Co-Op supermarket switches to energy-efficient LED Lighting solutions

December 6, 2012
News

Gemma Lighting were delighted to provide LED lighting solutions to the Co-Op Welcome store at Frobisher House, Southampton.

Replacing the existing lighting setup as part of a store refurbishment, Gemma Lighting’s LED ceiling tiles meant the store saved more than 80% in energy costs and reduced their carbon emissions by 11 tonnes per annum.

The Co-Operative Group is the UK’s fifth biggest food retailer and employs more than 74,000 people across its 2,800 stores. The Southampton store at Frobisher House is run by franchise and falls under the Southern Co-Operative group, which despite a tough year in retail still achieved a sales increase of 2.1% in 2011/12.

In line with its drive to lower their energy consumption and become a greener company, the Co-Op Welcome store contacted Gemma Lighting LTD to provide more energy-efficient LED lighting at their Frobisher House site – already aware of the benefits of Gemma Lighting’s products after successfully working in partnership to complete the very first LED lit supermarket back in 2006.

The lighting setup initially in the store consisted of 54 fluorescent tube modular fittings, consuming almost 600 kilo watts per week as the lights needed to be on throughout the store’s trading hours, plus one third which also remained on overnight for security. The fluorescent lights were also difficult to maintain and had expensive refurbishment costs.

The Venus 24 LED ceiling tile was selected for this project – with high uniformity and a wide voltage range meaning the Co-Op Welcome store could easily replace the old fluorescent lights in the store. With an instant strike up time of 100ns the Venus 24 is also very efficient, consuming a total of 31 watts, and with a large lifespan of up to 100,000 hours the store would save approximately £2,160 a year on refurbishment costs, as well as a further 68% reduction in annual energy costs.

Co-Op Welcome franchise company director Richard Inglis said: “Our experience with Gemma Lighting was very pleasant. Communications were always handled professionally and when we asked a question we got an answer.

“Although more LED lighting companies are emerging Gemma’s prices are more competitive and provide a comprehensive and professional service that I would recommend to other companies seeking similar solutions.”