When a complete renovation of the lobby at the Courtyard by Marriott Louisville East was planned last year, hotel officials expected the modern new furniture would improve the lobby’s look. But the lobby turned out to look even better thanks to LED lighting.
 
Assistant General Manager Brian Sur says the lobby’s new Cree LED lighting helps make the “the colors pop out.” “We’ve got richer colors,” Brian said. “You can see the difference.”
 
The lobby features 54 Cree CR6 ™ LED downlights. These lights offer improved color quality of the lobby’s red and orange furniture thanks to Cree TrueWhite® Technology. This patented technology delivers high efficiency with beautiful light characteristics and color accuracy, while maintaining color consistency over the life of the product.
 
Not only is the light quality beautiful, but the hotel is saving a lot of energy since the lobby lights are on 24 hours a day, seven days a week. And since the CR6 LED downlights are dimmable to 5 percent, hotel staff frequently dim the lobby lighting in the evening, which helps save even more energy. 
 
Brian said the hotel staff used to have to change burned out 65-Watt incandescent light bulbs about once every four to six months. But the staff hasn’t had to touch a single LED light since they were installed in August 2010. That’s because Cree’s CR6 LED downlights are designed to last 50,000 hours, which means the hotel could leave them on 24 hours a day, seven days a week and not have to worry about replacing one for at least five and a half years.
 
“It’s nice to not have to deal with changing light bulbs,” Brian said.
 
In all, 54 Cree CR6 LED downlights replaced 65-watt BR30 light bulbs. The Cree CR6 LED Downlight consumes only 10.5 watts, but delivers enough light to replace a 65 watt incandescent light.
 
Additionally, 15 Cree LBR30 LED lamps replaced 65-watt BR30 light bulbs. The Cree LBR30 LED lamp consumes just 12 watts. Brian’s office also received a lighting upgrade, with two Cree LR24 LED troffers. The hotel is expected to see a payback of approximately 15 months.