"That's the power of quality lighting," Hafner said. "What
I tell our Philips sales reps is 'show, tell and sell.' Let people
experience the difference quality lighting can make."
During a 90-minute presentation to Gusciora and Chivukula, Hafner
and Environmental Affairs Senior Associate Steve McGuire demonstrated
how Philips has dramatically reduced the level of mercury in its
lighting products, increased the energy efficiency of those products,
and improved the quality of light they generate.
"It was great seeing a New Jersey corporation that is both environmentally
friendly and a good corporate citizen," said Gusciora. "They showed
how they could reduce costs for the consumers and also conserve
our precious natural resources through real energy conservation."
At Philips' Somerset facility, different lamps are installed
in various light fixtures throughout the presentation room. The
fixtures are mounted on tumblers, allowing the lighting source
to be changed with the flick of a switch.
In one demonstration Hafner repeatedly switched the lights in
two identical business offices. One light provided a bright, "cool" feel
to the office while another source gave the adjacent office a softer, "warmer" light.
He then contrasted these lights with the pale harsh light of cheaper
fluorescent bulbs.
One of the chief issues facing the lighting industry is the disposal
of fluorescent light bulbs, which contain mercury, a heavy metal
harmful to the environment. Legislative proposals in other states
to limit mercury content in lighting have failed, in part because
of a lack of understanding of how light bulbs work. A proposal
in New Hampshire, for instance, would have eliminated lighting
at theatres, sports arenas and highways because of the mercury
levels.
"Why do we use mercury? We simply have to," McGuire said. "It
is really the only element we have right now (that works)."
Philips has found a way to help keep the mercury molecules from
binding to the glass casings, where it is ineffective. By keeping
the mercury circulating inside the bulb longer, less mercury is
needed. McGuire says the design has reduced the mercury content
from 22.8 milligrams per bulb to as little as 3.5 milligrams.
Philips light bulbs also use much less energy than regular bulbs,
thus producing less than half the carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide
resulting from electrical energy generated to run them, according
to McGuire.
But Philip's believes conservation can be just as important as
source reduction in protecting the environment.
Hafner points out that even reducing the energy required to run
a light bulb by one watt can make a difference. At a cost of 10
cents per kilowatt-hour, a mere one-watt reduction in a light bulb
could save an office building with a 1,000 lights more than $26,000
a year in energy costs, in addition to reducing the pollution caused
by generating the electricity.
In one demonstration, Hafner showed how a 15-watt compact fluorescent
bulb gives off the same amount of light as a traditional 60-watt
incandescent light bulb, even though it uses only one-fourth of
the electricity.
NJBIA's Site Visit Program is designed to educate legislators
about businesses in their district and the legislative issues that
impact them. If you are interested in hosting a site visit at your
business, contact Libby Vinson at ext. 201 or lvinson@njbia.org. |
