LG Warehouse Installation

LG undertook the installation of the plasma lighting systems in a new warehouse located in Yangsan, South Korea. The warehouse had dimensions of 515ft x 300ft for a total floor space of 154500sq ft and had a ceiling height of 40ft. The target floor lumination was 250 lux. The lighting simulation showed a requirement of 266 units of 400 watt metal halide lamps or 102 units of 700 watt plasma lamps, model PSH0731B to achieve the illumination targets. After doing a site inspection and cost analysis, the decision was made to go with plasma lamps for the superior colors, immense cost savings and even illumination.

Luminaire Positions

Simulated Illumination Levels

Initial Fixed Costs

400w Metal Halide Lamps:				700w Plasma Lamps:
Part	# of Units	Cost	Total Cost	Part	# of Units	Cost	Total Cost
Bulb	266	$50	$13300	Luminaire	102	$1500	$153000
Ballast	266	$60	$15960
Fixture	266	$100	$26600
		Subtotal	$55860			Subtotal	$153000
Installation Labor Costs	266	$50	$13300	Installation Labor Costs	102	$50	$5100
		Initial Cost	$69160			Initial Cost	$158100

Installation labor costs is calculated at $50 per fixture, which takes into consideration the time to install, lift equipment and the wiring involved in installing these fixtures. Initial fixed costs came out to be $158100 for the plasma lamps compared to $69160 for metal halide lamps, a difference of $88940. The cost of plasma lamps might seem high at first, but keep in mind energy costs and maintenance costs are far more important and that's where you'll see the tremendous savings with plasma lamps, as shown in the charts below. Note, the plasma fixtures prices are high estimates and are available at a lower price. The metal halide lamps are current retail prices.

Energy Costs

400w Metal Halide Lamps:		700w Plasma Lamps:
Watts per Fixture	460w	Watts per Fixture	730w
Color Rendering Index	60~65	Color Rendering Index	80~85
# of Units	266	# of Units	102
Power Consumption	122360w	Power Consumption	74460w
Cost per kWh	$0.15	Cost per kWh	$0.15
Hours per Day	15	Hours per Day	15
Days per Year	300	Days per Year	300
Annual Power Consumption	550620kWh	Annual Power Consumption	335070kWh
Annual Energy Costs	$82593	Annual Energy Costs	$50260
		Annual Energy Savings	$32333

The LG warehouse is a distribution facility and required the lights to be on for 15 hours a day, 300 days out of the year, or roughly 6 out of 7 days a week. The 460w figure for the metal halide lamps include the power used by the ballast. The annual energy savings is obvious with plasma lamps. A total of $32333 is saved annually, which pays off for the price difference in the initial fixed costs within 2.7 years. But wait, there's more! Plasma lamps require less maintenance because the bulbs do not dim with age and the parts last longer, see the below chart for details.

Maintenance Costs

400w Metal Halide Lamps:		700w Plasma Lamps:
Bulb Life	10000 hours	Magnetron Life	30000 hours
Ballast Life	30000 hours
Hours on per Year	4500	Hours on per Year	4500
Hours per 10 Years	45000	Hours per 10 Years	45000
Bulb Replacements in 10 Years	4.5	Magnetron Replacements in 10 Years	1.5
Ballast Replacements in 10 Years	1.5
# of Bulbs Replaced	1197	# of Magnetrons Replaced	153
# of Ballasts Replaced	399
Replacement Parts Cost	$83790	Replacement Parts Cost	$45900
Bulb Replacement Labor Costs	$29925	Magnetron Replacement Labor Costs	$3825
Ballast Replacement Labor Costs	$9975
Ten Year Labor Costs	$39900	Ten Year Labor Costs	$3825
Ten Year Parts Cost	$83790	Ten Year Parts Cost	$45900
Ten Year Energy Costs	$825930	Ten Year Energy Costs	$502600
Ten Year Total Operating Costs	$949620	Ten Year Total Operating Costs	$552330
Annual Total Operating Costs	$94962	Annual Total Operating Costs	$55233
		Annual Total Savings	$39729
		Price Difference Payoff Time	2.23 Years

Though metal halide bulbs might be rated for 20000 hours, lumen depreciation within the first 10000 hours drops by 30%. Bulb orientation can also have a substantial effect on the bulb life and brightness. We used a figure of $25 per part replacement for the labor costs. Once we factor in the maintenance costs, the savings are even greater. Total costs to operate the plasma lamps annually is only $55233 compared to $94962 for metal halide. This is an annual savings of $39729, which means the initial price difference of $58340 between plasma and metal halide will be paid off in just 2.23 years!

Keep in mind these energy costs are calculated under the assumption energy prices remain the same during the 10 years. History has proven that energy costs will always rise with time so the payback time might be quicker than the figures shown above. 1197 metal malide bulbs and the 60000mg of mercury that those bulbs would have contained were saved from the landfills by going with plasma lamps. Note the lower color rendering index of 60~65Ra with the metal halide lamps compared to 80~85Ra with the plasma lamps. The savings and benefits are obvious.

Picture of Final Installation