School Planning and Management, 2015
WHAT KIND OF LIGHTING SYSTEM SHOULD YOU BUY FOR YOUR NEXT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BUILDING? HOW DID YOU MAKE THE DECISION?
By and large, today’s lighting choices include fluorescent and light emitting diode (LED). Choosing between the two requires an exercise in lifecycle cost estimating — figuring out which lighting system will cost less to buy, install and operate over the, say, 50-year life of the school building.
Fluorescent lighting certainly wins the first cost competition. Fluorescent lighting costs about 30 percent to 40 percent less than LED to acquire — a dramatically lower first cost.
