The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recognizes Cree Lighting for achieving 50001 Ready recognition in May 2020 at its main manufacturing and assembly facility located in Racine, Wisconsin. Through the 50001 Ready program, Cree Lighting improved the energy performance of the 640,000-square-foot warehouse and distribution facility by 18% over an 18 month period.

DOE’s 50001 Ready program, managed by the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy's Advanced Manufacturing Office, provides a self-paced, no-cost way for organizations to build a culture of structured energy improvement that leads to deeper and more sustained energy savings.

Cree Lighting, a company of IDEAL INDUSTRIES, provides LED and sensor-integrated intelligent lighting solutions for commercial, industrial, and consumer applications across North America and Europe.

Cree Lighting’s Racine, Wisconsin, facility achieved its energy savings through:

• Setting facility-wide heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) temperature controls to limit fluctuations across shifts
• Integrating energy efficiency into the organization’s procurement process to support more strategic equipment choices, and factoring in projected savings over equipment’s lifetime  
• Building an 11-member energy management team, including the heads of most departments, to oversee energy management system implementation

Engaging the more than 800 administrative and manufacturing employees on-site in energy management also helped the facility yield results. Tim Ulrich, Environmental, Health and Safety Director at Cree Lighting reports that an employee suggestions program developed through its 50001 Ready implementation has helped identify many of their best energy and sustainability opportunities—with more than 300 suggestions implemented in the last year.

Based on the impact of the successes observed at the Racine facility, Cree Lighting plans to implement 50001 Ready at its Durham, North Carolina headquarters next.

Learn more about how implementing a 50001 Ready-based energy management system has become an integral part of the Cree Lighting Racine, Wisconsin facility’s broader sustainable strategy.