Albuquerque Convention Center
As part of the City of Albuquerque’s multi-million-dollar convention center renovation, Cree and Lutron offer complementary pieces of a lighting and control solution that not only enhances the space but also delivers big on light quality and maintenance and energy savings.
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Nestled between the stunning Sandia Mountains and Rio Grande River, the Albuquerque Convention Center prides itself on offering a venue that is “uniquely unconventional.” To better reflect Albuquerque’s history and surroundings, the Albuquerque Convention Center undertook the upgrade of their East Complex, followed by a $20 million facelift of the West Complex. The goal of the project was clear. Make the space more attractive to lure additional tourist dollars to the area.
But another key part of the renovation story revolved around energy usage. As one of the City of Albuquerque’s highest energy consumers due to lighting and HVAC requirements for the sprawling 167,000-square-foot facility, the Albuquerque Convention Center was a prime candidate for the City’s Energy Council Three Percent Program, which sets aside three percent of capital improvement bonds specifically for energy conservation projects. According to Tony Gurule, Energy and Sustainability Manager for the City of Albuquerque, “As we looked at the [Convention Center], it’s a big user, so we had to see what we could do to lower the cost of the building maintenance and the use of electricity.”
