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M. Clay Belcher Willingness to Invest in Lighting Energy Reduction in Industrial Buildings Architectural Engineering, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA Liping Liu School of Business, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA Abstract Little information is available regarding how managers choose from among the many options they have for improving the energy efficiency in the lighting of their facilities. Based on data gathered during hundreds of energy audits performed for manufacturing firms in the central United States by the University of Kansas Energy Analysis and Diagnostic Center, this paper investigates correlations among company attributes and the type of investments they are willing to make on lighting upgrades. Each audit resulted in a report in which one or more suggestions were made explaining specific actions which the firm could take to upgrade its lighting system and so reduce its lighting energy cost. Each client was later contacted to determine which, if any, of the suggestions had been implemented. The reasons clients give for failure to implement a suggestion are seen to lack specificity. Therefore statistical analysis is performed to help understand under what circumstances a suggestions is likely to be rejected, and which circumstances are associated with acceptance. Acceptance or rejection of a suggestion was most strongly dependent on the nature of the suggestions itself, on the overall amount of energy a company uses, and on the type of industry in which a company is engaged. Simple payback and initial cost of implementing the suggestion are not significant influences on the accept/reject decision.
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