Survey shows extensive waste of lighting energy
Lights are being left on unnecessarily in most buildings, according to a survey by Ex-Or on its web site polling respondents about lighting habits in commercial offices and warehouses. The results indicate that on average lighting is left on in the workplace for up to 12 hours a day unnecessarily — including in storerooms and warehouses. 17% of those polled responded that their office lighting is sometimes left on needlessly for up to 24 hours a day.
The survey also found that 44% of respondents indicated that up to five unoccupied rooms at their workplace are left lit for significant portions of the day. Nearly 20% admitted that more than 20 rooms are lit unnecessarily.
Jason Ng, marketing communications specialist at Ex-Or suggest that a simple solution to save energy is the use of batten-mounted sensors for detecting occupancy and switching lights on and off as appropriate. More sophisticated sensors can maintain constant light levels by adjusting artificial lighting according to daylight availability.