Energy Focus, LED technology providers have installed LED lights in a few US Navy marine ships recently.
Energy Focus replaced the old T12 fluorescent bulbs that were common in interiors of a Navy Ship.
The first fixtures were approved in September 2010 and nearly 200 ships have some of LED fixtures and bulbs installed, said, Dave Bina, business and development manager, Energy Focus.
The first new-construction ship designated for a complete LED installation is the Paul Ignatius (DDG 117), under construction at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi.
The Navy was operating with very old technology, and to make more energy efficient facility they needed LED lights, said, Eric Hilliard, a Navy veteran, president, Energy Focus.
Safety considerations also preferred resilient and simple LED products for Navy.
The LEDs were to be fit into the existing form-fit function completely and hence the company had to invent this and convince the Navy of the safety of the fittings, explained Hilliard.
Energy Focus began working with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) to develop LED fixtures and bulbs compliant with requirements for naval ships.
The company built four basic products: 2-foot LED lamps; globes in large and small sizes for cargo holds and ammunition and cargo elevators; explosion-proof globes for munitions lockers and gas turbine units; and bunk lights, complete with their own fixture that includes a USB outlet.
Difficulties included the need to install new fixtures, although the company had an intellitube 2-foot bulb that can fit into existing light fixtures.
Energy Focus sells a 2-foot LED lamp for $145 each to DLA, which then adds a $13 markup for additional shipping costs, for a unit cost of $158 each.
Life expectancy for LED lights is 5 to 10 times longer than fluorescent and incandescent light, in addition to offering a 50 percent to 80 percent energy savings.
However, for a destroyer with a service life of at least 35 years, the LED installation cost will be recouped within 10 years.
Reduced energy and fuel consumption and reduced maintenance and replacement were the primary drivers toward implementing LED lights. All subsequent ships of the Arleigh Burke class will have LED lights, stated, NAVSEA.
Depending on the ship size, the number of bulbs increases. Cruises need about 6,000 two-foot lamps.