The East Field House Gym was lit with 30 metal halide lamps: eighteen 175W lamps at the lower level and twelve 250W lamps at the upper level. The Alliance to Save Energy’s Green Campus Program at UCSC proposed to de-lamp the eighteen lamps at the lower level and retrofit the remaining twelve lamps at the upper level with 12 Induction lamps consuming 315W each (2 bulbs per fixture for a total of 24 bulbs).

While the project clearly translated energy savings to money savings, the choice of induction lamps for the retrofit reduced further costs in maintenance. Induction lamps have a significantly higher lifespan than fluorescents, or metal halides, and in a project scope of 25 years, induction will save over $10,000 just on maintenance savings since they will only have to be changed once. Furthermore, waste reduction is an important factor in achieving sustainability, making induction lamps the more sustainable option.

Another goal was to increase light quality, which makes for a safer and more enjoyable sporting experience. When illuminance across the space is more even, the human eye perceives light as brighter. The energy efficient project provided a more even, adequate level of lighting. previously the light in the gym had an average of about 13 foot-candles, based on a light audit done by Green Campus interns on March 4th 2011. Lighting requirements defined by the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) for non-tournament gymnasiums are 30 foot-candles. Retrofitting with induction ensures that these requirements were met, and surpassed.