Success Story: Signs By Tomorrow

Partner Information

Located in Rockville, Maryland
2,200-sq. ft. space
Annual Cash Savings: $565
Annual Energy Savings: 5,304 kWh
Payback period: 3.6 years
Prevented 8,486 pounds of pollution

Design Shop Replaces Lights, Saves Energy

Big, bright, colorful letters adorn many of the placards and posters at Signs By Tomorrow, a business in Rockville, MD, that furnishes promotional signs for clients such as businesses, schools, convention coordinators, and the like. “When you’re creating promotional items like these,” said Scott Goehrung, company designer, “you’ve got to make sure that the colors are just right.” And that means he needs high-quality lighting so that his customers can see the products in their “best light.”

Bright Lights, Vibrant Colors

Goehrung, though a designer at the company, was trained as a mechanical engineer. Therefore when the 25 T-12 lamps and magnetic ballasts in the shop were upgraded to T-8 lamps and electronic ballasts, he knew exactly the aesthetic and financial benefits he could expect. “New energy-efficient fluorescent lamps give us the additional security that the colors we are using will look good,” he said, “and we are saving money on our utility bills due to their lower wattage.”

The Art Of Energy Savings

Having training as a mechanical engineer allowed Goehrung to understand the benefits of wattage reduction, energy savings, and pollution prevention. Because of their smaller diameters, use of phosphorous, and special coating, T-8 lamps are about 20percent more efficient than the standard T-12 lamps. The electronic ballasts they use are about 30 percent more efficient than the magnetic ballasts used with T-12 lamps.

Ballasts are devices that provide the proper voltage and current to fluorescent lamps, which do not regulate themselves like incandescent lamps. If you use your lights more than 50 hours a week, converting to T-8 lamps and electronic ballasts will dramatically cut your energy bill.

Signs By Tomorrow also saves energy by using ENERGY STAR labeled computers that power down to a sleep mode. Much of the designing of the placards, posters, and signs is done on computers, so having energy-efficient “sleep modes” makes good financial sense.

Office equipment is the fastest growing electrical load in the business world. Unfortunately, computers, faxes, printers, and copiers waste energy when they remain on and idle. To reduce this waste of energy and the pollution associated with it, manufacturers of major brands of office equipment have partnered with EPA to introduce ENERGY STAR labeled machines that will automatically power down when not in use.

A Spectrum Of Reasons To Upgrade

Goehrung admitted that his training helped him to understand why upgrading saves money. “But,” he said, “you do not have to be an engineer to understand that with more efficient technology you will be saving in your energy costs.” And for Signs By Tomorrow, the numbers speak for themselves. Upgrading the 25 T-12s with magnetic ballasts to T-8s saves the company at least $450 per year on energy costs. And using the ENERGY STAR labeled computers saves the company another $115 a year.

An even more important benefit is that the company’s signs look more vibrant, colorful, and attractive, which will lead to more business. And working in a more attractive environment improves the morale of employees, which will lead to increased productivity.

Lower energy costs, more attractive products, happier employees — you don’t have to be an expert to know that the upgrade has paid off big.

“New energy-efficient fluorescent lamps give us the additional security that the colors we are using will look good.”

Scott Goehrung
Designer
Signs By Tomorrow