As part of its carbon neutral commitment announced in 2015 at UN Climate Change Conference COP21, Signify, a global leader in lighting, is well on its way to becoming carbon neutral in all of its operations by 2020.
Signify has already taken major steps to achieve its ambitious goals from not only making its products more ecologically efficient but also by reducing the environmental impact of its operations. Working with EDP Renewables North America, Signify is purchasing 250,000 MWh of electricity per year over the next 15 years from the Hidalgo Wind Farm in McCook, Texas, to power all of its North American operations with 100% renewable electricity. This effort reduces carbon footprint by 125,000 metric tons yearly - the equivalent of CO2 produced by over 26,000 cars in one year. The company is also taking additional steps to save energy in factories and offices, optimize logistics and supply chain, and reduce business travel.
In addition to taking steps towards carbon neutrality internally, Signify has also focused efforts on helping a number of cities around the nation implement more efficient lighting plans. The City of Macon Bibb, GA set out to establish a lighting plan that both improved public safety and sustainability efforts and with the help of Signify was able to automate street lighting to reduce maintenance needs and much more. In Birmingham, Signify worked with the city to upgrade the lighting in parking garages by converting to LED lighting and in Boston they were able to preserve a bridge of historical and cultural significance. Not only have these programs proven to be energy efficient, they are also cost efficient. For example in the city of Los Angeles, Signify’s work resulted in a 63% in energy savings, while saving $8.7million USD and avoiding 47,583 tons of CO2 /year. Signify’s work with cities has been much more than just light installation as they have improved public safety, energy efficiency, cultural significance, and cost.
Signify is taking a leading role to bring better light to the world and provide a more sustainable future by delivering lighting that is energy efficient, saves resources and improves lives. The company has made a bold promise that 80% of its revenues will come from sustainable products, systems and services.