News Updates for the Week of July 16

1.      Efficiency Sales Professional (ESP)™ Certification – Offered by the Efficiency Sales Professional Institute in San Francisco www.eefg.com The 36-hour curriculum represents more than 20 years of experience selling efficiency to owners and managers who collectively represent nearly 3 billion square feet of North American real estate. The ESP Certification is designed to create “sales ninjas” who know how to identify energy-efficiency opportunities, how to capture the attention of decision-makers, and how to actually get projects approved. The curriculum teaches:

• How to escape the clutches of simple payback period; 
• How to write pithy and concise one-page proposals that are accessible and compelling;          
• How to calculate and convey the right financial metrics when seeking capital budgeting approval;
• How to move beyond utility-cost savings into non-utility-cost financial benefits; 
• How to recognize and overcome myths and objections that can stymie worthwhile projects.

Register at: www.EfficiencySalesProfessional.com 

2.      DOE Releases GATEWAY Report on LED Roadway Lighting - The U.S. DOE has published the first evaluation report from a GATEWAY demonstration on NE Cully Boulevard, a residential collector road in Portland, OR. Six different types of roadway luminaires were installed in side-by-side groupings and evaluated for initial performance: three LED, one induction, one ceramic metal halide, and one baseline HPS. In addition to performance data, the report also includes an evaluation of the economic feasibility of each of the alternative luminaires and documents feedback collected from local IES members who toured the site. Although not all of the installed products performed equally, the alternative luminaires generally offered higher efficacy, more appropriate luminous intensity distributions, and more favorable color quality when compared to the baseline HPS luminaire. The report is available for download at www.ssl.energy.gov/gatewaydemos_results.html

3.      Smithsonian Recovers LED Costs in 16 Months - The US DOE’s Gateway Solid-State Lighting Technology Demonstration Program replaced halogen and incandescent lighting at several galleries within the museum with LED PAR 30, PAR 38 and MR16 lamps. The Smithsonian American Art Museum recovered the higher initial cost of its LED retrofit project in 16 months of operation through energy savings. http://www.environmentalleader.com/2012/07/10/smithsonian-recovers-led-costs-in-16-months/

4.      Incenergy Accepted into Con Edison's Energy Efficiency Program - Incenergy announced their participation in the Con Edison Commercial & Industrial (C&I) Energy Efficiency Program, which offers cash incentives for installing energy efficient equipment and technologies in facilities. Incenergy's Building Portfolio Energy Management System (EMS), with HVAC thermostat and lighting controls plus humidity and thermistor monitoring, qualifies for the energy efficiency program's rebates. View Incenergy's latest EMS features at http://www.incenergy.com/features

For more information on the C&I Program and all the Con Edison Green Team programs, visit http://www.conEd.com/greenteam

5.      Las Vegas Begins Work to Replace 50,000 Streetlights - City crews began work this week to replace 6,600 streetlights with new energy-efficient LED fixtures. Eventually, all of Las Vegas’ 50,000 streetlights will be changed. City officials expect the new lights will reduce electricity usage by 8 million kilowatt hours and save about $400,000 in energy costs. The city is using $2.9 million in federal energy conservation bonds and $400,000 from a stimulus grant to pay for the new lights, which are being installed by Crescent Electric Supply Company and Transcore.  The work will be done across the city over the next four months. July 2012 TED

6.      GE's Colorado Solar Plant Delayed 18 Months - GE Energy is putting a solar manufacturing plant in Colorado on hold for at least 18 months and instead concentrating on research and development. It has also confirmed layoffs at an existing solar subsidiary due to a collapse in global solar module prices and oversupply. GE also said it was downsizing its solar employment numbers to keep costs down and remain competitive. It would not disclose the number of layoffs. http://www.renewablesbiz.com

7.      Focus on Energy Launches New Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Programs for Wisconsin Residents and Businesses - Focus on Energy, Wisconsin utilities' statewide program for energy efficiency and renewable energy, announced new programs for residents and businesses, adding to its variety of established program offerings for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. Business customers and trade allies interested in participating in available programs should visit www.focusonenergy.com for program information, terms and conditions, and the new application forms. 7/6 PRNewswire

8.      Ameren Efficiency Plan Could Be a First for Missouri - The three-year, $145 million energy efficiency plan being proposed by Ameren and consumer and environmental advocates contains seven different programs for the utility's residential customers and four for business customers. Offers for residential customers include discounts and incentives for: 7/11 St. Louis Post-Dispatch

9.      Chicago White Sox Ballpark Swaps T12s for LED Panel Fixtures - US Cellular Field, owned by the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority and home of the Chicago White Sox, has replaced outdated T12 U-Bend fluorescent lighting fixtures with PolyBrite Borealis 2x2-ft LED Panel Lights in concession stands and workstations throughout the ballpark. http://ledsmagazine.com/news/9/7/6

10.  Fromm Electric Supply Takes 'Go Green' Message to the Ballpark - Fromm, along with Hubbell Lighting, Lutron, Philips-Advance and Sylvania, used "Go Green" night as an opportunity to promote energy efficiency. For their game against the Binghamton Mets, the Phillies (an AA affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies) wore MLB approved green jerseys, which Fromm supplied. The company was able to present its message to a crowd of more than 8,500 people through on-field promotions, commercials on the scoreboard, public address announcements and a radio interview during the play-by-play. http://www.tedmag.com

11.  2012 Next Generation Luminaires Solid-State Lighting OUTDOOR Design Competition Launches - The Next Generation Luminaires Design Competition recognizes the highest-quality LED luminaires for commercial building applications. This year, the competition is broken into indoor and outdoor competitions. The indoor competition winners were announced earlier this year. Now the outdoor competition is formally launching. Written Intents to Submit are due by August 3, 2012, and must be submitted online at www.ngldc.org  Final submission forms are due by August 31, 2012, and physical product samples are due by September 7. Judging takes place in September, and results will be announced in February 2013.

12.  Philips Appoints Bruno Biasiotta As Ceo And President Of Philips Lighting North America -Philips has appointed Bruno Biasiotta to head the company’s North American lighting operations. In his new role, Biasiotta will be responsible for driving market share for Philips’ lighting businesses in North America, including Lamps, Consumer Luminaires and Professional Luminaires. He is taking over the role from Zia Eftekhar, who announced his retirement last month, and who will continue with the company as Chairman until the end of the year.  Biasiotta joins Philips from Johnson Controls where he held several leadership positions, most recently as vice president and general manager of building efficiency. http://www.lightnowblog.com