Upgrading to Energy-Efficient Lighting for
energy saving and food safety
It’s always important to us to save
energy and, from a business point of view,
we are always looking for ways to save on
our operational costs, too. This new lighting
will help with that, and the incentive was a
great added bonus.
• Food products
PHILIP LEADBETTER,
Leadbetter Foods
Project:
PROJECT DETAILS
PROJECT COMPLETION DATE
2011
ENERGY 129,837
HOURS
SAVINGS KILOWATT
PER YEAR
DEMAND
SAVINGS
PROJECT COST:
INCENTIVE:
Industry Sector:
30
KILOWATTS
$44, 778
$18,366
• Installation of 185 T5 fluorescent high bay lamps
Leadbetter Foods now boasts two large facilities in Orillia,
Ontario, where it produces its popular Cowboy Steaks
and Premium Bacon and ships them to grocery stores and
restaurants across the country.
“We bought a second plant, 50,000 square feet, in Orillia in 2011,”
says Philip, “but it was not built as a food facility, so the lighting was
not only old and inefficient, it would not meet current food-safety
standards. For example, the fixtures were not encased and so could
not be washed down. They all had to be replaced, and if you’re
going to replace the fixtures, you might as well try to save money
and do the environmentally friendly thing at the same time.”
RIGHT PROGRAM FOR THE RIGHT PROJECT
Through its local electric utility, Orillia Power Distribution Corp.,
Leadbetter Foods applied to the saveONenergyOM RETROFIT
PROGRAM. Funded by the Ontario Power Authority, the program is
delivered by local electric utilities across the province.
“We are very pleased to work with companies like Leadbetter
Foods,” says Lisa Rae, Conservation and Demand Management
Coordinator for Orillia Power Distribution Corp. “As the local
electric utility, we were responsible for helping the company apply
to the program, implement their project and receive the incentive.
Because of their obvious commitment to conservation, we also
told Leadbetter Foods about another program we thought might
be a good fit – the saveONenergy DEMAND RESPONSE DR3
program. They have been enrolled in this program since 2012.”
Under the DEMAND RESPONSE DR3 program, businesses agree
to make a firm commitment to reduce its energy use during periods
of peak demand. In exchange, they get incentive payments.
LIGHTING PROJECT
The Leadbetter Foods lighting project involved the installation of
185 T5 fluorescent high-bay lamps throughout the plant resulted
in energy savings of 129,837 kilowatt-hours a year and demand
savings of 30 kW. To help cover the costs of installing the energyefficient fixtures, which amounted to just under $45,000,
Leadbetter Foods received an incentive of more than $18,000
through the RETROFIT PROGRAM.
FOOD PROCESSING PLANT
“It was a good move for Leadbetter’s,” says Wayne Burritt, Inside
Sales Manager for Nedco in Orillia, which supplied the new lighting
fixtures. “The T5s give a lot more brightness, plus they are instanton, instant-off. The old fixtures would have taken a long time to
cool down after a power failure, and you couldn’t turn them back
on again until they were cool. The new ones are better for
productivity, and safety too.”
NEW LIGHTING PART OF TOTAL RENOVATION
Philip Leadbetter says, “we had to totally renovate the new plant, so
we would have changed out the lighting anyway. The original lighting
in there was antiquated, from the 1960s or 1970s. This new lighting
gives us better light levels. It’s always important to us to save energy
and, from a business point of view, we are always looking for ways
to save on our operational costs, too. This new lighting will help with
that, and the incentive was a great added bonus.”
The company is now starting to replace the older, less efficient
lighting in its other Orillia plant as well. Soon both plants will be
state-of-the-art for energy efficiency.
COLD STORAGE WITH ENERGY-EFFICIENT LIGHTS
ABOUT saveONenergy
Businesses across Ontario are benefiting from incentives to
support energy-efficiency projects.
orilliapower.ca
[email protected]
705-326-7315
@saveonenergyOnt
Youtube.com/ontpowerauthority
Subject to additional terms and conditions found at saveonenergy.ca. Subject to change
without notice. OMOfficial Marks of the Ontario Power Authority.