LifeWay’s Quest for Energy Efficiency: Daintree Solution Delivers Substantial Lighting Energy Savings

THE OPPORTUNITY

One of the world’s largest providers of Christian products and services, LifeWay, is committed to making a difference. The company owns and operates 160 LifeWay Christian Stores across the nation and takes energy efficiency seriously.

As part of corporate sustainability efforts and community impact, LifeWay intended to roll out large-scale energy efficiency projects that would bring significant savings. James Simmons, LifeWay’s facilities engineering manager was tasked with identifying top projects for energy efficiency and selecting the right supplier for building controls at the iconic high-rise centennial tower.

THE SOLUTION

Based on its reputation, commitment to open standards, and ease of use, the Daintree solution from Current, emerged as the top contender. As a result of comprehensive pilot test evaluations, LifeWay selected Daintree to deliver lighting energy and operational cost savings. According to James, Daintree offered the desired flexibility, ease of use, and fast payback that was critically important to LifeWay.

By using open standards rather than proprietary technology, Daintree interoperates with any ZigBee standard control products to leverage innovative technologies that can quickly adapt to changing market needs. In addition to ZigBee interoperability, Daintree supports the BACnet protocol for easy integration with other systems to deliver unified solutions from a common platform.

THE RESULTS

Daintree’s standards-driven wireless mesh network embeds intelligence by enabling the lighting fixtures, occupancy sensors, and wireless switches to communicate wirelessly with each other and the ControlScope system (CSM). Daintree provides a platform for LifeWay facilities staff to centrally configure and manage lighting zones throughout the buildings. The solution delivered:

• Lighting energy savings by retrofitting 175 fixtures per floor
• Operational savings from lamp maintenance and ballast replacement
• Centralized management of zones
• Lighting profiles assignment to meet individual floor lighting needs

LifeWay facility personnel have access to real time energy usage reports per zone, enabling the discovery and tuning of an effective lighting strategy for improved energy consumption and management. By using real-time data about the occupancy rate in each zone or floor, LifeWay has discovered opportunities to make better, faster, smarter decisions to optimize operations.

"The lighting energy savings from Daintree's ControlScope Solution are remarkable, and we are looking into leveraging the platform for HVAC and Plug-Load Control to realize even greater savings."                                                                         - James Simmons , Lifeway Facilities Engineering Manager

In addition, Daintree has helped LifeWay achieve its goal of deploying a future-proof building energy management solution. Daintree delivered over 34% energy savings in the first year along with operational efficiencies with opportunities for much more. The solution helped LifeWay to achieve efficient lighting and to exceed operational cost saving goals.

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