catalogue > green business

In June 2011, Metro Lighting was awarded Acterra's Business Environmental Award for Sustainable Built Environment for our new showroom and manufacturing facility in Berkeley.

WHAT MAKES METRO LIGHTING "GREEN"?

1. Quality, durability.

Our items are designed to last a lifetime. We use quality brass and copper parts and antique style construction. That means that a fixture you buy from Metro might be rewired, repaired or refinished by your grandchild someday. While most other products sold today will end up in a landfill sooner than later, Metro Lighting still builds fixtures "the way they used to."

2. Energy Efficient Products.

We offer a full line of Compact Fluorescent fixtures, using GU24 sockets and bulbs. While we have 13w, 18w and 26w screw-in bulbs that will fit into many of our incandescent fixtures, these "hard-wired" compact fluorescent fixtures comply with California's Title 24 energy code. More information on ordering Compact Fluorescent Fixtures

3. Energy Use / Solar

Our operations are nearly 100% powered by our 21 kilowatt rooftop solar array, installed in April 2010! The vast majority of our showroom displays are lit with 5 watt mini spiral bulbs. We also collect burned out CFL's so if you have any, bring them in and we will dispose of them properly for you. Remember, despite their energy efficiency, CFL's contain mercury vapor and require responsible recycling!

4. Local Manufacturing

We build our fixtures here in Berkeley. We offer glass shades from California artisans, (Berkeley, Richmond, Santa Cruz area, San Luis Obispo area, Ukiah and Arcata), as a local alternative to our other glass which comes from an 85 year old factory in France. Our fixtures receive an artist patina here on site, or we send them to a local plater whom has won environmental honors.

5. Recycling.

We offer beautiful products that are made from recycled materials, including recycled glass shades, repurposed Insulator pendants, recycled cast aluminum fixtures from Eleek Inc.. Not only do we recycle our paper, cardboard, bottles, and cans, we also recycle our scrap metals. And of course, we buy recycled office paper, bath tissue and paper towels.

6. Resource efficiency / Waste reduction.

We have changed our production process to reduce by 50% the amount of rinse water we use. Our metal plater recycles all of his rinse water on site in Oakland. Dual flush toilets, automatic faucets and hand dryers, lighting on timers and motion sensors are a few of the green features in our new location.