The Chelsea at Fanwood in Union County is the perfect blend of small town charm and all of the amenities and services for comfortable senior living. In fact, U.S. News & World Report rated the organization as a top assisted living community earlier this year.
Maintaining The Chelsea is Robert Vogel’s top priority, and as the regional director of facilities and operations, he is charged with making sure residents have the best possible living environment. In 2022, Robert partnered with PSE&G’s Business Energy Saver Program team to help implement sustainability directives targeted towards decreasing energy use and overall cost at the facility.
By enrolling in the PSE&G Direct Install Program and working with an authorized contractor, Green Light Energy Conservation, The Chelsea was able to replace all of the lights throughout its expansive facility. As a bit of background, The Chelsea provides not just a variety of options for residents’ independence and support, but also their medical and rehabilitation needs. In addition to enhancing aesthetics and functionality, this project also aligned with the organization’s sustainability directives, as energy-efficient LED lighting is a simple and cost-effective means for businesses to lower their electricity bills.
PSE&G’s Direct Install Program helps small businesses (as well as nonprofits and government organizations), because it enables them to uncover hidden energy savings that can help cut facility energy costs by as much as 30%. Savings realized through energy efficiency improvements help the business customer’s bottom line and can provide them with greater opportunity to invest in other areas of their operations.
Through the Direct Install program incentives, The Chelsea’s total project cost was reduced by 50%. The work completed at The Chelsea is expected to lead to a savings of over 144 megawatt hours of electricity per year, which is enough to power 21 New Jersey homes for a year. In addition, the Electric energy savings from PSE&G’s program is expected to avoid approximately 87 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year or roughly the amount emitted by 19 gasoline-powered cars on the road over a one-year period.
“When you are making the hard decision to put your beloved family members in assisted living, you want an environment that instills confidence that your loved ones are in the right place,” shared Robert. “Updating our lighting may seem like a small change, but it gave us a wow factor and made our facility more welcoming.”
The program consists of a free, on-site energy assessment, and pairs decision-makers with authorized contractors capable of completing a number of energy-saving improvements, such as: lighting retrofits; heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system installations; commercial refrigeration equipment upgrades; and more. PSE&G pays for 100% of the upfront costs, and when the work is complete, qualified customers repay a portion of the total project cost—interest-free—over 60 months on their PSE&G bill (or in one lump-sum payment, if preferred.
Robert stated that the lighting project was completely seamless, as PSE&G’s authorized contractor handled everything from the evaluation and paperwork through the labor for the entire project. He continued, “The project was a true team effort, with everyone from corporate on down supporting the upgrades.” Robert said that he is considering expanding the lighting upgrades to Chelsea’s other 24 properties located throughout Long Island and New Jersey.
PSE&G celebrates organizations like The Chelsea at Fanwood in honor of Small Business Month. To learn more about energy efficiency programs for your business, visit bizsave.pseg.com.
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