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November 17, 2009
Maui County's leading industry is taking a leadership role in the county's energy future, helped along by one of Maui's top energy research and development operations, HNU Energy LLC.
Hotels and other businesses have recognized the long-term savings possible in reducing energy costs by switching to energy efficient technologies in lighting, said John Schweiner of HNU Energy, which has developed a range of lighting options with light-emitting diodes (LED) installed in Maui hotels.
With the U.S. Department of Energy reporting that 23 percent of electricity consumed in the commercial sector of the United States is used for light, more efficient lighting is a top priority for reducing energy demand and cutting energy costs.
Efficiency is a key to the nation's energy future, according to a recent report from the National Academy of Sciences.
“Deployment of existing energy-efficiency technologies is the nearest-term and lowest-cost option for moderating our nation’s demand for energy, especially over the next decade,” according to “America's Energy Future: Technology and Transformation,” the report issued by the Committee on America's Energy Future of the National Research Council. (www.nap.edu)
In Maui County, HNU Energy is a lighting industry pioneer in developing Super-Energy-Efficient LED direct-replacement lamps. Businesses can reduce light-related electrical consumption by 50 to 80 percent, depending upon the types of lighting being replaced.
“This solid-state lighting technology is expected to be one of the most important weapons in our quest to reduce dependence on imported oil to generate electricity,” Schweiner said.
He said early experiences with LED lighting may have been unsatisfactory because of the light quality, but much progress has been made on improving the quality and quantity of light that the best LED lamps can provide.
“We can now offer a range of lighting 'colors' that run from the kind of 'warm white' you would find in an old-fashioned household incandescent lamp all the way up to 'cool white' generally preferred in office and commercial environment,” he said.
Then businesses can add in the savings possible when a 19-watt LED replaces a 90-watt halogen not only in energy costs but in maintenance and lamp replacement costs, he said. The best LED products boast life spans of 50,000 hours, compared to 1,500 to 2,500 hours for most halogens, and around 5,000 to 7,000 hours for common compact fluorescent lamps.
“The hospitality industry is one of the early adopters of our new technology. Hotels employ smart engineers with terrific insight into what works and what saves money, and they see the long-term picture and understand the wisdom of investing now to reduce operating costs permanently,” he said.
“Almost every type of businesses can benefit from some LED retrofits, and we are happy to visit individual sites and evaluate the potential for savings.”
Investment in certain energy-saving technologies is further rewarded with federal tax incentives and utility company rebates, making energy-efficiency specialists like HNU key players in a new energy future.
HNU Energy is a subsidiary of HNU Photonics, founded in 2006 by Dan O’Connell and Terry Born as a research-and development company in optics, laser and imaging technologies. Specializing in energy products, including LEDs and photovoltaic units, HNU Energy can be reached at www.hnuenergy.com/ or at (808) 244-7844
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