Shedding a new light!

Load shedding ... this time it's OK!

Getting a nice reception out of the starting gates, startup HID Labs seems to be onto something! Their new High-intensity discharge (HID) lighting solution apparently cuts down energy usage for industrial, warehouse, and store lighting byup to 40%! The local indoor soccer complex likes them! Quoted:

Lighting represents 22% of U.S. electricity consumption and up to 30% of a commercial building's energy bill. High-efficiency lighting can reduce energy use — and the U.S. carbon footprint.

Their SmartPOD light fixture uses advanced switching technology to make these big-power-guzzler lights more efficient, dynamic (change based on conditions) and potentially networkable (for management). I'm no expert on lighting technology, but I believe that this commercial lighting sector is key to large savings in power. I've wondered why many large stores keep all (or a large percentage of their lights) on even after hours!! Security surely doesn't entail this kind of wastage, especially in places like malls...

I'm not sure if this is just lip service, but their environmental commitment statement is pretty positive:

We've set a five-year goal of reducing the carbon footprint of the built environment by 3 million tons and diverting more than 13,000 tons of waste from landfills. Our aim is to enable the net-zero energy building of the future.

Net-zero....free Internet energy for the masses!