University of Connecticut
IN-4: Innovation 4

While in past years UConn has given away fluorescent and LED lightbulbs at the bookstore during move-in weekend, this past fall the University partnered with local power company, Eversource, to facilitate an LED desk lamp giveaway to students. The LED bulbs found within the desk lamps consume about 75% less electricity than the average incandescent bulbs typically sold for use in desk lamps. They also last up to 25 times longer than traditional incandescent lightbulbs, resulting in monetary, as well as energy savings and emissions reductions. The recipients of the desk lamps were primarily freshmen or other underclassmen, consequently this initiative introduced these younger students right off the bat to the ways in which they can incorporate sustainability and energy efficiency in their everyday lives. It also served as an educational outreach opportunity, as the students were informed about several energy efficiency projects undertaken by the University. Since 2010, energy efficiency improvements made on UConn’s campus, including numerous re-lamping projects such as the recent LED replacements at Gampel Pavilion, have reduce the University’s carbon footprint by about 18%.

The partnership with Eversource will also include a University-wide deployment of Smart Power Strips during the summer of 2016. The Smart Power Strip is a surge protector that reduces the phantom load, the phenomenon through which electricity is still delivered to devices that are plugged in, but turned off and not in use. They do this by only permitting electricity to flow into the appliances when a control device is turned on. In the case of the University’s deployment, which will targets individual work stations, the computer will act as the control device. Therefore, the Smart Power Strip will not allow electricity to pass through until the computer plugged into it is turned on. The Smart Strips will be distributed to about 5,000 offices and work stations in the first wave of deployment as well as in all of the residence halls during this coming summer. If need be, a second deployment will follow in the 2017 academic year in order to ensure that these Smart Strip are used campus-wide. Eversource will be funding 95% of the cost for the deployment and the resulting payback period for the retrofit will be just over one year.

Over the course of the three-day move-in weekend, 4,500 desk lamps were distributed to incoming University students. That amounts to about one quarter of the undergraduate student population!

Additionally, the campus-wide power strip retrofit will affect over 5,000 work stations throughout the University.