WAWA, Pa. -- Wawa Inc. has found a visually appealing vertical refrigerated display lighting with the Immersion RV30 LED technology from GE Lighting. GE helped the operator of more than 600 convenience store/gas station locations to drive down energy consumption. As a result, Wawa now experiences combined energy and maintenance savings exceeding $1 million a year, GE said.
With the help of GE Lighting distributor Facility Solutions Group (FSG), Wawa installed 4,000K Immersion LED lighting in refrigerated cooler and freezer cases in 590 locations.
"In 2006 we saw our utility budget increasing between 12 and 15% over each of the previous five years," said Scott Boorse, energy and petroleum operations manager for Wawa. "In response, we created an energy group to determine where the money was going. It turned out lighting accounted for 30% of our electric usage."
Wawa tested and evaluated three competitive LED solutions in refrigerated coolers in several of its stores beginning in 2008. Offering significant energy savings, high-quality uniform light, a long reliable service life and faster installation, GE's Immersion RV30 LED emerged as the winner following Wawa's assessment, GE said.
"Not only did Immersion give us the best visual appearance to meet our brand image, we've also seen an immense electricity savings and shear drop in maintenance," Boorse added. "What's most important is that when customers walk in there are no bulbs burnt out in the refrigerated cases. That consistent well-lit image is giving us better brand quality throughout our chain."
Annual cost savings equated to $1.2 million across Wawa's entire chain, said GE. Ultimately, the company will experience project payback after only 26 to 28 months, it added.
GE sells products under the Reveal and Energy Smart consumer brands, and Evolve, GTx, Immersion, Infusion, Lumination and Tetra commercial brands.
Wawa, with headquarters in Wawa, Pa, is a chain of more than 595 convenience retail stores (300 offering gasoline). Stores are located in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia and Florida. The stores offer a large fresh foodservice selection, including Wawa brands such as built-to-order hoagies, freshly-brewed coffee, hot breakfast sandwiches, built-to-order specialty beverages, and an assortment of soups, sides and snacks.
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