Signify’s efforts to integrate sustainability initiative in its operations were highlighted at the launch of its Green Switch campaign at the Flip the Green Switch for a Sustainable Philippines event. It is important for Signify to take actions to combat climate change by choosing sustainable solutions which will bring positive impact to the environment and lighting is the quickest path to achieve this.
The objective of the Green Switch is to encourage the Philippines, together with the world, to roll out green technologies towards achieving Net Zero Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions by 2050. Signify is committed to reduce GHG emissions by simply upgrading conventional lighting to energy efficient lighting systems. Light Emitting Diode (LED) lights and connected lighting offer one of the simplest and often overlooked ways to reduce GHG emissions.
According to Raghuraman Chandrasekhar, country leader, professional business, at Signify Philippines, Signify strongly believes that an upgrade to efficient lighting systems is probably the quickest and easiest way to promote sustainability, and help the Philippines achieve its climate goals. By switching to energy-efficient LED lighting, the Philippines has the potential to reduce CO2 emissions by up to three-million tons.
Aside from supporting efforts to reduce GHG emissions, the Green Switch initiative also backs the urgent implementation of the Energy Efficiency and Conservation (EEC) Act by promoting energy efficient practices among both public and private sectors. Through the Act, the country has introduced and institutionalized fundamental policies on energy efficiency and conservation.
As the author of Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, urges the private sector to adopt energy-efficient practices, including lighting, to comply with the law. He said the law mandates energy performance standards for buildings, designated establishments, energy consuming products and equipment, transport and energy management programs for government. It allows different forms of financing for government energy efficiency projects, and provides fiscal incentives for energy efficiency projects under the Investments Priorities Plan of the Board of Investments.
Signify’s head of government affairs Andrew Yan, on the other hand, noted that compliance to the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act must be accelerated to truly realize the benefits of energy conservation and energy security. He said there are several ways to easily meet the requirements of this law, beginning with lighting, and cited as an example, the energy efficient lighting which can help designated establishments to comply with the mandated annual reduction targets in energy consumption.
As of September 2023, only seven percent of the provisions of the EEC Act are not yet implemented since its enactment in 2019. Despite this, the country is slowly reaping the gains of EEC Act. As of 2023, cumulative savings from the different energy efficiency programs is about PhP7.9-billion which corresponds to about 1.439 Mt-CO2e/MWh of avoided GHG emissions.
The Green Switch initiative has been created to show national and local governments, as well as entrepreneurs and business owners around the world, that Signify’s lighting solutions enable fast, concrete action to help achieve its goals.
To show the company’s commitment to its sustainability campaign, Vijay Venkatsubramanian, head of specifications, ASEAN at Signify, in his presentation, mentioned five key innovations in Signify’s lighting technology. These include ultra-efficiency, connected lighting, Nature Connect that brings the benefits of natural light indoors by replicating the colors and intensity of natural sunlight, 3D printed light fixtures, and solar light.
