, 2008 at 8:03 pm
Col. Stavole:
Strategic Telemetry Inc., based in Pennsylvania, is a company worth looking at. We specialize in remote monitoring technology for street lights.
Our Web site is www.strategictelemetry.net. I invite you to visit it.
Best regards.
Donna Reed
STI media, government and community outreach.
September 8th, 2008 at 5:02 pm
Reduction Of Greenhouse Gas Emissions…
Thanks for this post!…
November 13th, 2008 at 2:23 am
Mr. Stavole:
We, ALT, specialize high power LED and have US office at San Jose. Please visit our webiste at www.aeonlighting.com for more information.
Best wishes,
Marketing Department
Aeon Lighting Tech. Inc.
December 25th, 2008 at 8:12 pm
We, Relume Technologies, are the manufacturers of the LED Street Lights installed in Ann Arbor, MI. We have also installed our Sentinel Street Light Control System as part of the Ann Arbor lighting installation. The Sentinel System is unparalleled in scope and ability to control Relume’s LED street lighting solutions and it is the lowest cost alternative available.
December 27th, 2008 at 9:56 am
M. Stavole,
More and more Manufacturers of Streetlight Controllers agree to design products that are all compatible together (like computers on a TCP/IP network), based on the standardized ISO14908 protocol (also named LonWorks) to remotely control any streetlight (electronic ballasts, magnetic ballasts, LED, HPS or Metal Halide lamp). Working with them prevent you from being bind with one manufacturer (proprietary system), benefit from the best prices and to have solutions today and tomorrow !
In the US, the manufacturers are : PHILIPS (www.philips.com/starsense), ROMLIGHT (www.romlightintl.com - sbraun@romlightintl.com), SELC (www.selc.ie), ECHELON (www.echelon.com), KIM LIGHTING and BETA LED.
In EUROPE, the manufacturers are : PHILIPS (www.philips.com/starsense), SELC (www.selc.ie), COMTEC (www.comtec.com - yves.fanack@groupe-arcom.com), SCS (Spain), INTRON (Germany), METERCOM, ECHELON (www.echelon.com).
Many others are working on delivering a Lonworks compatible product to this market. Soon more.
Have a great year 2009.
March 26th, 2009 at 6:16 am
Dear Mr.Stavole,
We have new designe of Centralized LED Streetlight Control and management sytem with GSM interface or with CDMA interface.
Feel free to vist our website at www.wranglerltd.com alternative give me a call at + 86-755-82137832 / 82137825
Thanks / Best Rgds,
Wrangler Limited
April 14th, 2009 at 12:19 pm
Hello,
We are manufacturer of centralized street light control system by using the GSM network to remotly switch ON/OFF the bunch of street lights.
The main features of our product are that the product itself record the energy consumption along the control. The product can be programmed as per the sunset/sunrise time of the place and the street light would opearte as per set timings. The best part of the product is if any abnormal event (eg low voltage, over current etc) occur at site then our intelligent Modem will send the SMS to the central control station for further course of action at site.
The detail fetaures set and aplication can be discussed at my mail ID
mohit.makhija@securemeters.com
+919784591763
June 9th, 2009 at 2:37 pm
Dear Mr.Stavole,
We can do Led Streetlight by WRI Digital Power Controller - Micro Process ( New technology ).
1、PC Control: On/Off Contol (Group or individual)
Dimming Control (Group or individual)
Timer (Scheduled On/Off, Dimming control)
2、Low Power Consumption and High brightness
3、Motion sensor available (Human detect - Optioned)
4、Warning Alarm available (Fire, Smog, High temperature - Optioned)
Note : Dimming Range 05-1000 watt, Dimming Consuption Current.
Please view our company website: www.wranglerltd.com for more
information.
Thanks / Best Rgds,
Wrangler Limited
August 24th, 2009 at 8:55 pm
<p>Hello,</p>
<p>Are there any resources that track (ideally geographically) the municipalities that use centrally switched street lighting in NA? </p>
<p>And even the percentage of centrally switched street lighting vs. non-centrally switched by municipality.</p>
<p>Best Regards,<br />
Chris Richards.</p>
September 18th, 2009 at 2:31 pm
Strategic Telemetry and XUS Corporation reportedly announced the first “Electrical Lighting and Management System” to offer light control methods for LED street lighting that conforms to the “Intelligent Transportation Systems” standard of the National Transportation Communications for ITS Protocol 1213.
www.strategictelemetry.net
Additionally, this EMS offers dynamic remote control and monitoring of lighting, power metering and ground-fault detection safety equipment.
“Roadway lighting designers typically select components that deliver the required minimum level of light at the fixture’s end of life,” said Jim Frazer, COO of Strategic Telemetry.” As light output degrades significantly over the fixture’s life, up to 30 percent of this light output and resultant energy use is simply not required. Using Strategic Telemetry’s adaptive lighting system with dimmable XUS fixtures, light output can be reduced at time of installation, and increased automatically as the fixture ages. Using this technology allows luminaries to emit a constant amount of light, meeting the required levels over the entire installed life of the fixture, without over lighting or excessive energy usage.”
The single significant driving force for such a technology is to have greener and lower power consuming display systems to minimize the gradual, but sure, dismantling of the Earth’s environment due to nature destroying emissions from electric power generation plants. Support of ITS standards, helping in energy saving and providing “Smart Grid” solutions assure that these installations are eligible for state and federal infrastructure funding.
A recent report claimed that American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009 has allotted $11 billion, of the total $63 billion towards energy, for smart grid initiatives through 2010, and that public, private and consumer factors are all driving this growth.
The DOE reportedly plans to distribute $3.9 billion in Recovery Act funds for smart grid projects through two funding opportunities. The first provides $3.3 billion to deploy and implement smart grid technologies across the country, and the second provides $615 million for smart grid demonstration projects.
Other funding and categories within ARRA this new combined technology probably qualifies for are: $6.3 billion for state and local governments to make investments in energy efficiency; $2.5 billion for energy efficiency research; $3.2 billion toward “Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block” grants; and $250 million to increase energy efficiency in low-income housing.
A “Smart Grid” has Internet connectivity so that signals can be sent and received for each and every connected and authorized device. For example, in this case, smart meters. In a broader sense, the Smart Grid concept creators envisaged that the entire grid would work more efficiently, accommodate wind and solar power, possibly lower electricity bills by optimizing electricity flow, and constantly reduce the carbon footprint.
“By providing ‘fixture-ready intelligence,’ and dimming using either a centralized control communication interface or independent fixture control, this product provides extended lifetime expectancy, and optimum light output,” said Bob Gray, chief executive officer of XUS Corporation. “Together with Strategic Telemetry, the ‘XDRIVE’ roadway light provides a seamless interface with ITS compliant software. The integrity of the communication link is solidified by using Echelon Corporation’s LonWorks network control technologies. Compliance with ITS standards allows data backhaul over the nation’s ITS network and enables control, monitoring and diagnostics previously unimaginable to the street and roadway lighting marketplace.”
Vivek Naik is a contributing editor for TMCnet. To read more of Vivek’s articles, please visit his columnist page.