L Prize A-Lamp for Hospitality Applications

This project field tests the L Prize Entry lamps from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) L Prize Contest. In conjunction with rigorous laboratory testing by the DOE and field-testing in various markets by utility and energy efficiency partners, the lamps were tested, installed, and monitored. The project is the culmination of a partnership with the DOE in the areas of promoting energy efficiency. The L Prize Contest aims at pushing the industry to develop new and innovative energy efficient technologies specifically to replace the common incandescent lamp. This project is to field test the first entry into the contest. There are over 20 partners conducting field tests across the country in various market segments. The market segments in which the lamps were tested in is the hospitality sector also known as the hotel/motel market segment. A short window of time was allotted for the testing as all 100 lamp samples needed to be returned to the DOE, as this field assessment is part of a larger set of rigorous testing being conducted by the DOE to determine if the entry meets all the requirements to win the contest The findings indicate that the lamps perform very well. When compared with a standard 60 Watt (W) type incandescent lamp (actual wattage is 57W due to California standards) the L Prize entry excelled with 12% more light output while using about 80% less energy. When compared to a 60W equivalent compact fluorescent lamp at 13W, there was similar light output while using about 20% less energy. One lamp seemed to change colors over the installation period, but the other lamps did not show any signs of failure. The overall response to the performance from surveys conducted was positive in that there was little difference noted in the light output from the lamps. As this project is part of a larger project it is recommended to wait for the final results from the DOE testing before making any decisions to move forward with adopting this lamp into any energy efficiency programs however, the lamps did show a lot of promise and clearly indicates that LED technology in an integral replacement lamp is feasible. In addition, there are other new products as well as the possibility of future entries into the contest. In addition, new ENERGY STAR® specifications for these types of lamps are on the horizon and may help to distinguish the high performance products on the market.