Home > Buildings & Plants > Small Business > Success Stories & Awards > LaPaz Electronics International

Success Story: LaPaz Electronics International

Partner Information

Located in San Diego, CA
1,700 sq. ft. building
Annual Savings: $500
Annual Energy Savings: 7100 kWh
Payback period: less than 2 years
Prevented 9,000 lbs. of pollution

Service and Product Provider

Solatube

“Be aware — keep informed through local utilities service providers. They are willing to help out.”
— Angela M. Ginn President, LaPaz Electronics International

High-Tech Firm Finds 21st Century Energy Solution

LaPaz Electronics International, based in San Diego, CA, is a small electronics distribution company that has learned that slashing energy costs increases profitability and bolsters the bottom line. Because of its good business sense, the company received a year 2000 ENERGY STAR for Small Business Award in recognition of its efforts to curb electricity use and thereby decrease pollution caused by the generation of electricity.

Free Lighting Frees Up Electricity Use

LaPaz Electronics International achieved its energy savings — to the tune of $500 per year — largely through the installation of new technology that very efficiently channels sunlight through the roof into areas of the building where light is needed.

LaPaz selected Solatube (one of a few manufacturers offering this technology), for their reflective small dome skylights that channel solar light down through reflective tubes to areas needing light. Depending on the size of the domed skylight, areas ranging from 150 to 350 square feet can be effectively lighted by a single tube. This technology is highly efficient: the tubing provides up to 95 percent total reflectance and 92 percent specular reflectance.

Light is measured in lumens and energy usage in watts. A standard 100 watt incandescent bulb produces 1,200 lumens. A 40-watt, 48-inch fluorescent tube produces 2,300 lumens. A small Solatube produces up to 3,750 lumens and a Solatube produces up to 8,200 lumens.

As Angela M. Ginn, president of LaPaz Electronics International found out, installation of this technology takes only a few hours, and the cost is paid back quickly through the reduction in electricity bills.

Lower Energy Costs = Smart Business

LaPaz Electronics International did not rely solely upon cutting edge technology to slash energy costs. It also took a number of energy saving steps that reflects the company’s sound business sense.

The company set up a maintenance schedule to ensure that the building’s facilities are operating properly; it installed high efficiency fan motors and it planted trees around its building to create shade and lower summer cooling costs.

High Technology Saves Money, Protects the Environment

It’s no surprise that a high-tech firm like LaPaz Electronics International is eager to use the latest technological developments to save energy costs. But it’s a reflection of the company’s sound business sense that it’s using a new technology — Solatubes — that costs so little and saves so much.

Because of LaPaz’s smart business sense, it received a year 2000 ENERGY STAR for Small Business Award in recognition of its efforts to save energy and thereby reduce the pollution caused by the production of electricity.