United Power delivers new construction rebates to local business

Rebates are not just for upgrades to light fixtures in older buildings, also known as retrofits. New construction can tap into energy rebates during the design phase of a building. As long as you lease or own the facility, all it takes is some pre-construction planning for you and your business to save money on electricity for years to come.

We recently followed United Power’s Bill Meier as he delivered a rebate check to FCI Constructors, Inc., who moved their headquarters to a new building off I-25 in Frederick earlier this year. FCI worked with Meier to receive more than $5,000 in rebates by installing energy-saving interior LED lights and pole-mounted LED fixtures in the parking lot of their new facility.

FCI Vice President Jeff Erker accepted the check and took us on a short tour of their new facility. As we descended the back staircase, Meier compared the functionality of the new lights to older fixtures and how upgrades help companies save money in more ways than one.

Older fixtures use a ballast to ignite gases and need time to warm up to operate effectively, leading to spikes in electric usage when they are switched on. Thanks to LED technology, newer fixtures put out more lumens at lower wattage and create significantly less heat which leads to savings in HVAC costs. Perhaps the biggest benefit comes with the improved lighting quality and reduced maintenance costs. The fixtures chosen by FCI come with a five-year warranty, but Meier expects they will last twice that long.

If you’re a business in the United Power area, contact the Community Affairs Representative that serves your region. Bill Meier, Jay Mendoza or Tom Green can help with your existing service, upgrades to your facility or integrate LED lighting into your new building’s blueprints.