Creating a platform for a smarter New York

June 16, 2021

Signify’s Interact City lighting system is helping municipalities in New York cut energy usage, lower emissions, and create a platform for smart city deployments.

For its Smart Street Lighting program, the New York Power Authority (NYPA) was seeking to help New York municipalities convert their streetlights to connected LEDs. Signify, with its Interact City lighting system took part in this conversion and consequently also helped municipalities in New York cut energy usage, lower emissions, and create a platform for smart city deployments as a result.

Furthermore, this project offers significant social benefits as well. Interact City can share data collected via sensors with the IT systems of firefighters, emergency medical services and other first responders, enabling them to react more quickly when incidents occur.

As we looked at the technology and as we saw what was possible, it really became a social justice and equity issue, because it allows us to do a number of things that are really helpful to our communities.”

As Kathy Sheehan, Mayor of Albany, explains, “As we looked at the technology and as we saw what was possible, it really became a social justice and equity issue, because it allows us to do a number of things that are really helpful to our communities.”

Interact City and the Empire State

More than 66,000 LED streetlights, managed by Signify’s Interact City software, have been installed to date. This means savings of more than 68 million kWh and $11.5 million in energy costs per year. This, however, is just the beginning, as the program aims to replace at least half of New York’s more than one million streetlights over the next five years.

But municipalities don’t just save money by adopting connected LED lighting. They also expand the value of their streetlight systems.

“With Interact City, we can now remotely monitor the system via a central dashboard, identifying required maintenance very quickly. Should any glitch occur, the system proactively prompts managers even before our residents have noticed, and that’s a big plus.” says Abebe Woldemariam, Street lighting program coordinator, City of Rochester.

We made lighting smarter and more connected in homes and on streets throughout New York State. We worked in Vietnam and in the U.S. to improve education for bright minds. We took pioneering steps in lighting for indoor crop cultivation in Russia, and sustainable shopping experiences in the Netherlands.

These are just some examples of the work we do, and all these highlights come from our Signify 2020 Annual Report.

About the author:

Ryan Millar

Chief Editor, Signify

For further information, please contact:

Signify Global Integrated Communications
Neil Pattie
Tel: + 31 6 15 08 48 17
Email: neil.pattie@signify.com

About Signify

Signify (Euronext: LIGHT) is the world leader in lighting for professionals and consumers. We proudly bring to market the world’s best lighting brands, from Signify, Philips, Philips Hue, Signify Interact, Philips Dynalite, Color Kinetics and many more. Our advanced products, connected systems and services unlock the extraordinary potential of light for brighter lives and a better world. In 2025, we had sales of EUR 5.8 billion, approximately 27,000 employees, and a presence in over 70 markets. We are in the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index and hold the EcoVadis Platinum rating.

News and updates from Signify can be found in the Newsroom, on LinkedIn and Instagram. Information for investors is located on the Investor Relations page.

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