Cooper Lighting LED Products Significantly Reduce Energy Consumption and Cost at Austin's City Hall Parking Garage

PEACHTREE CITY, Ga., Nov. 30, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The parking garage at the City Hall in Austin, Texas, houses 750 parking spaces and must leave its lights on 24 hours a day, making for high energy usage and big electrical bills. After evaluating several manufacturers' LED products, city officials chose LED luminaires from Cooper Lighting, an industry leader committed to delivering innovative products and driving transformational technology in the lighting industry. By replacing approximately 425 175-watt metal halide fixtures with McGraw-Edison Concise™ LED Luminaires, the city will reduce the wattage in the parking garage by 74 percent and save $46,000 annually in electricity costs.

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The LED lighting replacement project was funded as part of a $7.5 million grant provided through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), which was awarded to Austin Energy to increase the efficiency of municipal facilities in the City of Austin. Replacing the 175-watt fixtures with 53-watt LED fixtures, the parking garage will see a savings of 575,462 kilowatt-hours of electricity each year.

When tasked with selecting fixtures for the parking garage, Austin Energy researched several manufacturers' products and performed a test installation of five fixtures. Cooper Lighting's product was rated as the best performing LED fixture after measuring light levels and was ultimately chosen for its low profile, superior energy savings and payback.

"After measuring fixture performance, calculating project savings and payback and soliciting opinions from facility stakeholders and the general public, the City of Austin determined that the Cooper LED luminaire best met the needs for the City Hall Parking Garage," says James Parker, Project Manager, City of Austin. "We were impressed by Cooper's reputation as a manufacturer and their ability to meet tight project delivery schedules. After installing the Cooper Lighting LED fixtures, we are realizing a significant reduction in energy usage and savings in energy costs while dramatically improving the quality and quantity of lighting. This response by the citizens of Austin has been overwhelmingly enthusiastic and positive. We are literally saving the amount of electricity equivalent to the power used by 48 average homes in Austin each year. This has been one of the most impressive projects I have completed in my career."

The McGraw-Edison Concise LED Luminaires feature patent-pending, modular LED LightBAR™ technology, which delivers uniform illumination to improve vehicular movement and pedestrian safety. The LED fixtures offer energy savings from 30-75% over standard H.I.D sources found in many applications today. The one-piece, die-cast aluminum rugged housing features heavy wall construction for superior heat transfer and reliable operation in -30 degrees C to 40 degrees C ambient conditions.

"Cooper Lighting is always proud to know that we are helping cities and residents reach their energy reduction goals, saving thousands of dollars each year," said Mark Eubanks, President, Cooper Lighting. "It is exciting to see so many cities across the country taking advantage of the benefits that LED technology can offer, and we are continuing to develop products and technologies to keep up with the pace of these project needs and goals. We are pleased that the City of Austin chose our product and that they are seeing the results they anticipated."

Cooper Lighting offers a range of indoor and outdoor LED lighting products and corresponding accessories, all of which are specifically designed to maximize energy and cost savings.  For additional information, visit www.cooperlighting.com.

About Cooper Lighting

Cooper Lighting, a subsidiary of Cooper Industries plc (NYSE: CBE), is the leading provider of world-class lighting fixtures and controls to commercial, industrial, retail, institutional, residential and utility markets. As lighting technologies have advanced over the years, Cooper Lighting has been at the forefront of the industry in helping businesses and communities leverage the latest technologies to improve efficiency, reduce costs and enrich the quality of the environment. For more information, visit www.cooperlighting.com.

About Cooper Industries

Cooper Industries plc (NYSE: CBE) is a global electrical products manufacturer with 2010 revenues of $5.1 billion. Founded in 1833, Cooper's sustained success is attributable to a constant focus on innovation, evolving business practices while maintaining the highest ethical standards and meeting customer needs. The Company has seven operating divisions with leading market positions and world-class products and brands including: Bussmann electrical and electronic fuses; Crouse-Hinds and CEAG explosion-proof electrical equipment; Halo and Metalux lighting fixtures; and Kyle and McGraw-Edison power systems products. With this broad range of products, Cooper is uniquely positioned for several long-term growth trends including the global infrastructure build-out, the need to improve the reliability and productivity of the electric grid, the demand for higher energy-efficient products and the need for improved electrical safety. In 2010 fifty-nine percent of total sales were to customers in the industrial and utility end-markets and thirty-nine percent of total sales were to customers outside the United States. Cooper has manufacturing facilities in 21 countries as of 2010. For more information, visit the website at www.cooperindustries.com.

SOURCE Cooper Lighting