Lear Corporation Improves Worker Satisfaction, Efficiency with LED Upgrade

Founded in 1917 in Detroit, Michigan as a manufacturer of tubular, welded and stamped assemblies for the automotive and aircraft industries, Lear Corporation has evolved over the past 100 years to meet industry needs and challenges head-on.

Today, the company provides complete seating and electrical systems worldwide, setting a standard for quality and performance that is reflected in its ranking as a Fortune 500 company.

Since going public in 1994, Lear has made 18 major acquisitions and expanded its team into more than 240 locations across 36 countries. At each location, the company believes that enhancing workplace health and safety ties directly to its mission to provide the world’s automakers with industry- leading products.

In 2016, Lear turned its focus toward improving its Puebla, Mexico manufacturing facility for the more than 250 employees. Interior lighting improvements at the plant were especially important, as studies have shown good lighting contributes directly to workers’ safety and performance. Lear also hoped to achieve increased cost savings with the installation.

Working with electrical supplier Corporacion de Servicios Comerciales, S.A. and electrical contractor CEYCA to execute the upgrades, the Lear project team specified top-of-the- line products for a complete lighting system upgrade, including LED Ready® T8 ballasts, which are engineer tested to work with EVERLINE T8 LED Linear Tubes.

“The manufacturing facility previously used fluorescent tubes inside its high bay fixtures, and the system had discolored over the years,” said Pablo Rodriguez, engineering manager at Lear.

“We needed a first-class lighting solution to improve the lighting quality for our workers with a secondary goal of saving energy.”

The Universal Lighting Technologies LED Linear T8 Tubes were an excellent option for T8 fluorescent lamp replacement in the manufacturing plant, according to Jorge Trejo, an international sales director for Universal.

The EVERLINE LED T8 Tubes and Ultim8 HB ballasts are designed for optimal performance in high ambient temperature applications where high bay fixtures are installed. The LED Linear T8 Tubes install directly into the existing fixtures, providing electrical contractors an easy retrofit.

For facility managers, the LED Linear Tubes provide immediate energy savings of 30 percent or more over fluorescent systems and virtually no maintenance for the lifespan of the product (more than 50,000 hours at L70).

Universal Lighting Technologies worked with supplier Corporacion de Servicios Comercials, S.A. to deliver the specified products on schedule. The lighting manufacturer also provided support for installer CEYCA to help keep the project moving forward.

The lighting installation took the entire month of October, working in off hours when the Puebla facility was not operational, and according to Lear’s facility team the installation was a smooth process.

The new lighting solution from Universal Lighting Technologies is expected to pay dividends through energy savings and reduced maintenance. High employee satisfaction mirrored positive data from a luminosity study that compared Universal Lighting Technologies solutions to products from a competing manufacturer.

“Everyone on our team recognizes the dramatic difference between the clean white light of the new LED system and the fluorescent system we replaced,” said Rodriguez. “We’re looking forward to focusing on other improvements at the facility that will complement the new lighting system.”

Lear strives to be recognized as an employer of choice as it continues its rapid growth. The company’s decision to use Universal Lighting Technologies solutions, as well as other advanced products and services, are small but important decisions that show its unwavering dedication to that vision.

“Everyone on our team recognizes the dramatic difference between the clean white light of the new LED system and the fluorescent system we replaced.”