Smart Infrastructure: Stop & Shop Green Lights an Efficient IoT Solution

Stop & Shop drives energy savings with a commercial lighting control system that integrates IoT technologies with mesh networking, and a cloud-based energy management system from Daintree.

Image credit: GE Current

Businesses strive to function efficiently. In addition to operational improvements that speed up processes and improve accuracy, companies can make gains in energy efficiency. IoT technologies are making this easier, as evidenced by a grocery store in Massachusetts, which implemented LED technologies with a wireless lighting control system from GE Current, a subsidiary of Daintree.

The GE Current solution integrates various types of LED lighting luminaires with sensors and controls in a mesh network and integrates with the Daintree Networked wireless controls management systems. The Daintree Enterprise solution uses Intel® gateways and Atom® processors. It integrates with wireless area controllers and wireless adapters with Intel® technologies, which enable it to connect to legacy wired devices and a system controller.

The sensors monitor light use, light levels, occupancy rates, and other data points. Especially useful are daylight-harvesting sensors, which monitor the natural light in a space and adjust the light from each fixture accordingly. The controls enable task tuning—adjusting each light as necessary. For example, the system can dim the LED lights when natural light is high or when rooms or areas are inactive. Task tuning results in an average energy savings of 36 percent. Dimming also reduces the internal temperature of LED lights, which extends the life cycle of the bulbs.

Each lighting device is connected to the mesh network, enabled by ZigBee. A wireless area controller sends the data to the cloud, where the management system resides. The cloud-based management system enables companies to establish fixture groups based on location or use and provides easy access to the real-time data. Data mining and analytics allow businesses to glean information about energy consumption, space utilization, and other metrics.

Daintree offers the ControlScope Manager for commercial lighting systems and the AllSites Energy Management platform. AllSites integrates the lighting system with a building’s other smart systems, such as HVAC and refrigeration, for an even broader view of energy use and consumption, and can be deployed across multiple locations. Both platforms tie into other Daintree or third-party applications designed to boost productivity.

Graphic image showing smart lightin setting

Image credit: Daintree

At the Corner of Data and Energy

The Stop & Shop in New Bedford, Massachusetts, decided to invest in LED lighting to reduce its energy consumption. The 73,000 square feet store houses the main grocery area, plus offices and a smaller mezzanine space upstairs. The owners swapped out the existing fluorescent lighting for energy-saving LED lighting. Each of the fixtures was shipped with integrated occupancy and daylight-harvesting sensors and the ZigBee mesh networking capabilities. Using the Daintree software, devices were task-tuned for efficient use.

According to an analysis by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in partnership with the Cadmus Company, Stop & Shop’s initial installation of LED lights led to a 30 percent decrease in estimated energy use. Energy savings jumped an additional 36 percent as a result of task tuning and occupancy and daylight sensing controls. In total, the Stop & Shop implementation provided a 66 percent energy savings, nearly $66,000 annually, and the return on investment was predicted to be 7.5 years.

Stop & Shop’s parent company, Ahold, is working with GE Current and its channel partner ENGIE Services US, to roll out additional lighting and energy management systems to more Stop & Shop and Giant Food grocery stores in the US.

A smart lighting system can translate into substantial energy savings. It’s more energy efficient, easy to maintain, and can be adjusted on the fly, all while boosting the bottom line.