Good Fortune Found in Energy Savings
The
Business
Peking Chinese Restaurant, a family owned
Petaluma business, has beat the odds for restaurant
survival. After 22 years, the restaurant, owned by
Taiwanese immigrants Pauline and David Liu is not just
surviving - it's thriving.
The
Challenge
Independent restaurants face many
challenges today: long hours; stiff competition, especially
from chains and franchises; and escalating overhead,
including large electric bills. After the monthly rent, the
electric bill is their second largest expenditure, according to
Pauline Liu. As a result, the Lius are always looking for
ways to cut operating costs and increase their profitability.
The
Solution
When the Lius found out that the Small
Business Energy Alliance (SBEA) helped small businesses
make energy-saving improvements, they called the toll free
number right away to make arrangements for a
representative to do a free energy audit at their business.
The Lius learned that the traditional light bulbs and
outdated fluorescent lighting in their restaurant were silent
guzzlers of electricity. The Small Business Energy Alliance
replaced the traditional, incandescent light bulbs with
energy-efficient compact fluorescent lamps (CFL's) and
upgraded the old-fashioned T-12 fluorescent lighting with
magnetic ballasts to energy-saving T-8 lamps with
electronic ballasts.
The
Outcome
As a result of the retrofit, Peking Chinese
Restaurant will save more than $1,800 on their annual
electric bill. And since the SBEA uses public goods charge
funding to pay for 75% of the installation cost, the Lius will
recover the cost of the new system in less than two months.
As an added benefit, the energy-efficient lamps produce
less heat, thereby reducing air conditioning costs.
In addition to the dollar savings resulting from these energy
conservation measures, Peking Chinese Restaurant is
contributing to a cleaner environment by reducing the
emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere by
nearly 9,000 pounds a year.
"We're very happy with the new lighting and the savings,"
said Pauline Liu.
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