LED USA Provides Energy Savings to Businesses Nationwide

Founded by a Florida immigrant, LED USA is a new Florida enterprise that provides commercial lighting solutions with the goal of reducing costs and environmental impacts for your building.  ImmigrationSarasota.com recently spoke with Ric Robideau of LED USA to learn more.

Discover LED USA on Facebook. Click on the image.

The company was formed in April 2014 by Giovanni Giannini, an architect from South Africa.  Ric, an electrical engineer who’s worked on projects for Tervis Tumblr and other major corporations in Florida, is the projects manager.

Ric and Giovanni noticed a problem.  Commercial building owners were wasting money on outdated and inefficient lighting (lighting costs can reach up to 70% of a building’s electric bill).  Moreover, owners were going to have to switch their lighting eventually as the government is actually phasing out incandescent and fluorescent lights.  But there were few providers with the expertise and business savvy to properly help them.  They decided to become the solution.

For their first project, they took on the landmark Palm Towers in downtown Sarasota.  Palm Towers was using a combination of fluorescent and incandescent lighting.  With a free energy audit, LED USA found that the building could save $.9 per lightbulb.  In addition, LED USA found they could introduce smart technology to further lower energy costs.  They estimated the retrofit would cost $60,000 but the savings would begin immediately; $39,000 in savings per year to be exact.  In only 2.1 years the savings would pay for the initial investment.  What’s more, LED lights have a warranty of 10 years so the savings would continue.  By the end of 10 years the building should save a net of about $312,000 on its energy bills.

LED USA has also performed an energy audit on a nearby restaurant.  The bill for that retrofit would come to $3,000 but the savings would start at $4,300 per year; producing an even quicker return than the Palm Towers.

Today, LED USA is quoting companies on projects of up to $250,000.

LED USA rests on the quality of its products.  They offer GE or Cree LED lights, which meet the highest underwriting standards.  There’s no compromise on the amount of light.  In fact, some would argue that switching to LEDs improves the light quantity and quality in a building, as these before and after photos show.  

LED USA is also a LEED qualified lighting provider, the most widely-recognized environmental vetting a company can achieve.

Financing is available for projects up to $3 million.  Even with financing charges, companies still see positive cashflow after their building starts saving energy.

For more information feel free to contact Ric (ric_ledusa@verizon.net) or Giovanni (LEDGiovanni@verizon.net).

Giving Sarasota a Place in the Sun

Sarasota will be getting more attention than usual this year at A Place in the Sun, the British property exhibition show that seeks to lure home buyers and investors to warmer climes.  Florida is the 3rd most popular destination for British second-home buyers according to Ian Harding, a Sarasota immigrant and residential and commercial realtor.  The British expat spoke with ImmigrationSarasota.com during his preparations for the upcoming exhibition.  He revealed that most British home-buyers are not as aware of Sarasota and the Gulf Coast as they are of Orlando or Miami.  This creates a hidden opportunity for Mr. Harding.  Part of the reason for the lack of awareness is traditionally there has been only a limited number of realtors marketing the Sarasota area at A Place in the Sun.  The addition of Mr. Harding this year will increase the number of representatives of the Sarasota area.

Mr. Harding himself is an immigrant entrepreneur who came to America to live and work.  He bought a business, obtained a realtor license and became a business broker.  Now he is showing other UK residents how they can do something similar.

Mr. Harding hails from Newcastle where he obtained his MBA while working for one of the UK’s largest utility companies.  From there he went on to work for Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffet’s famous investment firm, before moving to the United States to start his own business.  Berkshire Hathaway prides itself on its candor and this virtue rubbed off on Mr. Harding during his time there.  Now that he is a business owner himself he treats all his clients with the same high level of candor and respect that he learned at Berkshire, with equally impressive results.

Mr. Harding has expanded from a residential realtor to a business broker.  He now helps UK residents buy their home and business on the Gulf.  He specializes in helping clients who want to live and work in America.  He reports that for the same amount as would be spent on an average home in Europe or the UK, Britons can buy a larger home and a business in the US.  This way they could possibly qualify for an investor visa which would enable them to come and go from the country at will.  Moreover, it would give them an income stream here in the US.

We are certain that Mr. Harding will represent Sarasota with honor and candor this year at A Place in the Sun and we wish him all the best.

To contact Mr. Harding about a business or residential opportunity call 941-725-1468 or send an email to ian.harding@kw.com.