Rensselaer Smart Lighting research center deploys first LED bulbs on its campus

The new Smart Lighting Engineering Research Center (ERC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) of Troy, NY, USA has transformed a key building on RPI's campus into a test bed for high-efficiency lighting. Led by director Robert Karlicek, the Smart Lighting ERC worked with campus officials to replace some of the conventional incandescent bulbs in overhead lights with LED bulbs in the nine-story George M. Low Center for Industrial Innovation (CII). The initial batch of 119 replaced bulbs is expected to pay for itself via energy and labor cost savings within 12–16 months. Following the payback period, the bulbs are forecast to result in annual savings of $5608.