CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA—Do you think you could ever get to the point of being able to describe your hotel as the greenest on your continent? If you followed the lead of the innovators behind Hotel Verde in Cape Town, South Africa, you might be able to. The hotel was built with sustainability in mind from the ground up. It’s literally in the walls since the construction includes Cobiax void formers—recycled plastic balls placed strategically within the concrete slabs that are required for the various floors. They dramatically reduce the amount of concrete required, while maintaining the structural integrity.Andre...

MINNEAPOLIS—The new PowerConnect standby generator from Cummins Power Generation has been specifically designed to simplify quiet backup power for light commercial and larger residential applications. Available in output ratings from 30 kW to 60 kW, PowerConnect generators offer high reliability, ease of installation and low sound performance.“When there is a power outage, businesses can face significant financial risks due to lost sales, lost data, lost inventory or an inability to provide customer access or support,” said Tony Satterthwaite, V.P. Cummins, Inc., and President, Cummins Power Generation. “With the number of significant power outages increasing every year, it is more...

BERKELEY, CALIF.—Peerless, a leading designer and manufacturer of architectural luminaires and one of the innovative lighting companies under the Acuity Brands umbrella, announces the release of Vellum linear suspended LED luminaires. The product is well suited for use in commercial offices, retail spaces, academic institutions, as well as hospitality and healthcare settings.With a discreet, low-profile form and edge-lit lens, Vellum luminaires deliver on the promise of LED lighting by combining simple, yet sophisticated design with energy-saving efficiency. Vellum luminaires provide flicker-free, glare-free and worry-free illumination from a Peerless 360° total system solution that integrates lighting, controls and technologies all...

ST. PAUL, MINN.—Ecolab Inc., a global leader in water, hygiene and energy technologies and services, has received a 2014 Climate Leadership Award for excellence in greenhouse gas management. The award, cosponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), recognizes Ecolab for publicly reporting and verifying corporate greenhouse gas inventories and achieving aggressive greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals.“We are serious about the efficiency of our internal operations from both an environmental and an operational perspective,” said Emilio Tenuta, Ecolab Vice President, Corporate Sustainability. “We set meaningful reduction goals, measure progress and are transparent in our reporting. The Climate Leadership Award...

NATICK, MASS.—Despite the recent stormy weather in New England, two Boston-area tennis clubs are seeing things a bit brighter these days. That’s because ThinkLite recently retrofit their existing fluorescent lights with new ThinkLite high output LED tube lighting. Natick Racquet Club and the Waltham Athletic Club are now experiencing the power and efficiency of ThinkLite LED tube lighting. “The lights are fantastic,” said Shelia Weinstock, Manager of Natick Racquet Club. “They are really bright and the members are loving them. The light is much more even on all the courts and there is a significant improvement in the lighting...

DURHAM, N.C.—Cree, Inc. introduces SmartCast Technology, a self-programming wireless lighting control system that reduces energy consumption by more than 70 percent at half the cost of traditional lighting controls. According to Cree, luminaires enabled with Cree SmartCast Technology remove the initial and ongoing complexity associated with lighting controls.  “Commercial lighting customers have resisted installing traditional lighting controls because of excess cost and complexity, and the majority of those who have installed controls stop using them as intended after the first year because they’re difficult to maintain,” said Norbert Hiller, Executive Vice President, Lighting. “Cree SmartCast Technology eliminates these barriers...

BURNABY, B.C.—According to the U.S. Department of Energy, 400 billion KW of hot water goes down the drain annually in the United States—roughly $40 billion worth of energy at an average cost of $.10/KW. A great deal of that energy loss occurs in hotels—where energy is uncaptured from greywater from showers and baths, sinks, dishwashers, laundry, etc. Energy is also lost in the blackwater coming from toilets. One company, International Wastewater Systems, has developed a system it calls SHARC (which stands for sewer heat recovery) to capture and reuse heat that typically is lost to the sewage system.International Wastewater...

ALSIP, ILL.—Litetronics introduces its new, improved Neolite Miniature CFL lamps that are more energy efficient and shorter than previous models. With redesigned T2 glass spiral tops and new micro ballasts, these latest Neolite lamps are on average 15 percent brighter while reducing their maximum overall length by 8 percent. Neolite CFLs are available in four wattages and three Kelvin temperatures. Neolite Miniature CFL lamps provide instant one-for-one replacements for 40-, 60-, 75- and 100-watt incandescent lamps in any commercial or residential application. With their small size, high light output and range of available Kelvin temperatures, they are ideally suited...

MOORPARK, CALIF.—Jim Dilbeck, General Manager of Cireon, announced that his LED systems manufacturing company recently completed a major outdoor lighting project for Universal CityWalk Hollywood at Universal Studios, Hollywood. Completed in conjunction with Tako Tyko, Signs & Lighting of Los Angeles, the parking lot project encompassed 600 parking spots and a footprint of more than 70,000 square feet. The project included 75 Cascade 145-watt fixtures, replacing 290-watt metal halide fixtures.Los Angeles County has stringent light pollution guidelines and Cireon was asked to develop a custom solution that would not only increase the light levels for the attraction, but do...

BOURNE, MASS.—Chilled water system performance is often overlooked in plant operations, yet optimizing performance can significantly improve chilled water plant efficiency, and thereby reduce costs.  A new guide from Onset, “Using Data Loggers to Improve Chilled Water Plant Efficiency,” focuses on using data to evaluate the potential positive impacts to overall efficiency by controlling chilled water coil differential temperature. The guide covers how to use portable data loggers at the individual coil level to help assess opportunities for saving energy, and includes a case study describing a real-world deployment and analysis of collected data. A free copy of the...