AZUSA, CA – Cardinal Pet Care, which turned its 36,000 square foot manufacturing center into one of the first all-solar-powered production plants last year, has equipped a soon-to-be-opened 70,000-square-foot distribution center with an outdoor LED lighting system also powered by the sun. The LEDs light the building's exterior, landscaping and 67,000-square-foot parking lot. As part of the global "10/10/10" campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of carbon emissions, Cardinal president and CEO Tony de Vos "flipped the switch" to activate the LED system on his building and in his facility's parking lot.
Cardinal's "switch ceremony" was one of 7,347 events that took place in more than 188 countries to reduce carbon emissions on Oct. 10. The coordinated events were part of an awareness-raising effort by 350.org, whose name refers to the 350 parts per million level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere that many scientists believe is necessary for sustainability. (The carbon dioxide level is currently 388 and rising every year.)
The LED system consists of 120 fixtures from US Architectural/Sun Valley Lighting featuring 139 watt Luxeon LEDs. Supplied by California Lighting Sales, the new LED system saves Cardinal 8,000 watts of connected lighting load, which equates to approximately .12 watts per square foot over the energy that would have been consumed if Cardinal had used metal halide pole lighting. Based on this savings, Cardinal expects a return on its green investment in less than three years.
