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Business & Tech

Mineola Library Gets Lit Up

State-of-the-art LEDs transform library's art gallery.

Mineola native Terence Timlin has been a successful business owner for many years with KTR Associates, which represents about a dozen lighting manufacturers in the tri-state area. Timlin is also a friend and  classmate of former mayor .

“I told him I thought he was doing a good job and I ended up on the board of the ,” Timlin said with a laugh.

As president of the library board of trustees, Timlin was able to leverage his business sense, acumen and connections to help the library receive a state-of-the-art lighting system for its art gallery.

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“For an art gallery, it was poorly lit,” he said.

Timlin recruited WAC Lighting Inc., one of his rep companies, to work on the project. Before anything could be done however, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), which provides funding for the research of energy development, had to approve the site for the project and conduct an energy audit to make sure it met Energy Star standards.

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The project, among the first of its kind for WAC Lighting, required them to install 60 10-watt light emitting diodes (LEDs) along with occupancy sensors. These versatile lighting fixtures offer a strong project light output of 50 lumens/watt efficiency, meaning the lights can provide 50,000 hours of life, with no maintenance required, thus delivering lower operating and maintenance costs for users.

LEDs do no emit any harmful gases or radiation and the low heat does not damage the tapestry or artwork that hotter bulbs could.

"The energy savings was the big story,” Timlin said.

WAC Lighting marketing manager Ben Gildea said the project presented challenges both because of the 20-foot-high ceilings and for the fact that the lighting track had to be positioned off the wall at an angle to properly illuminate the works of art.

“Being in the lighting business and being president of the library board, I am very proud of it,” Timlin said. “It looks like an art gallery now. It really showcases the work of the artists.”

Gildea said the energy savings is significant. “LED may seem more expensive out of the box, but you get your savings back within a year,” he said. That cost savings increases exponentially in years two, three and beyond.

The occupancy sensors also save on energy because the lights do not go on unless an object enters the area.

In a few short months, the Mineola Library has been transformed into a gallery that local artists will be proud to hang their works, Timlin said.

“I have gone to other libraries and I can tell you (Mineola) is ahead of the curve on this one. I think we are a model (for lighting) that others would want to emulate.”

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