Westin Montreal: Energy Consumption Analysis

November 7, 2016

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The costs of renovation and fixture replacements can seem daunting for both small and large living and work spaces. However, investing in efficient lighting can translate into significant energy savings and, most importantly, productivity.

Arani, a leading supplier of LED lighting in North America, recently partnered with the Westin Montreal to brighten one of the most prestigious hotels in the city’s historical Old Port, and improve its lighting efficiency at the same time.

To accomplish this, Arani evaluated and compared the performance of the hotel’s current lighting products and fixtures to LED technology in the same environment.

Lighting in hotel rooms provide warm ambiance and security lighting for the ultimate customer experience. Since guests dictate energy consumption within guest accommodations, hotels need to find efficient products to help reduce consumption, especially when the lights could be on 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. Westin Montreal guest rooms, modern and unique, are spacious and have a mix of natural lighting with beautiful city views and architectural lighting that are consistent throughout the facility (shown in photo). The hotel has 455 rooms. Total annual consumption from current lamps and fixtures is 944,580 kWh.

Hotels are also workplaces. Proper lighting conditions make all workspaces and tasks easier on your sight and overall capacity to concentrate. Research in the field of lighting ergonomics proves that you can effectively reduce eye fatigue and headaches with proper lighting. Shown here: this workspace, which served as a storage space and was converted into an executive office, was remodelled to match the Westin’s decor standards. Total annual lighting cost based on consumption of 970kWh: $116.40.

Lighting technology

Linear fluorescent lighting (LFL) and compact fluorescent lighting (CFL) is commonly used throughout the hotel facilities. It is not surprising, as close to 3 billion CFLs are still being manufactured each year, and represent 58% of the world’s artificial light.*

Observations prior to the transformation:

• based on two room evaluations, the hotel uses compact fluorescent technology in the guest rooms.
• colour temperatures differed in the same fixture (2700K, 3000K), which can make lighting look mismatched.
• bulbs with different wattages (13W and 23W) installed side by side in the same fixture also created an uneven glow

T5 tube maintenance

Illuminating the bathroom and the vanity area, these tubes are installed behind the mirror.

An important realization was uncovered during the course of this project. The 32W T5 Tubes were very frequently being replaced in rooms, which monopolizes resources and adds to the hotel’s consumption, expenses and waste.

“The hotel replaces anywhere from 10-20 of these tubes every day,” says the maintenance clerk. “Converting to LED would save on time and energy, and allow me, fellow employees and even electricians to perform other duties — other than changing lamps.”

Lighting technologies have come a long way and have grown tremendously over the past years. Not including LED advancements in electronics and devices, LED lamps and fixtures have become more aesthetic, powerful and efficient. Along with being environmentally friendly products, LED components have no toxic elements and have longer life spans.

Consumption analysis

In partnership with SCEDEL, an energy efficiency analysis firm, the performance and efficiency between the existing lights and the new LED lamps and fixtures were carefully evaluated.

A total of 16 lamps, fixtures and tubes were replaced with Arani bulbs to give a king size guest room a complete lighting transformation, and 2 fluorescent tube fixtures were replaced by panels in an administrative office space.

This resulted in            

• 51% consumption savings in guest rooms
• 40% consumption savings in the office space

When you take in consideration that this hotel has 455 rooms, you can’t ignore the savings. Based on Quebec business rate (G) at 9.71¢/kWh (CAD $), the estimated yearly savings for their total room inventory could be of CAD $ 55 273.40

Guest room equipment and consumption: 48.7% savings

Office equipment consumption: 39.2% energy savings

Visual results

T8 Tube replacements with new LED panel fixtures brightened up the office. The installation of a dimmer for the panels allows lighting to suit any preference. The transformation resulted in brighter, whiter and more consistent lighting throughout the space.

Keeping in mind ambience and functionality, Arani have kept the room’s colour temperature in an inviting warm white (3000K) tone and functional white (4000K) colour.

Although the colours of the light emitted may not be easy to distinguish, there is a difference in the performance of the light as it covers more space in the room.

“The room appears much more spacious, more inviting and visually soothing,” says Amélie Paquin, Executive Housekeeper for Le Westin Montréal.

Hotel savings

Based on the total lifetime of LED technology and acknowledging the energy costs versus savings, equipment price points and acquisition, the average estimated break-even period is of 3 years. With approved government incentives, in this case Hydro-Quebec’s energy efficient programs, the break-even point can be closer to two years.

The estimated return on investment for simply converting 6 twist off lamps from 13W compact fluorescent to 7.5W LED lamps would result in a 672% return on investment per room (estimated lifetime of 7 years, 7 months and 10 days)

Headquartered in Montreal, Quebec since 2009, Arani specializes in designing, manufacturing and distributing energy efficient LED lighting products for commercial and industrial projects. Arani is committed to first-class customer service by providing efficient lighting solutions that are tailored and easy to install. Arani’s LED experts continuously introduce new products that seek to simplify the lives of lighting industry professionals. The company employs over a dozen head office staff and a network of over 20 sales agents in North America. For more information, visit www.arani.ca.