Finding Opportunity in Rising Energy Costs
By Gina Dostler
Energy savings reduces operating costs for businesses. Anthony Mitchell, managing director and founder of EcoGreen Solutions, offers a cost-saving tool with innovative lighting solutions.
Q: What does your company do?
A: We are an energy efficiency specialist and give comprehensive assessments to commercial companies on ways to save energy. The assessment is free and a trained technician walks the property or infrastructure, suite or complex and takes an inventory of existing equipment such as lights both interior and exterior as well as motors and drives. Then we map out a plan to reduce energy consumption. Right now we have been so busy expanding we have just focused on commercial projects. But soon hope to incorporate the residential side of energy savings.
Q: How did you get started in this business?
A: Back in 1999, I learned all aspects of the microchips used to regulate the light emitted from LEDs. The market was limited at that time and I sold to manufacturers that made signs, displays and signals. With the invention of the blue LED in 2003, it revolutionized lighting with an effective way to generate white light. In 2006 I got the idea for my company and by 2007 was incorporated.
Q: Were there many companies like yours in operation before you?
A: We were one of the first companies to actually go out and advocate for LEDs to big facilities. As the technology continued to develop, LEDs became more prominent for lighting both outdoor and indoor. It was tough in the beginning convincing CEOs the benefits and savings through adjustments to lighting and other systems that draw energy. But now after eight years and 2,400 projects under our belt, we’ve proven ourselves, our lighting and the savings.
Q: What is so special about LEDs?
A: The way they produce light makes them very energy efficient with a longer life span and better color quality. It’s a very reliable and sustainable way to bring lighting to whatever application you might need. Outdoor and parking garages as well as municipalities, educational facilities and hospitality all have a heavy focus on lighting, which means higher energy bills, so we focus a lot of business with these types of companies. LED lighting has led the way for cost savings and better lighting that not only can bring up to a 35% savings in general, but actually improve the lighting for more visual comfort.
Q: Are they environmentally safe?
A: LEDs are very safe. Consider that the mercury found in just one screw-in CFL (compact fluorescent) bulb that have replaced most of the incandescent lighting in homes and businesses can pollute 6,000 gallons of water with their mercury content. One long tube fluorescent tube can pollute 24,000 gallons of water. All the CFLs that are thrown away each year could wrap the world five to six times over. That’s a lot of waste. LEDs have a life from 10 – 20 years depending on usage and do not use gas to produce light, making them mercury free.
Q: Isn’t changing out lighting an expensive endeavor?
A: The utility companies and federal government have commercial programs that can pay up to 80% of the cost of the upgrade to LEDs as well as other energy efficient components to reduce energy consumption. We are very knowledgeable at what is available and what is coming in the future regarding energy laws and consumption and pass that on to our clients. We also work with a third party, independent company that we offer to get our client proper tax deductions with available incentives.
Q: How do the incentives work?
A: The current one is now set-up for replacing whole fixtures with true LED technology. The last one allowed retrofitting of the fluorescent or incandescent fixtures to allow LED bulbs to work with the old housing. Now, the government is offering incentives, i.e., cost savings, to swap out the entire system. This is the time to switch, not only because of incentives, but because of rate increases. Just twice this year there has been approximately a 13% increase in rates for electricity.
Q: Why so many increases?
A: With the San Onofre nuclear power plant turned off, clean energy is coming from Nevada, Arizona and Mexico through windmills and solar farms. The utilities have invested in all theses energy sources but it costs three to four times that of coal and is passed on to the consumers. There is another rate increase already approved that will show up from now until the end of the year. And yet another bill is waiting to pass for another increase again. So we ask companies, can you operate your business with a 13 – 26% increase each year? That’s when it’s time to evaluate and implement an energy savings program.
Q: Obviously homeowners will be affected by the increase as well. What can they do to offset the increase?
A: New homes built have to be net zero, meaning the amount of energy they consume they have to make, so efficiency is the key and already built in. Many residents with older homes go straight to solar for energy savings based on their current energy consumption. A bigger system than necessary is usually installed. My advice: first invest in making the house as efficient as possible with a tankless water heater, LED lighting everywhere, replace all appliances with Energy Star compliant ones and save 80% in energy. Then put in solar panels. The money you save with a smaller solar unit helps pay for the other upgrades. There are government and utility incentives out there for residential as well. Check out the Energy Star government website: www.energystar.gov.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Anthony Mitchell
Managing Director & Founder
EcoGreen Solutions
27611 La Paz Road
Suite A2
Laguna Niguel, CA 92677
949-364-6800
www.ecogreen-solutions.net
Anthony.m@ecogreen-solutions.net
