Advance EPact eNewsletter

Introduction

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National Update: EPAct 2005

Following the successful extension of the Commercial Buildings Tax Deduction until year-end 2008, NEMA representatives report that they are currently developing a package of new legislation encouraging additional energy efficiency. In addition to recommending a variety of technical corrections and clarifications on the Commercial Buildings Tax Deduction, the new legislation proposes the inclusion of accelerated depreciation tax provisions for outdoor lighting systems as well as new product energy efficiency standards based on California’s Title 20. All proposed new tax provisions will be reviewed by the Joint Committee on Taxation.

NEMA spokespeople along with representatives from trade associations ASHRAE and ARI hosted an informational Briefing on the Commercial Buildings Tax Deduction for Congress on December 7th, 2006. The purpose of the workshop was to increase congressional awareness of the issues surrounding the opportunity, discuss and build support for a deadline extension, and correct a variety of minor technical issues within the current bill. This session hopefully helped lay the groundwork for pursuit of upgrades and concessions to the CBTD in 2007 and beyond.

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EPAct 2005 Opportunities Await You….

Tax deductions offered through EPAct 2005 are currently available on qualifying lighting technologies placed into service between January 1, 2006 and December 31, 2008…so don’t let the unprecedented opportunity to benefit from a lighting upgrade while taking advantage of government-sponsored financial incentives pass you by!

For more details on the commercial building tax deduction, consult the following existing as well as new and noteworthy resources:

EPAct 2005 Resources:

Deadline extension! On December 20th, 2006, President Bush signed a bill officially extending the Commercial Buildings Tax Deduction for an additional year. Tax deductions are now available on qualifying lighting technologies placed into service between January 1, 2006 and December 31, 2008, inclusive.

Recently available! On October 3rd, 2006, NEMA issued its official “Guidance on Energy Policy Act Commercial Building’s Tax Deduction.” This document helps clarify a number of issues for engineers and contractors as it relates to qualification for tax deduction opportunities and offers the procedures and templates which, once completed, can be used by a tax accountant to prepare the necessary documentation for the IRS. This document can be accessed at www.lightingtaxdeduction.org or the IRS web site.

On June 2nd, the IRS issued Notice IR-2006-088, its official procedures enabling commercial property owners to qualify for energy efficiency deductions. Information describing the contents and qualifications for the certification are listed in Notice 2006-52, Deduction for Energy Efficient Commercial Buildings, which can also be found found on the IRS website.

A website devoted solely to providing information on lighting upgrade activities and related EPAct 2005 tax deduction opportunities was launched this Spring at www.lightingtaxdeduction.org.

For up-to-the-minute information on EPAct 2005 and related tax incentives, continue to visit www.efficientbuildings.org, www.energytaxincentives.org, or NEMA.org.

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Leading with Lighting

View before and after photo...

The following real-life case study helps demonstrate how the Victory Packaging franchise improved its lighting quality and bottom line by pursuing a lighting upgrade:

In 2006, Dallas, Texas-based Victory Packaging, a leading provider of high-quality packaging products and services, undertook a lighting upgrade to address the inefficient and costly lighting system in place throughout its 160,000 square-foot production and warehouse facility. Plagued with an outdated combination of 400-watt metal halide, high pressure sodium, mercury vapor, and T-12 fluorescent lamp and magnetic ballast technology, the system was inefficient, non-standardized and delivered less than optimal light levels.

With support from a local energy service company, Victory Packaging’s management team replaced their old lighting fixtures with an efficient new system involving 54-watt fluorescent T5 High Output lamps driven by Centium® electronic ballasts from Advance. In addition to reducing energy consumption and costs by 30-40% and paying itself back in three years, the system is delivering up to 10 times the light levels of the facility’s previous system and helping to promote safety and security among the warehouse workforce while elevating productivity.

“We are absolutely delighted with the results of the upgrade,” confirms Victory Packaging General Manager Jim Tallas.“ T5 fluorescent lighting technology truly represented the ideal solution for this application, enabling our facility to benefit from significantly higher light levels, outstanding color quality and reduced power consumption.”

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News You Can Use

Barriers to Building Upgrades
According to a 2006 survey of over 7,000 members of the National Association of Building Owners and Managers (BOMA), 41% of respondents cited that they “don’t know what solutions are available” and 26% cited that they “don’t understand the solutions that are available” as key challenges impairing their ability to implement new technologies in their buildings. And a whopping 72% of all respondents listed “funding constraints” as the biggest challenge in implementing new technologies, implying that clear ROI models and case study tools could help support building professionals in selling upgrade ideas to their management teams.

Lighting Upgrade Opportunities Abound in the Retail Sector
According to a 2006 survey by Chain Store Age magazine, 42% of the retail stores responding claimed to use incandescent lighting in one or more applications, a technology which could easily be upgraded to more-efficient alternatives such as fluorescent, compact fluorescent, or LED lighting.

Commercial Sector Can Make a Difference
A new guidebook released by the World Resources Institute entitled “Hot Climate, Cool Commerce: A Service Sector Guide to Greenhouse Gas Management” demonstrates how occupants of commercial buildings can impact climate changes and how other service sector companies have implemented programs to successfully manage their greenhouse emissions.

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Product Spotlight

Advance Introduces Compact New Xitanium™ Low Power LED Drivers for Broad Range of General Lighting Applications

Expanding its popular line of Xitanium™ LED Drivers, Advance’s new 350mA and 700mA models drive a wide variety of low power LED lighting applications. Supporting 1-3 Luxeon I models, 1-2 Luxeon III models, or 1 Luxeon V model by Lumileds as well as a range of market-equivalent LEDs, the new Xitanium drivers are ideal in commercial and public venues for such applications as orientation/step, spot, task, decorative, gaming, and appliance lighting, and represent a flexible, energy-efficient, and cost-effective solution for the market’s broad range of applications requiring lower levels of illumination.

Versatile and compact, the new Xitanium models are nearly 50% smaller in length than Advance’s previous offerings and optimally support new, low-profile fixture designs. The drivers carry a CSA listing and feature UL Class 2 rating with inherent short-circuit protection for added safety and ease of maintenance. Long lasting and reliable, their tightly regulated output (1% line and 5% load) insures consistent light output regardless of line conditions, load levels, and ambient temperatures, and the drivers offer low temperature performance down to –40°F/C to enable their use in any outdoor application. The drivers additionally operate models from 120V-240V, 50/60 Hz to fully support a range of global voltages.

For more information on Advance’s new Xitanium Low Power Drivers for 350mA and 700mA LED applications, visit the Xitanium product page or the Xitanium literature section on our web site.

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Customer and Industry Spotlight

Ed Gray ,
Director of Energy Infrastructure, NEMA

On NEMA’s objectives and the legislative
climate for energy-related issues in 2007

Ed Gray, NEMA “Energy efficiency and demand response will clearly be a priority of the Democratic majority within the Senate in 2007. The challenge will be for all parties to work through a settling-in phase and agree on an effective plan for renewable energy. In light of the fertile legislative environment that is expected to exist relative to energy efficiency matters, NEMA plans to charge forward in 2007-2008 championing a variety of initiatives, including proposals for additional energy-efficiency standards based on California Title 20, technical corrections and further extensions to the Commercial Buildings Tax Deduction, and tax incentives for outdoor lighting, which are currently out of the scope of the bill.”