Saint John Energy Shines A Light On Local Businesses
SAINT JOHN – For more than 70 years, Saint John Energy has helped light up the city of Saint John with its lighting rental program. Now it’s out with the old and in with the new as LED lights and innovative technology become the norm.
Saint John Energy’s program allows business owners and homeowners alike to rent energy-efficient LED lights. Enhanced lighting creates a more inviting atmosphere for neighbourhoods and can add a greater sense of security to the community. LED lights are better for the environment than traditional lights, and they last much longer.
“I think the biggest benefit of the rental program is that it’s a hassle-free solution,” said Will McGivney, Engineer in Training who has been leading recent LED projects at Saint John Energy. “We handle the installation and the maintenance – essentially, we take care of everything.”
After an initial meeting on site, the Saint John Energy team collaborates with the customer to figure out the best lighting solution based on their needs. Nighttime lighting can provide better lighting for advertisements, increase security, and even drive sales. The program can benefit businesses whether it comes to lighting up storefronts or illuminating parking lots and storage units. Once a plan is made, Saint John Energy installs the LED lights and any required infrastructure. From then on, if any maintenance is required, service is only a phone call away.
“They’re low maintenance. We haven’t had any issues with them, so it’s been pretty easy,” said Fred Chamberlain, General Manager of Loch Lomond Mitsubishi. They rent three lights from Saint John Energy: one at each entrance of the dealership and one on their lot.
“To be able to have people drive here after dark and not fear for their vehicles is a huge deal for us,” he said. “We’ve never had any security issues here related to car thefts and that’s because the lot is lit up so well.”
The rental program goes hand in hand with Saint John Energy’s goal to help light up the city. Their recent partnership with the Saint John Horticultural Association led to the replacement of old sodium vapour lights in favour of new LED lights at the Public Gardens in the city’s north end.
Additionally, Saint John Energy has partnered with Halifax-based Livable Cities (a division of LED Roadway Lighting) to bring innovative smart technology solutions to Saint John. The project involves adding cutting-edge technology to existing LED lights to help the city make informed traffic decisions that will help improve community safety.
Saint John Energy has been committed to energy-efficient LED for years, recently completing its mission to replace all streetlights with LEDs.
“This year, in partnership with the Government of Canada and the Low Carbon Economy Fund, we converted 1700 of our area streetlights to LED. Now Saint John Energy’s entire fleet is LED,” said McGivney.
The upgrade to LEDs is one of Saint John Energy’s efforts to improve energy efficiency in the community under their Powering Our Future initiative. Other projects include the deployment of smart water heaters and heat pumps, which will be happening later this year.
“We want to help our customers take control of their energy efficiency, and new technology allows us to do that,” said Ingrid Harris, Manager of Consumer Products at Saint John Energy. “We look forward to continue finding new opportunities for Saint John with innovative lighting solutions and smart products.”
In the meantime, local businesses looking to add a little light to the city can learn more about Saint John Energy’s hassle-free lighting solutions on their website.
This story is sponsored by Saint John Energy.