AT&T stores and office buildings switch to GE LED signage

New York City More than 6,500 AT&T office buildings and retail locations across the country have switched to an LED lighting system from General Electric.

The switch occurred as part of a redesign of the company’s logo, which necessitated the replacement of 7,000 channel letter signs.

With a switch to the energy-efficient, long-life GE Tetra LED lighting system, AT&T is expected to save more than 5.8 million kilowatt hours of electricity per year and eliminate 3,500 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually. It's the equivalent of planting more than 950 acres of trees.

In total, for the AT&T effort, approximately 2.6 million GE LEDs replaced both the high-voltage, high-maintenance neon that is often used in small-building signs and less-efficient linear fluorescent lighting, which performs less favorably than LEDs in cold climates.

"We knew a switch to more efficient signage would be a sustainable business decision, both environmentally and financially," said Shawn McKenzie, senior VP corporate real estate, AT&T Services. "We researched our options, analyzed the data and ultimately chose the GE system for its reliability, energy efficiency, environmental benefits and long-term value proposition. It also helped that GE is built to handle such large-scale efforts."

AT&T recently announced plans to invest up to $565 million as part of a long-term strategy to deploy more than 15,000 alternative-fuel vehicles over the next 10 years. AT&T also has begun to use alternative energy sources such as wind and solar power.