FSA investment cuts energy costs
Food Services of America (FSA), a national foodservice distribution company, was spending thousands of dollars per year to light, cool, and operate its 420,000-square-foot distribution warehouse in Woodburn OR.
More than 450 employees were using plenty of energy to run computers, light production areas, and cool the warehouse. In particular, the outdated 400-watt metal halide and T12 fixtures throughout the building produced so much heat that the cooling systems had to use more energy to keep freezer and food storage areas at the proper temperature.
FSA began looking for ways to save energy and reduce operating costs. With help from Energy Trust of Oregon trade ally contractor Eoff Electric Supply, FSA found that a major lighting improvement was the right investment to deliver long-term cost savings and a short payback period. FSA replaced 379 fixtures in its freezer, dry storage, truck shop, and maintenance and beverage areas with 373 energy-efficient T5 lamp fixtures to help reduce energy use.
According to David Gattuccio, FSA facilities manager, employees noticed a change at once. “The quality of the light and the color rendering is a huge improvement,” he said. “Because the light is better, our employees are doing their job more efficiently. Since the new lighting needs less energy, the refrigeration system isn’t working as hard to keep things cool.”
The improvements are estimated to save more than 650,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity per year and save more than $45,000 in annual utility costs. Energy Trust provided FSA with $52,491 in cash incentives toward the total project cost of $130,500. The incentive was a main factor in FSA’s decision to make the investment.
FSA’s investment in energy-efficiency solutions is part of a corporate-wide commitment to sustainability. The Portland OR branch of FSA has been certified by the Food Alliance for sustainable business practices. FSA recently completed a Kaizen Blitz study with Energy Trust and Program Delivery Contractor Portland General Electric Customer Technical Services to find no- and low-cost ways to save energy throughout its facility. The company is starting to implement recommendations from the study that could save up to another 1.5 million kWh.
Learn more at www.energytrust.org or call 1-866-368-7878.