Olympic village to save electricity in Beijing- Green games

Echelon Corporation today announced that the Olympic Village in Beijing is using Echelon's LonWorks([R]) technology to create an energy efficiency lighting control system. Lighting typically consumes as much as a third of the electricity used in a building, making it a prime target for energy efficiency for the Olympic Village during the Games. The smart LonWorks based control system integrates all lighting subsystems to optimize energy usage while maintaining a safe and aesthetically pleasing environment for the athletes - contributing to the government's pledge to stage a "green Olympics."
Beijing is committed to reducing energy and water consumption per unit of GDP by five percent this year as part of a push for a 'recycling economy' in time for the Olympics.
"Only LonWorks technology was able to fulfill the unique needs of this project," said Vincent Wang, General Manager, of Lang Meng Technology, Inc. "There are vast numbers of devices scattered across a large area, serving the many needs of the Village from beautification, to safety, to energy efficiency. It is extremely important to China that the Village be seen positively by the tens of millions of viewers that will be watching the Olympics on television. Because the LonWorks products from our various suppliers integrate easily, we were able install and configure the project in less than two months, helping to ensure that the Olympic Village will open on schedule."
Echelon's LonWorks control technology is incorporated in the Chinese national standard for building automation, intelligent residential community construction, and in the national standard for control applications.
The Olympic Village is the largest non-competition venue in Beijing, and will accommodate over 23,000 athletes and team officials for both the 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The Village has over 370,000 square meters of apartment space, including 22 six-floor buildings and 20 nine-floor buildings, and facilities such as general information centers, meeting rooms, medical clinics, religious centers, multiple restaurants, a library, parking areas, and entertainment and leisure activity centers.
The smart lighting control system integrates lighting subsystems for the apartments, public areas, car park areas, and all landscape and beautification lighting. In addition to increased energy efficiency and safety, the system is designed to enhance the beauty of the Village by illuminating architectural details on the buildings and entry arches into the Village, as well as various landscape features such as water fountains.
"Beijing is making substantial, if not historic, efforts to produce the first 'green Games' that impact not only the Olympic venues, but the entire country," said Anders Axelsson, Echelon's senior vice-president of marketing. "The Olympic Village is essentially a city within a city and a great example of how Echelon and its partners can bring solutions that can enhance the quality of life in a city while at the same time making it more energy efficient

Link Echelon