Glenmead Primary School

Glenmead Primary is a well-respected school in Great Barr, Birmingham that caters for around 400 pupils aged 4-11.

The larger than average school wanted to find ways to reduce operating costs in the most effective way, while also being constrained by a tight budget.

It was aware of the availability of Salix interest-free funding and chose to investigate the potential for cost-reducing LED lighting that did not require big capital investment. The school called for three tenders and awarded the contract to SaveMoneyCutCarbon.

The lighting project would improve the quality of light throughout the school, which was old and had deteriorated.

First requirement was a full survey of the school to assess the state of current lighting and calculate the level of savings to be made by fitting a range of energy-saving LED lamps in all areas. SaveMoneyCutCarbon then discussed in detail the findings with the finance manager to confirm the exact specifications for the project.

SaveMoneyCutCarbon has extensive experience of energy-saving projects in the schools sector and the fully DBS-checked team fully managed the lighting retrofit over an eight-day period, including survey, specification, installation and testing.

It also drew on expert knowledge to complete the complex Salix Finance funding application on behalf of the school, which secured an interest-free loan to cover project costs, with repayments covered by savings on energy bills.

The installation team worked with the school to ensure minimum disruption to teaching activities, replacing 465 lights and fittings with quality LED equivalents from Thorn, Verbatim, Fitzgerald and BG Luceco, including panels, linear battens, lamps, tubes and bulkheads.

As part of the extensive work, the team fitted 32 special LED panels with low glare rating (less than 19). The Thorn Anna panels ensure that glare is minimised in sensitive areas of the school.

LED is the light source of choice for energy-conscious buyers as it provides the best energy efficiency compared with fluorescent and the now banned halogen models. It is also very reliable with excellent quality, lasting for between 40,000 to 50,000 hours of continuous usage, helping to cut maintenance costs.

Every light is fully supported with a no-quibble, five-year manufacturers’ warranty. The retrofit removed fluorescent tubes that generally only last 5,000 hours with the light quality degrading badly well before final failure.

Summary

• 69.8% reduction in lighting costs
• Savings of £4,169.20 per year
• Carbon footprint reduced by over two-thirds
• Self-financing payback period: 7.52 years
• Reduced maintenance costs