Exterior lighting for streets, roadways, parking lots, and other outside sites represents nearly 10% of the electricity consumed on military bases. Lighting in these areas typically consists of high pressure sodium or sometimes metal halide lamps that are normally controlled by photo-sensors located centrally or sometimes on each fixture. This limited functionality includes turning the lights on in the evening and off in the morning regardless of occupancy levels, thereby consuming more electricity than necessary.

The California Advanced Lighting Controls Training Program (CALCTP) provides training and certification to electricians, contractors, acceptance test technicians, building operators and managers. The program is increasing the use of energy-saving lighting controls in commercial buildings and ensuring they are properly installed and commissioned for maximum effectiveness.

The Core Sunlighting Alliance is a group of leaders in the fields of design, construction, energy-efficient technology development, and energy regulation who are committed to accelerating the commercialization and widespread adoption of core sunlighting systems.

The California Lighting Technology Center (CLTC), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), and the U.S. Department of Energy recently completed a state-of-the-art lighting system demonstration at NorthBay VacaValley Hospital in Vacaville, California. On March 19th, 2014, the project received an award for “Best Use of Lighting Controls in a Single Facility” from the Lighting Energy Efficiency in Parking (LEEP) Campaign.

Working in partnership with lighting sensor and control manufacturers and PG&E, CLTC will develop a next-generation exterior occupancy sensor capable of reliable operation in a variety of exterior applications not currently serviced by existing products. This includes applications with high mounting height requirements, broad coverage zones, and areas with diverse traffic flows.

The project consists of three main tasks: 

The California Energy Commission sponsors the development and demonstration of energy-efficient, environmentally safe building technologies. It does this, in part, through the State Partnership for Energy Efficient Demonstrations (SPEED), a program that demonstrates innovative lighting and HVAC technologies. The SPEED program is managed by the California Institute for Energy and Environment (CIEE), which is a branch of the University of California. The California Lighting Technology Center (CLTC) is subcontracted by CIEE to develop and implement lighting technology demonstrations.

With support from a CITRIS seed grant, researchers at CLTC and UC Berkeley are working together to develop advanced lighting control algorithms that make use of multiple data streams, both local and remote, to improve lighting and energy management in buildings. Applications include electrical lighting systems in commercial spaces with windows and/or skylights.

CLTC is partnering with the UC Davis Energy Efficiency Center (EEC) to address untapped efficiency opportunities in the Multi-Tenant Light Commercial (MTLC) building sector. The project is focused on identifying and overcoming the biggest barriers to energy-efficiency retrofits in the MTLC market. More than half of the energy-saving contributions of the team's proposed solutions will come from lighting-related retrofits, as the group hopes to reduce interior lighting energy consumption by 20% and exterior lighting energy consumption by as much as 50%.

CLTC has partnered with CIEE to develop and demonstrate adaptive lighting systems for retail and agricultural buildings. These lighting systems will ensure lights are off or dimmed when no occupants are present or when daylight is available.

CLTC collaborated with the California Energy Commission and the California Institute for Energy and Environment (CIEE) to develop adaptive envelope technologies for retail and agricultural buildings. The objective was to develop systems that optimize both lighting and thermal efficiency in these facilities, using advanced fenestration materials, daylighting technologies and lighting controls.