Leading light

Encouraging electrical contractors and their clients to look beyond initial equipment costs and consider the long-term implications of an installation is easier said than done.

But in a period when the impetus to reduce energy consumption and limit expenditure in associated areas has never been greater, it’s a challenge that cannot be ignored.

As one of the three leading lamp manufacturers, GE Lighting has long been a vocal advocate of energy-efficient lighting, enhancing established product lines like the 2D compact lamp and T5 fluorescent tube ranges to enable greater energy savings.

It’s a strategy that is set to intensify in the future, the intention being that the vast majority of GE’s products will meet exacting energy-efficiency requirements during the next three to four years.

Providing appropriate product is, however, only one part of the story. GE needs to engage more enthusiastically with electrical contractors and their clients.

Confronted by numerous competitive pressures, it is understandable contractors may sometimes feel they have no option but to specify cheaper and less energy-efficient equipment if they are to stand a chance of winning those all-important contracts.

The challenge is to make the case for a more inclusive angle that regards the life story of the installation to be every bit as important as the upfront costs.

Of course, the particular circumstances of a given installation will determine how quickly the original outlay is recompensed, but consider this.

In a large facility with a life of 10, 15, 20 years or more, it stands to reason the initial cost of the lighting installation will be repaid many times over during the life of the building.

With such a scenario, it’s a pretty short-term view to take the cheapest option, and while this may not be done deliberately in many cases, the need for more concerted efforts to convey the message that there are other factors that need to be considered when building plans are devised is beyond question.

It’s important to note that many larger contractors are already factoring in long-term energy costs and rising fuel prices when drawing up proposals and discussing them with potential clients – not to mention the prospects of ever more stringent legislation on carbon consumption from both national and European institutions.

But there is also a sizeable middle and lower tier where the pressures are greater, and the need to provide a quote that balances initial costs with long-term product efficiency is rather more acute.

Talk of a sustained global economic downturn can only add momentum to the cause of energy efficiency

It’s these people in particular that we need to provide with the right tools to enable them to argue that a slightly more expensive approach can offer better long-term viability.

With lighting generally accounting for a significant part of the energy costs in any building, the onus is on companies like GE to provide contractors with the information they need to be able to make the ‘bigger picture’ argument.

In GE’s case, this has already taken a number of forms, including more comprehensive background information on our website, the direct ‘hard copy’ supply of energy-saving data to our existing client base, trade magazine advertising and more.

One of the biggest challenges here is to influence some of the decision-makers that we don’t normally have direct contact with, and as a result we are also looking at the possibility of establishing a programme of seminars and educational meetings in the future.

There will always be a few contractors who are reluctant to consider energy efficiency and choose to focus almost exclusively on price, but there can be no denying that a major sea change is now under way.

Look at the way even the consumer market is being bombarded with information regarding energy-saving products and opportunities, particularly in the lighting sector.

I’ve been in lighting for 34 years, and I’ve never seen such a major shift as the one I have witnessed over the last 18 months. Contractors must acknowledge this development, and the suspicion has to be that those who fail to make energy efficiency an integral part of their offering will lose out in the long run.

Talk of a sustained global economic downturn and the possible implications for businesses of all shapes and sizes can only add further momentum to the cause of energy efficiency.

This means that there has never been a better time to embark upon a renewed educational effort capable of reaching out to contractor and customer alike.

GE Lighting will be playing its part, marrying an increasing number of energy-efficient products with enhanced support and educational initiatives, and we urge competitors and peers in other areas of installation technology to do the same.

The benefits for our firms of switching to an energy-efficient model are already apparent. The challenge is to convey the advantages to the contractors and customers out there.