Europe Targets Wasteful Gadgets

The article was not terribly impressive! A professor looking for funding.

The US is far more open with this type of thing while European companies and universities seem to try to charge for information rather than putting it on line for all.

...does this mean the EU is going to "ban" America (wink,wink)?

Perhaps targeting the clueless wasteful idiots who make up the numbers or don't understand the reality of the numbers behind energy efficiency would be far more advantageous than going after the devices that are using a few percent more power then the ones with the highest efficiency rating.

Our local college spent over $300,000 replacing all of its lighting systems with ones that where reported to be twice as efficient as the old ones. The old ones where rated at 92% efficient and the new ones where rated at 96% efficient. The cost of the overhaul Vs the true value of the energy saved during their life expectancy was a complete waist of time and money plus several tons of electronic lighting ballasts where sent to the city dump.

Overhauling the lighting systems and installing units that are reported to be double the efficiency sounded very environmentally friendly and energy conscious but the real numbers worked out to be only a few percent difference in comparison between the two systems and would never produce a cost justified savings in their working life time.

In the end some clueless pencil pushing bureaucrat got a hearty pat on the back and good PR for "doubling" the colleges lighting system efficiency despite the math not adding up simply because no one bothered to look to see what the real gains where from one system to the other.

tcmtech wrote: "Our local college spent over $300,000 replacing all of its lighting systems with ones that where reported to be twice as efficient as the old ones. The old ones where rated at 92% efficient and the new ones where rated at 96% efficient. The cost of the overhaul Vs the true value of the energy saved during their life expectancy was a complete waist of time and money plus several tons of electronic lighting ballasts where sent to the city dump"

So:

1) Is it a public or private school? (Reason for asking will be below.)

2) How many people know about the boondoggle? Has it been publicized in the newspaper?

3) Are anybody's feet being held to the fire over the issue?

I know we can't change what happened, but maybe we can keep it from happening next time, even somewhere else.

The reason to ask whether it is a public or private school is that, as a citizen, you have more standing to raise the issue for a public school. (But that is not to say that you can't have leverage at a private school--they want to avoid negative publicity as well.)

I can picture some strange headlines (to be edited for length): Educators of our youth figure out how to spend millions to save $25/ year--will take 10,000 years <I didn't do the math> to pay back the investment. College's economics and engineering professors commit mass suicide.

In addition to some administrator type at the school, some salesperson (and maybe some contractor(s)) made a bundle as well. IMHO, they should be publicly embarrassed as well, perhaps the salesperson (and his employer) most of all.

If you are an employee at the school, you have to be more circumspect, but perhaps an anonymous tip to a local reporter would start the ball rolling--be careful about giving out information only you could know.

"Exactly...!" just like THESE guys at Rochester U --- for a mere few hundred bucks worth of electricity (to fire the incredibly powerful laser), they can make a 100watt bulb only consume as much as a 60watt bulb.

RUN , do not walk , to your nearest investment firm!!!! You will be filthy rich long before your great-great-grandchildren's bones have *completely* returned to dust.