Architecture Firm Upgrades Lighting from Halogen to LED

Founded in 1992 and located in the heart of Kansas City, Mo., Helix Architecture + Design focuses on the idea that great architecture and design transforms the world and its people. Wanting to implement that same theory into its office remodel, the firm opted for an LED lighting upgrade.

Bruce Yarnell and Jacob Hothan of Yarnell Associates worked closely with Kathy Kelly and Mike Huele of Helix Architecture + Design and Curt Anderson of EiKO Ltd. to outline the lighting upgrade. The main priorities of the upgrade were to ensure quality of light and dimmability abilities while not compromising energy efficiency and maintenance benefits.

Before the retrofit took place, guided visual comparisons (in the form of photos of the lamps along with the measured reactions), were created to test various quality issues seen by the naked eye. Characteristics that were evaluated included lamp aesthetics, color temperature on skin tones, color rendering of standard color swatch sheets, color consistency within the beam on a white board, evenness of the beam, beam smoothness at the edges and dimming qualities using a quality dimmer.

A second test was then taken onsite at the offices of Helix Architecture + Design, where EiKO relamped an entire conference room from existing PAR30 halogens and MR16 lamps to LitespanLED GEN3 PAR30 3000K and MR16 2700K. Helix’s entire team of architects then critiqued the solution, including dimming capabilities with their existing dimmers for further evaluation. Foot-candles were taken during the onsite test to fulfill one of the main priorities of Helix: to conserve energy while maintaining illumination quality. Although tests were strictly visual, they made a positive impression.

Ultimately, the firm opted to upgrade its existing PAR30 and MR16 halogens to LitespanLED replacement lamps throughout its offices. The new retrofit lamps—LED 6WMR16 and 15WPAR30—feature light levels that are adjustable to suit individual preferences, such as in conference room settings. They offer savings of up to 80 percent of current electricity costs, compared to incandescent and halogens, and come with an average lifespan of 35,000 life hours, saving time and energy by requiring fewer replacements. The upgrade was completed in January 2013 and already has reduced energy consumption throughout the office.

Hours of Operation

• Hours per day: 12
• Days per week: 5
• Weeks per year: 52
• Annual hour total: 3,120

Existing and proposed hours to remain same
$/k/Wh used in calculations: $0.099

Return on Investment

• Retrofit installation costs: $2.470
• Annual savings: $1,884
• Years to payback: 1.3 years

Years on payback is without KCPL rebate assistance