Over the summer, the school’s maintenance team replaced the old fluorescent lights and installed new key systems as part of a district remodeling project.
Upgrades to new LEDs bring several benefits
According to the district’s Director of Facilities, Maintenance Operations and Transportation Toby Mockler, the initiative was in compliance with California Title 24, a mandate requiring buildings to use energy efficient and environmentally friendly lighting sources.
The new LEDs have an instrument panel installed for more functionality such as dimming lighting control and motion detection to conserve energy. According to maintenance operation lead Henry Arellanes, the new LED lights consume 75-90% less energy than the old incandescent bulbs and last up to 25 times longer. They came as a great relief for the maintenance team, proving to be much safer and easier to maintain.
“Unlike fluorescent tubes, which typically require frequent replacements and are often associated with complex disposal procedures due to their mercury content, LEDs are free from hazardous materials,” Arellanes said. “This absence of mercury smooths out the cleanup process and eliminates the need for specialized handling and disposal practices when a fixture breaks.”
Another key issue with the fluorescent lighting fixture was that the lights emitted intense heat — the maintenance team often was at a high risk of burns when repairing recently-burned-out lights. According to Arellanes, LEDs emit only a fraction of the heat of incandescent lightbulbs, creating a safer environment for everyone.
Staff members can also now adjust their room’s ambience according to their preferences. These control panels come with programmable settings, allowing teachers to quickly adjust the lighting for movies, testing or lectures, based on their needs.
These new LED lights also help education and focus for students at school. According to Mockler, fluorescent lights have been associated with causing headaches and other issues. Unlike the old fluorescent lights, LEDs don’t flicker, which is less distracting.
In addition, the new lights are more cost efficient than the fluorescent lights, adhering to California Title 24’s goal of reducing energy consumption and moving toward eco-friendly technology.
The project was funded through the PG&E’s On-Bill Financing Program, which offers zero-interest loans for energy-efficient upgrades; the district will pay it back using the savings from monthly electric bills.
The new lighting system may require a few adjustments in some classrooms due to their new motion detector system. Michael Tyler, Journalism and English 9 teacher, mentioned downsides to both the new and old lights.
“[The old fluorescents] burned out constantly and we were forever having batches of darkness in the classroom as a result,” Tyler said. “The new lights are a huge upgrade, though when you’re in a room alone and aren’t super active as you do things like grading, the lights can turn off on you because of the motion detector feature, which is a bit weird.”
Additionally, Spanish teacher Stephany Marks said that while she appreciates the new lights, they haven’t always worked in her room the way they should.
“I do have one set of lights that go off all time in the middle of class, even with the motion, and that gets frustrating,” Marks explained. “The light technician is very helpful though, and he’s trying to fix the issue.”
New locks are safer and more secure
According to Arellanes, another summer renovation was the installation of new combination lock systems on some classroom doors and other campus buildings. Instead of requiring a key, only the lock code is needed to enter.
The new systems were introduced to improve the safety of the educational environment and reduce security expenses by streamlining the access control system. This system also provides greater accountability by better tracking those who have access to certain areas of the campus.
These new locks also give quick access for first responders during times of emergency, since no physical key is needed.
“Overall, the adoption of key control systems provides a reliable solution to address security concerns, enhance operational efficiency and optimize resource utilization in educational settings,” Arellanes said.
