Ecopoint Donates LED Lighting to Maungaraki School

News Release 16 April 2014

Ecopoint Donates LED Lighting to Maungaraki School

Ecopoint, the Wellington based company that specialises in LED lighting solutions, is proud to announce it has donated LED lights to Maungaraki School library, as part of a trial undertaken in partnership with the Dynamis Project.

The Dynamis Project is a new initiative; set up to use schools as pilots to demonstrate and test new technologies, with the overall aim of encouraging communities to become more self-sufficient. One of the Dynamis Project’s key areas of focus is reducing power consumption in schools, making a partnership with Ecopoint a logical choice, as using LEDs is a simple way to greatly reduce energy consumption.

Paul Wilton, Ecopoint’s director, said: “We are thrilled to be involved in this initiative, and we hope it will lead to more schools getting on board. Educating the public on the many benefits of LED is important, so we didn’t have to think too hard about sponsoring Maungaraki School – there are so many benefits to installing LED lights, and educating children about LED lighting technology is a great place to start! Our role in the initiative was straightforward - we replaced all of the library’s fluorescent tubes with LED tubes. Now, the energy savings can begin for Maungaraki School!”

Maungaraki School Library is in two parts and prior to installing the LEDs, light readings were taken from the larger of the two areas. Even with the existing fluorescent lights on, the room was quite dull in the centre. A lux meter was then used to measure light levels – the Ministry of Education recommends that levels throughout classrooms and school libraries should be between 300-500 lux. Lux readings of the old light fittings at Maungaraki School Library ranged between 142 and 320 lux, while Ecopoint’s LED replacements showed lux readings that ranged from 350-520; an average increase in lux of 103% overall.

Ecopoint designs, manufactures and supplies top quality, energy efficient, LED lighting solutions. At present, our core range comprises an array of tubes, including those designed specifically for refrigeration, as well as panels, floodlights, street lights, all-purpose bulbs, high bays and low bays. All of Ecopoint’s range is mercury and UV free, RoHS compliant and approved to Australia and New Zealand safety standards.

Our super-efficient LED lights offer superior quality lighting with the added benefit of hugely reducing the amount of power used for lighting by up to 70%. Their (average) 50,000 hour life expectancy ensures that maintenance and replacements costs are substantially reduced. Furthermore, Ecopoint LED lights are simple to retrofit, making the change to LED simple. All of Ecopoint’s LED lights are 100% recyclable and come with a (minimum) three year warranty. Ecopoint’s clients include Cocoa Cola, Pepsi, Schweppes, Foodstuffs, Wellington City Council, BHP and Skope, as well as several Government Agencies.

Ecopoint have recently also launched a schools-based fundraising initiative, which will see schools selling Ecopoint LED lights, and securing a commission for the school off each sale. It is all part of the plan to educate the public on the benefits of LED lighting.

Maungaraki School Principal Lisa Cavanagh said: “We are thrilled with the results already! The lighting levels are now much higher and more even throughout the room. The lights turn on instantly and do not flicker, which was a common problem with our old fluorescent lights. The LED units are also much safer, as they are made of shatterproof polycarbonate and not glass – there was always a concern that in an earthquake, the older fluorescent tubes could shatter. It is also reassuring to know that there are no nasty things like mercury in our new LED lights.

“We feel privileged to be the pilot school for this initiative, we are so grateful to the Dynamis Project and Ecopoint for involving us in this scheme. Already we are benefitting from our new LED lights, and we highly recommend other schools in New Zealand look at replacing their fluorescent lighting with LED technology, so that they can begin saving power and educating their pupils about energy efficiency and the next generation of lighting.”

ENDS

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