Setting up meetings with organizations, Loewen was able to find plenty of takers, saying when they are finished, Copperman will have completed six arenas. At first, he suspected groups did not really believe him when he told them they could have their entire lighting redone in LED for free.
“It made a lot of people very happy.”
He said he worked with the community groups, doing much of the application paperwork to send in, adding he was surprised by how long a process it was to complete it.
In most cases, the lighting replacement is quite extensive. Not only lighting for an ice space, for example, but change rooms, washrooms, storage spaces, nearly everything is covered by the Efficiency Manitoba program.
At the time of speaking, Loewen said Copperman had completed an arena in Cypress River. They were nearing completion of Boissevain Arena. In the arena, they were changing all of the lights except those over the ice surface, as they had already been changed to energy efficient lighting. However, there was plenty to change over, with dressing rooms, hallways, stairwells and kitchen as well as other areas to work on.
The Boissevain Curling Club is also seeing a lighting makeover. President Larry Rainnie said Loewen contacted him in the fall about the Efficiency Manitoba program, and how the parts and labour would be covered for a lighting changeover if they were accepted. Obviously, free lighting was something they were interested in. Loewen toured the facility and submitted an application on their behalf in October. They found out in January they were successful. Rainnie said the monetary value was around $55,000.
“That is obviously very significant for a small club like ours,” Rainnie said. “Basically, everything will be replaced.”
There will be new lights over the four curling sheets, with Rainnie saying it should be even brighter than before. Every room, be it upstairs or down, will have new LED lights. It will be a complete changeover.
While discussing the program, Rainnie said he began talking about what improvements could be covered during the work. They have a small stage in north corner of the lobby, where some public activities take place. They wanted to put a dimmer on the lighting there, which would allow for more nuanced presentations. This was accepted. As well, they had heard about “glow curling” which takes special lighting, This too, was accepted by Efficiency Manitoba.
Rainnie said glow curling is similar to glow bowling, in which the curling ice becomes dark with special lighting creating a new atmosphere. White shirts glow, people use special tape on brooms or bracelets to be seen. In the RM of Argyle, where they got the idea from, they hold special glow bonspiels. It is just another way to get people interested.
Glow curling needs more than just light. Special paint is needed for the rings and other equipment is required. Rainnie said they do not have that right now, so they will start with the bulbs and sockets and maybe move ahead further in the future.
Rainnie said the work in the curling rink is imminent, with Copperman saying they would work around their event schedule as best he can. Loewen himself was hoping to get into the building later in the week.
Loewen said it is difficult to say for sure how much each project will cost, but they are all between $30,00 and $50,000.
In Elgin, all of the lights will be changing in the skating and curling rinks. Loewen said they wanted to get finished in there by the end of March. The ice is natural, and it takes a long time to thaw, so if they waited for that, they would not be able to start until August.
The electrician said their goal was to apply for as many of these ice rink projects as they could. They have a year to get them done, and he said his people are “dreaming about lights in their sleep”. Efficiency Manitoba has provided them with a great deal of work and worthwhile projects in local communities.
“It’s allowed me to keep our guys busy and employed,” he explained. “That’s a big part of our community focus. I don’t know if they will run this again, but we will definitely look at other programs they are running.”
Rainnie said the winter has been good for their club, with them learning the ins and outs of running their new ice plant. The lighting will be another positive.
“We should see some saving in energy,” Rainnie explained, “and the dimming should allow the curling club to be used more. To me, that’s the bottom line.”
by PAUL RAYNER, Recorder staff