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Augusta officials are planning to take control of their streetlights.
ROCHESTER — As part of its work to help customers better manage their energy, an Eversource partnership with the Rochester School District is nearing completion of a district-wide effort to upgrade more than 5,700 lighting fixtures — all assembled by U.S. Veterans with Affinity LED Lighting.
The conversion to LED lighting will save the school district about $72,000 a year and reduce annual carbon emissions by 309 tons, the equivalent of taking 70 cars off the road each year. The upgrades are part of the Rochester School District’s ongoing efforts to create a learning environment that is modern, comfortable and energy efficient, said a spokesman.
“This project is just one of the many ways we are connecting municipalities and schools in New Hampshire to solutions for savings,” said Eversource NH Energy Efficiency spokesperson Kate Peters. “By helping our customers to integrate new technologies that deliver significant energy savings, we are helping our customers to reduce their costs and to be better environmental stewards.”
The district-wide lighting system installation will be completed in early 2019. The new units require less maintenance, use up to 75 percent less electricity and are controlled through an application that takes advantage of available daylight and occupancy to offset the amount of electric lighting needed.
A recent tour of the upgrades at Spaulding High School included a lighting assembly demonstration with Affinity LED Lighting’s Founder and CEO Steve Lieber, project manager Dana Caruso and Senior Technician Mike Snay, a U.S. Navy veteran. The demo highlighted innovative, reusable packing that contributes to the overall sustainability of the project.
“These changes will have a lasting, tangible impact and help us reduce our carbon footprint and move toward increased sustainability in all our schools,” said Rochester School District Superintendent Michael Hopkins. “Energy efficiency is vital to keeping costs down and freeing up capital, which allows us to reinvest in programs that directly benefit our students.”