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Light-emitting diode (LED) technology has expanded from individual lights on gauges to applications as varied as curing dental fillings to lighting traffic signals. The brightness of LEDs relative to their size and their durability make them preferable to incandescent and fluorescent bulbs.
New to vending, LEDs are available in retrofit kits to replace fluorescent bulbs in existing vending machines. And, equipment manufacturers are offering them to operators purchasing new merchandisers.
“LEDs have a number of real benefits for operators,” said Brent Garson, president, Vendors Exchange International Inc. (VEII). “First, we must examine the real cost of lighting: cost of the bulb, replacement frequency, and cost of the replacement service.”
LEDs Save money
Many operators admit that route drivers don’t replace the light bulbs in vending machines, said Garson. The task falls to maintenance personnel due to the realities of the job. The cost of a technician, added to the cost of the trip as well as the replacement bulb, runs anywhere between $60 to $90, concluded Garson. Calculate that with the average life span of a continuously lit fluorescent bulb, one year, and that equates to roughly $320 over five years to keep it lit.
LED retrofit kits, speaking specifically about VEII, offer a monetary savings. The economy package, said Garson, is a single LED strip in the same location as the fluorescent bulb, which is guaranteed to last four years. The cost is less than $50, a potential savings of $270 over five years.