Helsinki, Finland

U.S. Embassy Helsinki’s Malmi warehouse was retrofitted with LED light fixtures in 2011. Serving as post’s primary warehouse, Malmi is a 4,000 m2 (43,000 ft2) facility that houses storage and mail processing, and serves as a staging area for construction projects.

Prior to retrofit, the facility used high-pressure mercury vapor lamps. Mercury vapor lamps have low efficacy (55 lumens per watt (lm/W)), short lives (three years), and long warm-up periods that prevent them from being turned off throughout the day when warehouses are unoccupied. These lamps also pose a safety risk, as they occasionally shatter due to operation under high pressure or at high temperatures.

U.S. Ambassador Oreck demonstrates the lack of a lamp shatter field on old fixtures

Image Source: League of Green EmbassiesThe new LED fixtures have improved efficiency (92 lm/W), a longer life (10 years or more), and can be equipped with motion sensor controls to dim or turn off lights during periods of low or no occupancy. The cost of the LED fixtures was comparable to replacing mercury vapor fixtures with shatter shields, but both operating cost and maintenance cost are significantly reduced. Annual savings are expected to range from $9,700 to $11,300.

Although Finland has a very low electricity rate, payback is anticipated to occur in fewer than five years. For locations with higher energy rates, the payback for this type of lighting retrofit may be as low as two years.