EverLast® Lighting Exceeds Specification Standards, and Is Used In
Gerdau Steel Lighting Upgrade
JACKSON, MICHIGAN – April 25th, 2014 –
Earlier this year, the Gerdau facility located in
Knoxville, Tennessee began searching for a lighting solution that could replace
their current metal halide fixtures and withstand the heat of its facilities,
while maintaining enough lumens to create visibility in its dimly lit
locations. Gerdau is a leading producer
of long steel in the Americas and one of the largest suppliers of special steel
in the world. With over 45,000 employees, it has industrial operations in 14
countries - in the Americas, Europe and Asia - which together represent an
installed capacity of over 25 million metric tons of steel per year. Gerdau’s Knoxville steel mill in the
Lonsdale community has operated for 110 years under various names and owners,
and Gerdau took over the mill’s operations in 1999 and employs nearly 240 local
residents there.
The steel re-bar
giant reached out to EverLast® Lighting to find a solution that would meet
their lighting specifications where LED had failed. “Gerdau had tried to replace the metal halide fixtures
with different LED lines in all three of their plant locations in Knoxville,
and were not pleased with the performance of the LEDs,” explained Bruce
Sizemore, Representative of Sizemore Performance located in Walland, Tennesse. “Based on their findings, we knew that we had
to find a fixture that would be able to perform in their facility, with little
maintenance.”
Specifically, the LED fixtures
were not able to withstand the heat or the environment of the Gerdau
facilities. “The ceilings in the plant
are about 140-160 degrees and the lens on the LED fixtures began to melt off,”
explained Steve Trefethen, Green Technician at Gerdau Steel. “We also have a lot of steel dust that floats
in our air and eventually the dust begins to compile onto each fixture. The result of the weight of the compiled dust
ultimately unhinged each fixture from the area it was installed sending it
crashing to floor.”
As a result of the LEDs failing to meet specifications,
Gerdau moved forward with replacing several hundred metal halide fixtures with
EverLast® induction high bay fixtures and were exceptionally pleased. “In addition to a plethora of product, and
application issues the LED was extremely expensive, and the light output was
not as optimal as the EverLast® Induction fixtures. Furhtermore, Gerdau needed a fixture that was
compatible with DC power, and we were able to convert from AC to DC with the
EverLast® line pretty easily,” commented Sizemore. “The staff at the facilities were shocked at
the aesthetics of new lighting.”
EverLast® induction light fixtures last up to 100,000
hours which is double the life of an LED. They are also available with a
dimmable option, providing even more energy savings while areas are vacant. “Gerdau is now enjoying about a 70 percent
savings on their overall energy consumption compared to their previous
fixtures, and are very pleased with the induction technology.” stated Sizemore.
The EverLast® High Bay fixtures are commonly used in
large scale facilities and can be found installed in COBO Hall in Detroit,
Michigan, the Tulsa Expo Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Lambeau Field, home of
the Green Bay Packers in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
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About
EverLast® Lighting: EverLast® Lighting, Inc. is a
sister company of Full Spectrum Solutions, Inc. and has quickly grown into the
leading manufacturer of energy-efficient lighting solutions for roadway,
parking structure, facility and area lighting applications. For additional
product information, visit www.everlastlight.com,
call 888-383-7578 or send an email to info@everlastlight.com.
For press inquiries, contact
Kyle Leighton at 517-783-3800 ext.231 or email at kyle@everlastlight.com.
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