In a sun-drenched place like Albuquerque, it’s easy to see why homes and businesses would be smart to employ solar powered technology. Sandia Resort and Casino is one company that’s made the switch, and it couldn’t have done so without LED lighting. In 2010 the company initiated a retrofit of its parking garage lighting system, replacing inefficient gas discharge lamps with LED light bars that use 4 times less energy. Sandia’s parking garages are some of the largest in Albuquerque, and so the upgrade represented a major improvement in energy savings for the company, and the city as a whole. To top it off, this year Sandia completed the retrofit by adding custom, solar hybrid panels to 52 of these waterproof LED fixtures. The custom panels fit onto the existing fixtures and allow batteries to charge on sunny New Mexico days, while also allowing for the fixture to switch back over to the regular power grid, should the solar energy battery become depleted. “We’re definitely looking forward to seeing a dramatic energy bill decrease. As far as the light quality, we knew what to expect after seeing the vast improvement in the parking garage, but seeing the same crisp, quality light over a much greater area in the outdoor parking lots left us freshly impressed,” says Paul Collins, Facilities Superintendent, from Sandia.

Thanks to SF Gate for the quote and All American Games for the image.