|
Advertising supplement provided by
Pittsburgh Corning
Kling also installed a dimmer system, which softened the
lighting, but also has another, more practical advantage:
It saves energy dollars and increases lamp life. "The
rule of thumb is that for every 10 percent the lamps are dimmed
(above 50 percent), the life of the lamp is increased four
times and a proportional amount of wattage (energy) is saved.
So, when we installed the dimmers, we selected higher lamp
wattages. Then, we dimmed them approximately 10 percent. It's
the same concept that people use in their homes. However,
as the lamps are dimmed, the light becomes warmer. The trick
is to be able to make it glow as one color."
It's that combination of lighting and glass block, serving
together as a beacon, that is assisting National Airport patrons
find their way with ease to - and through - the new airport
parking garages.
Case Study Three
Workers See the Light in Amtrak's Century-Old
Building, While Railroad Saves Money on Installation Costs
More than 70 million Americans each year depend on Amtrak
(the National Railroad Passenger Corporation) to provide modern,
reliable rail passenger service for intercity and local commuter
travel. Amtrak serves some of the nation's most densely populated
urban areas, including the Washington-Boston Northeast Corridor.
In the Northeast Corridor alone, annual Amtrak ridership between
New York and Washington, D.C., is the equivalent of 7,500
fully booked 757s or 10,000 fully booked DC-9s. Amtrak currently
serves almost half of the combined air-rail market between
the endpoints of New York and Washington; when intermediate
cities (such as Baltimore and Philadelphia) are included,
Amtrak's share of the air-rail market rises to 70 percent.
Maintaining the heavy equipment used to service the busy
Northeast Corridor is the responsibility of the Wilmington,
Del.-based Amtrak Roadway Equipment Shop. The shop's technicians
maintain and repair positioners, liners, bulldozers, loaders
and cranes - the equipment Amtrak uses to fix rail lines,
including the track, ties, beds and crossing and switching
equipment. It's one of the largest, most important railroad
overhaul facilities on the eastern seaboard.
The repair facility is housed in a turn-of-the century, red-brick
building, which was last overhauled more than 50 years ago.
The building measures 300 feet long and 175 feet wide, including
a high bay measuring 170 feet wide and 200 feet long. While
the original structure is historic in nature - as Car Barn
#1, it was the major eastern base for locomotive maintenance
for nearly three-quarters of a century - it had suffered from
years of neglect.
|
Video
