Lighting is one of the most costly expenditures for commercial building owners, accounting for approximately 15 percent of global electricity consumption. Lighting structures specific to parking facilities often operate for roughly 24 hours per day resulting in about $10 billion in electricity costs in the U.S. alone. The energy used for lighting parking facilities is equal to the annual energy use of more than 10 million homes! The Lighting Energy Efficiency in Parking (LEEP) Campaign was created to support commercial parking facility owners and managers through technical guidance and resources for the application of proven high-efficiency lighting systems to maximize the opportunity for savings.  LEEP participants on average save more than 60 percent compared to their previous installations, with some sites saving over 90 percent.

A collaboration between U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), Building Owners and Managers Association International (BOMA), International Facility Management Association (IFMA), and International Parking Institute in conjunction with the Department of Energy, the campaign’s participants have upgraded or installed energy efficiency equipment and/or lighting controls in over 560 million square feet of parking facilities, representing 1.7 million parking spots. Participants have saved 227 million kWh annually, amounting to $23.6 million in electricity savings and deferring the energy usage of roughly 211,000 homes.

The LEEP Campaign awarded 15 participants during IFMA’s annual World Workplace Conference and Expo for achieving exceptional energy reductions in parking facilities through high-efficiency lighting and controls.

The 2017 winners and their accomplishments are detailed below. Learn more about the campaign and how to receive recognition for your organization.

Alexandria City Public Schools was awarded in the Exemplary Municipal Sector Parking Facility category for replacing the lighting in a 60,000-square-foot underground parking structure at TC Williams High School. The new lighting system has facilitated energy savings of 74 percent, resulting in 63,000 kWh saved per year. Alexandria’s lighting design is 63 percent below most current energy code requirements.

Brixmor Property Group was awarded in two categories – Highest Annual Energy Savings and Highest Percentage Energy Savings in a Retrofit at a Single Parking Lot – for submitting three parking facilities for consideration with one saving an astonishing 711,000 kWh per year and another achieving 91 percent in energy savings. Overall, Brixmor retrofitted 1.8 million square feet of parking space in 2017 and is saving 1.5 million kWh across the three facilities, equivalent to approximately $150,000 saved per year.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives National Laboratory and Fire Research Center was awarded in the Exemplary Federal Sector Parking Facility category for retrofitting a 160,000-square-foot parking lot and achieving 53 percent in energy savings. In comparison with the previous lighting system, the upgrade has facilitated savings of 66,500 kWh per year, equivalent to $7,000 per year in cost savings.

Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. was awarded in the Exemplary Office/Industrial Sector Parking Facility for its retrofit of four parking lots and one parking structure on their corporate campus. The five facilities represent over 1.7 million square feet and have saved an average of 67 percent in energy use. Overall, the upgrades have resulted in energy savings of 656,000 kWh per year, equivalent to $68,000 per year in cost savings.

Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis was awarded in the Exemplary Higher Education Sector Parking Facility category. Indianapolis retrofit the lighting in two parking garages and used high efficiency lighting in their newly constructed parking structure. The newly constructed parking garage achieved 26 percent more in energy savings than an ordinary garage built to code and the retrofits resulted in energy savings of approximately 65 percent. In total, IUPUI saved one million kWh across over 1 million square feet, equivalent to $100,000 per year in cost savings.

Kimco Realty Corporation was awarded in three categories – Largest Number and Largest Area of Facility Upgrades, and Largest Portfolio-Wide Annual Absolute Energy Savings – for its 2017 retrofit of 58 parking facilities across 17.5 million square feet, contributing to its overall total of 304 retrofits since 2012. With an average savings over 40 percent compared to the original energy use, Kimco actualizes an annual energy savings of 15 million kWh across the 300 sites, equivalent to $1.6 million in cost savings.

Mayo Clinic was awarded in the Exemplary Healthcare Sector Parking Facility category for the retrofit of 19 parking facilities across two states. The retrofits, which included structures and lots, were made across 3.4 million square feet and resulted in energy savings of 2.1 million kWh annually, equivalent to $220,000 in cost savings per year.

MC Realty Group, LLC was awarded in two categories – Highest Percentage Energy Savings in a Retrofit at a Single Parking Structure and Highest Percentage Energy Savings in New Construction at a Single Parking Structure – for its retrofit of two parking garages representing 260,000 square feet. MC Realty achieved annual energy savings of 300,000 kWh, equivalent to $31,000 in cost savings.

Nellis Air Force Base was awarded in the Exemplary Federal Sector Parking Facility category for its lighting upgrade of 30 parking lots representing 5.8 million square feet. The base achieved an average energy savings of 77 percent with one parking lot saving 84 percent.

Pittsburgh Sports and Exhibition Authority (PSEA) was awarded in three categories – Highest Annual Energy Savings and Highest Percentage Energy Savings in a Retrofit at a Single Parking Structure and Best Use of Lighting Controls in a Single Facility. PSEA upgraded lighting and lighting controls in two parking garages. The lighting controls allowed PSEA to control monitor and manage the lighting across the 1 million square fee. leading to annual energy savings of 1.7 million kWh, an 85 percent reduction in comparison to the previous installation.

University of Alberta – Facilities & Operations was awarded in the Exemplary Higher Education Sector Parking Facility category for its efficiency upgrades for one parking garage, which resulted in 17 percent energy savings.

University of Oklahoma was awarded in the Highest Annual Energy Savings in New Construction at a Single Parking Structure category for its installation of a combination of lighting controls to reduce the energy usage from existing high-efficiency lighting. The university was able to achieve 35 percent energy savings in comparison to new construction that is built to code. The 234,000 kWh saved annually is equivalent to $24,000 per year in cost savings.

Virginia Commonwealth University was awarded in the Exemplary Higher Education Sector Parking Facility category for its lighting upgrade of a campus parking structure, which resulted in energy savings of 369,000 kWh, equivalent to $38,000 in cost savings per year.

Welltower Inc. was awarded in the Exemplary Healthcare Sector Parking Facility category for its lighting upgrades across 17 facilities representing 1.9 million square feet, with an average savings of 59 percent across the parking lots. Welltower has achieved annual energy savings of 431,000 kWh, equivalent to $44,000 in cost savings.

Yamaha Motor Corporation was awarded in the Exemplary Retail/Commercial Sector Parking Facility category for upgrading the lighting at its U.S. headquarters located in California. The upgrade resulted in 81 percent energy savings in comparison to the original lighting installation. Yamaha has achieved energy savings of 197,000 kWh per year, equivalent to approximately $20,000 in cost savings.