Honeywell announced that its Ex-Or LED lighting technology has been chosen by retail giant Wal-Mart to retrofit an additional 40 stores across China. Wal-Mart previously implemented the innovative lighting technology in 100 stores. At the completion of this project approximately half of all Wal-Mart stores in China will be outfitted with the energy saving lighting systems. The additional retrofit project is worth approximately $12 million.
China is rapidly phasing out the import and sale of general fluorescent lighting. Energy-saving alternatives such as LED lighting are increasingly preferred by heavy energy users like retailers, call centers and large manufacturing facilities where the need for high quality lighting can enable higher productivity for workers and a more pleasant environment for customers.
Honeywell began to participate in the modernization and implementation of an energy-saving lighting program across China’s Wal-Mart stores back in 2008, providing their supermarkets with comprehensive LED lighting products including main floor lighting, freezer lighting, fresh produce lighting and outdoor billboard lighting. By installing Honeywell’s LED lighting products, each Wal-Mart store can cut its annual electricity consumption by around one million kilowatt-hours, equivalent to about 1,200 tanks of fuel. This represents a savings of approximately 50 percent of electricity expenses on lighting and 15 percent of Wal-Mart’s total electricity expenses.
The significant cost saving and environmental benefits have led Wal-Mart to introduce Honeywell’s LED lighting to an additional 40 stores. Based on preliminary estimates, each of these stores will save around $128,000 per year on their electricity bills. In two and half years, they will have recovered their initial investment costs.
“We are very honored to be able to cooperate with Wal-Mart again to facilitate the growth of green retailing in China,” said Stephen Shang, president and CEO of Honeywell China. “Wal-Mart is famous for its business-wide focus on environmental protection. In Honeywell, nearly 50 percent of our technologies are linked to energy efficiency. Wal-Mart’s decision to expand our LED lighting to another 40 stores is a clear demonstration of their commitment and the high quality of our solutions. LED lighting is an important strategic direction for Honeywell. We have set up a world-class LED lighting R&D and production base in China, and look forward to serving green-minded customers worldwide.”
“Energy saving and environmental protection is essential for the retail industry,” said Peter Sharp, president, Wal-Mart Asia Realty. “Wal-Mart is the first supermarket chain to adopt LED products as its main lighting source worldwide and we are a pioneer of low carbon and energy saving efforts in the retail industry. Honeywell’s LED lighting has a proven track record on performance from the 100 stores installed last year, helping Wal-Mart achieve our energy-saving goals, and we look forward to expanding this green lighting initiative to more stores, both in China and around the world.”
