Award recognizes nLiGHT system as the top product in the lighting controls category.

ATLANTA - February 3, 2012 - Acuity Brands, Inc., (NYSE: AYI; "Company"), a market leader in innovative energy efficient lighting and control solutions, is pleased to announce that its nLiGHT® Network Lighting Control System from Sensor Switch® recently received a 2011 Top Products Award for lighting controls from Building Operating Management, the most preferred publication among building owners and facilities executives.  

The Top Products Awards from Building Operation Management recognize the best products from manufacturers and suppliers from the past year as determined by building and facility executives who participated in a national survey.  Top Products were selected based on the criteria of innovation and usefulness to facility managers.  Winners were selected from a field of more than 500 possible products.

"It is a real honor to be selected for this award," said Ben Hahn, Acuity Brands Lighting Vice President and Value Stream Leader for Sensor Switch.  "What makes this award even more credible is that professionals in the industry voted on the winning products.  It`s very gratifying to know building operators, facility managers and design engineers chose nLiGHT as the top product in the lighting controls category. We are thrilled that nLiGHT is a valued solution for their lighting control needs."

First introduced in 2007, the nLiGHT system is a revolutionary digital architecture and networking technology that cost-effectively integrates time-based, daylight-based, sensor-based and manual lighting controls. Designed to function in an individual room or to be networked together across an entire facility or campus, the nLiGHT system is an easy-to-use and easy-to-install lighting control system.  It significantly cuts energy consumption while enhancing user and occupant convenience.  nLiGHT intelligence is also embedded in LED luminaires from Lithonia Lighting® -- offering a complete and customizable lighting solution with integrated controls.  

For more information and to read more about the nLiGHT award, please visit http://www.facilitiesnet.com/buildingproducts/details.asp?ProductID=4501

About Acuity Brands

Acuity Brands, Inc. is a North American market leader and one of the world`s leading providers of lighting solutions for both indoor and outdoor applications. With fiscal year 2011 net sales of $1.8 billion, Acuity Brands employs approximately 6,000 associates and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia with operations throughout North America, and in Europe and Asia. The company`s lighting solutions are sold under various brands, including Lithonia Lighting®, Holophane®, Peerless®, Gotham®, Mark Architectural Lighting(TM), Winona® Lighting, Healthcare Lighting®, Hydrel®, American Electric Lighting®, Carandini®, Antique Street Lamps(TM), Tersen®, Sunoptics®, Sensor Switch®, Lighting Control & Design(TM), Synergy® Lighting Controls, Pathway Connectivity(TM), Dark to Light®, ROAM®, RELOC® Wiring Solutions, and Acculamp®.

Contact(s):  

Jennifer Manocchio
jennifer@sweeneypr.com, 910.772.1688

Michael Clemens
michael.clemens@acuitybrands.com, 203.265.2842

#     #     #

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The owner of this announcement warrants that:
(i) the releases contained herein are protected by copyright and other applicable laws; and
(ii) they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the
information contained therein.

Source: Acuity Brands, Inc via Thomson Reuters ONE
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Acuity Brands, Inc. : Sensor Switch nLight Network Lighting Control System Awarded 2011 Top Product Recognition

Water damage repair company advises home and business owners to become properly prepared against damage from fire and water.

Cleveland OH (PRWEB) February 06, 2012

RestorationLocal.com, one of the leading water and fire restoration providers in the country, is advising home and business owners to become better prepared in the event of catastrophic damage to their property. Damage from water or fire may be considerable, and will only get worse over time if not immediately treated. Having a proper response ready for any eventuality is a must for any property owner.

Having a recovery and restoration plan in place, along with preventative measures designed to minimize the level of potential damage, will go a long way towards keeping repair and restoration costs down.

Dealing With Water Damage.

Water damage may develop into a more serious mold problem within a period of 48 hours if not properly treated. Property owners should contact their local water restoration company immediately in order to begin the restoration process and cut down on the long term threats. In the meantime, removing all furniture and loose items from the area, as well as opening windows and doors to allow for proper air circulation, will help stabilize the area until professional help arrives.

Shut off all utilities at the source to prevent problems from electricity or leaking gas, and refrain from using fans or blowers in any area where mold is discovered, as this may cause the spread of mold spores and other contaminants.

Dealing With Fire Damage

Again, time is of the essence following a fire. In less than 48 hours, smoke residue may cause irreversible damage to hard surfaces, and smoke may be transferred through ventilation systems, allowing it to affect other areas of the home that may not have otherwise been damaged by the fire.

Fire damaged structures are generally unsafe for a variety of reasons. Walls and flooring may be weakened and prone to collapse, and smoke coupled with other toxic fumes may be extremely dangerous if inhaled. Again, proper air circulation will help reduce the level of smoke remaining in the structure.

Calling in a professional fire restoration company is highly advised, as they are able to properly assess the problem and begin the repair and restoration process. Clean Trust certified restoration providers are equipped to restore properties to their pre-loss condition with minimal interruption to the lives of the property owners.

Based in Cleveland OH, RestorationLocal.com is one of the leading providers of water and fire restoration services in the US, with providers in 30 states.

###

Matt Staton
33 Mile Radius
1-877-725-2459
Email Information

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21-09-2011 06:02 Easy DIY decorating ideas, and inspirational decorating for the fall season. Photos of: living rooms, fireplaces, garden, and halloween decorations. For more visit: http://www.BetterDecoratingBible.com For more things decorating please visit my blog at http://www.betterdecoratingbible.com interior...

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09-01-2012 08:27 Stephen Fanuka creates a laundry room that's also an inviting living space. This video is part of Million Dollar Contractor show hosted by Stephen Fanuka . SHOW DESCRIPTION :DIY Network's Million Dollar Contractor, hosted by "Contractor to the Stars" Stephen Fanuka, gives viewers a behind-the-scenes look at some of the most amazing spaces and construction of Manhattan's high-end luxury homes. The series focuses on the details, the materials and the insane amount of money clients spend to allow Stephen to create million-dollar projects. Despite the hefty price tag, many of the same on-site issues and problems also occur in the homes of everyday people. Throughout the series, Stephen shares tips and tricks of the trade that first-time DIYers and home improvement aficionados will appreciate.

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09-01-2012 08:27 A bland and boring living room gets a modern farmhouse-style makeover. Thisvideo is part of Design on a Dime show hosted by Casey Noble, Joel West . SHOW DESCRIPTION :Design on a Dime makes over a space for design-conscious home dwellers who want lots of style but may not have lots of money for the project. With a budget of $1000, a design team tackles a problem area such as a boring bedroom, lackluster living room, cluttered dining room or outdated office space. Together, the team transforms the ordinary into the awesome. And what fun to see the residents' reaction to their new room! The budget isn't big, but the payoff sure is!

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13-07-2011 01:03 Roof Plumber Perth | Free Quote 0451 515 359 ONBOARD ROOFING Western Australia's preferred choice when it comes to quality roofing and cladding supply or installation. CLICK HERE http://www.onboardroofing.com.au

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Finesse Crafted Floors LLP is optimistic looking forward despite a sluggish housing market. With the unemployment rate at 8.3 percent, the lowest point since February 2009, the company is expecting spring bookings for refinishing and installation of hardwood floors to be adequate if not robust.

Waukon, Iowa (PRWEB) February 05, 2012

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported February 3, 2012 that the US unemployment rate fell to 8.3 percent, the lowest reported rate since February of 2009. This fact is encouraging to small business owners such as David Schon and son, Nathan Schon of Finesse Crafted Floors LLP a family owned and operated hardwood floor installation and refinishing company serving northeast Iowa. The Schon family has a background in the construction trades since the 1970s with more recent emphasis on the hardwood flooring trade. The company is a member of the National Wood Flooring Association, an organization that provides technical support and training for wood flooring professionals.

Finesse Crafted Floors LLP is optimistic looking forward despite a sluggish housing market because homeowners are keeping their houses longer and looking for ways to increase their value and livability. Hardwood flooring provides advantages to the homeowner that carpet and laminate products do not. Carpet and laminate needs to be replaced after ten or 15 years. Hardwood can last a century or more with the proper care and maintenance. Hardwood offers the homeowner value with an almost limitless choice of design combinations with domestic or exotic wood species. Medallions and borders can be added to new and existing floors to increase interest and value to the property. The popularity of hardwood floors has increased dramatically since the days of covering slightly worn hardwoods with shag carpet. If you would like to learn more about the advantages of hardwood floors and today's modern finishes, visit finessecraftedfloors.com.

###

David Schon
dbschon@gmail.com
563-568-1381
Email Information

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From an office building in Kendal Square, two Boston University alumni have developed technology that can connect people with the businesses and environments around them through LED lighting.

Aaron Ganick and Dan Ryan , 2010 graduates of College of Engineering, will soon launch a company called ByteLight. Their startup focuses on transmitting information from LED light bulbs. While the technology remains in development, they plan to implement it into retail space and make it connect with mobile devices.

“We believe that mobile is the future of retail,” Ryan said.

Bytelight’s technology can determine the most effective display placements in stores, products and floor plans, Ryan said.

ByteLight’s LED lighting also has the potential to provide global positioning in large, indoor places such as airports, shopping malls and supermarkets, according to the January 2012 newsletter from the Institute of Technology Entrepreneurship and Commercialization.

Ganick and Ryan researched lighting as undergraduates in the Smart Lighting Engineering Research Center at BU, where they worked for several summers.

They said after taking a class entitled “The Business of Technology Innovation,” taught by School of Management professor Paul Levine, Ganick and Ryan started to consider pursuing entrepreneurial careers. They decided to take that route with the LED technology in 2010.

“We saw a big opportunity,” Ganick said. “Costs of LEDs were dropping and locational services were growing.”

Thomas Little, associate director of the Smart Lighting ERC, said locational lighting technology could be used for asset tracking in large indoor complexes such as hospitals and laboratories.

“It’s potentially as big an industry as outdoor location services,” he said.

ByteLight first operated out of a BU incubator and then moved to Dogpatch Labs, a venture designed to provide entrepreneurs with connections and launch startups, Ryan said.

While they hinted they may have found a lighting partner for the venture, neither one would name the potential partner, elaborate on their marketing plan or give a timeframe for an official launch.

“We’re in stealth mode,” Ganick said.

Though the specifics of ByteLight’s technology do not relate to or receive funding from BU, the venture has gotten support from BU faculty.

Babak Kia, an adjunct professor in the department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, called Ganick an engineer who “builds a better future” by fusing his technical vision and leadership skills.

“He and his team are driven by an unyielding passion to invent the future, and his startup – one of Boston’s hottest – will revolutionize indoor location in much [of] the same way as Google Maps has done for outdoor location,” Kia said in an email interview.

Little said the engineering degree at BU is designed to help students become analytical thinkers and problem solvers, which Ryan and Ganick demonstrate.

“To be successful once leaving BU requires the ability to adapt,” Little said.  “[This is] especially true in the entrepreneurial world where the problems are much more diverse.”

Little said ByteLight exemplifies how Smart Lighting ERC helps students learn how to apply their analytical skills.

“Both Aaron and Dan have demonstrated the ability to adapt quickly to changing technology,” he said.

Excerpt from:
ENG alumni develop indoor ‘GPS’ through LED lighting

Design costs for the Beale Street Landing project shot up by more than a half million dollars as architects modified plans to deal with unstable soil along the Mississippi River, records show.

The Riverfront Development Corp., the nonprofit firm under contract with Memphis to oversee parks along the Mississippi, so far has paid $4.42 million in architectural fees for the project, according to figures provided by RDC.

That's an increase of almost $570,000 from the $3.85 million RDC said it had spent on design as of July 31, 2010, in a report filed with City Council last year.

And design costs could increase by at least another $100,000 as work continues, said RDC president Benny Lendermon.

Nonetheless, Lendermon said, the RDC will not be asking City Council for additional funding for the landing, relying instead on other revenues it already has.

"There's no more (city) money going into this project," he said.

Including the $38.1 million committed for construction, the rising architecture expenditures have increased the total cost of the project to at least $42.52 million -- more than twice the original estimate of $20 million of nearly a decade ago.

RDC has paid the $4.42 million in fees to the architect of record, Bounds and Gillespie Architects, a Memphis firm. Bounds and Gillespie, in turn, has hired several consultants that it pays from the RDC funds it received.

Located between Tom Lee Park and the historic cobblestones, the landing will feature a riverboat dock, a building for a restaurant and other operations and a terraced park leading to the river.

The project has been paid for by funds from the city's capital budget as well as state and federal grants. But it has been plagued by cost overruns, many of them attributed to increases in steel and contracting prices that occurred as the project was delayed by budget issues.

Just last year, the council agreed to ante up almost $9.75 million more to cover shortfalls.

The council would be hesitant to provide any more funds for the landing, member Shea Flinn said.

"Any request for additional money would come under very, very serious scrutiny," he said.

The dock and building are nearing completion, but the park phase, with intricately designed islands connected by walkways, has been undergoing redesign because of soil problems that weren't revealed by initial borings before work began.

In late 2008, during an early phase of construction, a retaining wall held back by sheet piling "slid" after soil shifted, Lendermon said.

"It wasn't catastrophic or anything, but it was something everyone knew shouldn't have occurred," he said.

Subsequent borings revealed more serious problems, which would require millions of dollars worth of extra steel reinforcements to prevent the concrete walkways and islands from settling in the mucky soil.

To eliminate the need for the extra steel, architects modified the design to remove some of the concrete walkways and slightly reduce the size of the guitar-pick-shaped islands. The latest design drawings are expected to be finished this week.

-- Tom Charlier: (901) 529-2572

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Costs rise for Beale Street Landing project on Memphis riverfront

05-02-2012 12:21 A review of DreamHome Restoration by just one more happy homeowner. We're honored to have been able to work on Vicki's home and to help her through the insurance claims process. Vicki now has a fully restored home, as if the storm never happened. Watch more Dream Home Restoration reviews!

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