Brave New Workshop: Lighting Retrofit Impact

Brave New Workshop (BNW), a quirky Minneapolis sketch and improv comedy theater, isn’t just talking the talk, sustainability is important to the theater. “We believe that it’s our responsibility to continuously improve the impact our organization has on the world,” says BNW owner John Sweeney.

The One-Stop Efficiency Shop was able to provide free technical guidance, rebates and financing for the project. Sweeney and his team ultimately decided to install LEDs - the next generation of energy efficient lighting. While LEDs have a higher up-front cost than older incandescent lighting, they can last up to 500 times longer than standard theatrical fixtures. “In a theater with 100-plus fixtures, lamp costs are always a large hit to any budget, not to mention the labor that is involved in changing lamps and the landfill impact,” explained contractor Seth Scott of Monkey Wrench Productions, “LEDs simply eliminate these costs.”

With the old lights, staff would have to climb up to change a colored gel filter on each individual light. As contractor Seth Scott pointed out, “These filters burn through and deteriorate over time, and are a constant cost for most theaters – not to mention the labor that is involved in changing them. By selecting a color-mixing LED fixture, they can eliminate the cost of these gels for good.” The new LED lights allow staff to customize lighting with the push of a button. The savings aren’t just on the inside – BNW also installed a state-of-the-art marquee which uses a paltry 9% of the energy used by similarly sized marquees.

Result: Replaced 90% of lighting with LEDs. With the rebates provided by the One-Stop Efficiency Shop®, the project paid for itself in 2.6 years and will save over $3,200/year. The theater will also significantly reduce maintenance costs due to the longevity of LED’s and the ability to create any color without having to install colored filters that degrade over time.