American Apparel Expands on 'Green' Initiative
When American Apparel executives looked to overhaul the lighting system for its 800,000-square-foot factory off Alameda Street in downtown Los Angeles, it did so with a green approach.
The company recently installed a state-of-the-art system that “harvests” daylight using a ballast system. Ballasts are electronic components that regulate voltage in fluorescent lighting.
The company’s supplier, Lincoln, Neb.–based Axis Technologies Group Inc., has developed a patented Dimming/Daylight Harvesting (DDH) ballast that uses photo sensors to automatically adjust the amount of current flowing to the light fixture and then dims or increases lighting based on available sunlight entering an area.
As a result, the system avoids over lighting and prevents under lighting. It has been tested to reduce electrical energy costs by up to 70 percent.
The lighting system was installed in the perimeter offices of American Apparel’s factory to provide maximum energy savings and peak demand reduction, said company officials. In addition to reduced energy use, the lighting upgrade qualifies American Apparel for rebates from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.
The project follows up another one from last year, in which American Apparel installed a 146-kilowatt solar-panel system on its roof, which cuts energy costs by about 20 percent a year. The projects are part of the company’s continued agenda to operate with as little impact on the environment as possible. The company has an environmental-operations department dedicated to finding greener ways to run its business, which includes its manufacturing base and about 120 retail locations, which together bring the company about $211 million in annual revenues.
—Robert McAllister
