Light Emitting Plasma Fixtures for Port Facilities

Ports America (PA) operates numerous port facilities across the United States and holds controlling concession leases for Outer Harbor Terminal in Oakland, Port Newark Container Terminal in Newark, and Seagirt Marine Terminal in Baltimore. Together, these facilities comprise over 500 acres of marine container terminals. Together, these facilities have over 1500 high-pressure sodium (HPS) luminaires on over 150 high-mast poles ranging from 80' to 120' in height. Total power draw just for lighting is about two megawatts, costing Ports America close to $1 million per year in electricity costs. The HPS fixtures require a high level of maintenance and create a great deal of lateral and upward light pollution. The light produced by the HPS fixtures is not optimized for night vision. Working closely with manufacturer's engineers, PA investigated a range of alternative lighting technologies. Numerous tests with various light-emitting diode (LED) luminaires led us to conclude that LED technology could not meet our safety requirements within the technical limitations of existing power, light pole, and armature installations. After substantial research and experimentation, a new luminaire that relies on light-emitting plasma (LEP) technology has been developed, tested, measured, and deployed. The resulting luminaires reduce power consumption by 65% and increase service life by over tenfold. The payback period for new fixtures is one year, and the payback period for replacement fixtures is 2.5 years. Lateral and upward light pollution is virtually eliminated. Light on the ground is optimized for night vision and meets all regulatory safety requirements. Lights are individually controllable via a wireless system, allowing optimized crafting of lighting patterns in response to operational and security demands. The system is undergoing active deployment at Oakland and Newark, and is being considered at Baltimore. The paper will explore the engineering, regulatory, and technical issues that drove the development of the fixture, the tests that were done to prove efficacy, the results of a formal power monitoring program carried out by a utility supplier, and the results of deployment. Although the work focused on the product of a commercial vendor, the paper will focus entirely on engineering, financial, and sustainability aspects of upgrading lighting for new and existing terminals lit with conventional high-mast HPS systems.