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Case study·Mississauga·Multi-unit residential

Mississauga Condo Towers
Freeing up capacity for EV charging, one upgrade at a time

Two 23-storey towers, about 400 suites, and lighting from the early 1990s. Over three years we replaced the garage and site lighting with LEDs, upgraded the amenities, modernized the backup power, and then used the capacity we had freed up to plan EV charging on measured data.

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For condo boards and property managers in the GTA.

Condo parking garage after the LED retrofit, Mississauga
Parking garage after the LED retrofit
432
LED fixtures in the parking garage
780
Fluorescent tubes recycled, about 246 lb
30%
Garage light level when nobody is there
~18 kW
Capacity freed, around the clock
The buildings

Two towers, one long to-do list

The towers share a two-level underground garage, a recreation centre with a pool and gym, and landscaped grounds. Almost every light was fluorescent, the garage ran at full brightness 24 hours a day, and parts of the site were dark at night.

The board wanted three things: lower operating costs, safer grounds, and a realistic path to EV charging for residents and visitors. We worked through it in phases, each one paying for or making room for the next.

Before and after

Slide from old to new

After: Transfer switchBefore: Transfer switch
BeforeAfter

Drag the handle: left is before, right is after.

Before

The original transfer switch: robust, but slow to respond, letting voltage swings from generator start-up reach sensitive equipment.

After

A modern transfer switch with a digital controller and bypass isolation, installed in the same spot in one planned shutdown.

  • Clean, fast transfer that protects LED drivers and electronics
  • Status shown on the controller, not guessed
  • Bypass and isolation for safe maintenance without an outage
Capacity test in action

Where the capacity is, measured not guessed

Thermography first, to make sure the equipment was sound. Then a week of power logging on each candidate panel, and a capacity request to the utility.

Power logger connected to the switchgear
Seven-day power logger on the switchgear
Clamp meter reading on a lighting panel
Spot readings on each panel
Electrical room with the 30 kVA transformer and panels
The panels and transformer under test
Visitor parking panel, 225 AMore than 50% free

Room for two or three Level 2 chargers for visitors straight away.

Garage switchgear panelAbout 20% used at peak

Room for 12 to 18 Level 2 chargers on new subpanels, with the load balanced across all three phases.

The whole site at the utility transformerAbout 80% at the yearly peak

A full resident program needs the utility involved. The design uses dynamic load management so chargers share what is there.

The engineered plan: two dedicated EV panels, each fed from the main switchboard through its own transformer, starting with 16 Level 2 chargers in visitor parking and room to grow to 40. The report and design went to the board, and competing bids were compared on the same scope.
Capacity freed

The cheapest kilowatt is the one you stop using

Before anyone talks about a new service for EV charging, look at what the building already wastes.

The garage lights never turn off. So every watt counts, 24 hours a day.

When nobody is there, the sensors hold the lights at 30 percent. Slide to see what that frees up.
Before: 390 fluorescent fixturesTwo 32 W tubes each, full power all day and night
25.0 kW
After: 432 LED fixtures, average drawMore fixtures, dark spots filled, sensors dimming when empty
6.7 kW
Capacity freed
18.3 kW
on the building's own panels
Energy saved
160 MWh
per year, garage alone
EV charging equivalent
about 2
Level 2 chargers at full output

Estimates from fixture wattages and sensor settings, rounded. With load management, the same capacity serves more chargers.

Site lighting

From tired poles to planned light

Swipe through the old site lighting, the changeover and the finished result.

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Photometric study

Designed on paper, then built to match

Before a pole came down, every new head was modelled on the site plan to check the light reaches the drive, walkways and courtyard evenly.

Photometric layout drawing with light contours around each new fixture
The layout drawing: each fixture with its light contours on the site plan. The rings overlap across the drive, paths and courtyard.
21LED area heads modelled
1.8 kWfor the whole site
4000 Kone colour everywhere
  • Designed on paper first. A photometric study placed every head before anything was dug.
  • Poles replaced on new engineered concrete footings.
  • LED area heads on photocell control, on at dusk and off at dawn.
  • Wall packs, entrance canopies and bollards, all at one colour temperature.
  • Outdoor receptacles replaced with weather-resistant ground-fault units.
Thermography

Finding heat before it becomes a failure

Before relying on the equipment for more load, we scanned both electrical systems live, in winter when heating loads are highest, and reported against the CSA Z463 maintenance standard.

Infrared image of fused disconnect connections
An infrared image shows what the eye cannot: one connection running warmer than its neighbours on the same load.
Thermal camera scanning live switchgear
  • Scanned live, no shutdown: main switchboards, distribution, transfer switches, generators, elevators and pumps.
  • No critical faults found.
  • Minor findings fixed early: a mismatched, overheating fuse and a corroded pump disconnect.
  • Generator system checked: grounding, neutral and transfer switch configuration.
The work

Six upgrades, planned as one program

Parking garage, Mississauga condo towersParking garage

432 LED vapour-tight fixtures on two levels

390 replaced, 42 dark spots restored
What we did
Every two-tube fluorescent fixture came out. Sealed LED fixtures went in, each with a motion sensor that runs it at 30 percent until someone walks or drives by.
The result
A brighter garage that uses a fraction of the power, around the clock.
Grounds and poles, Mississauga condo towersGrounds and poles

Area poles, wall packs, canopies and bollards

Laid out from a photometric study
What we did
Old area poles replaced on new engineered footings, with LED heads placed to fill the dark spots along the drive and courtyard. Wall packs, entrance canopies and bollards to match, all at one colour temperature.
The result
Even, controlled light where residents walk at night.
Amenity upgrades

Gym, multi-purpose rooms, pool and change rooms

Lighting and power, room by room
What we did
Slim LED pot lights and panels, new circuits so every treadmill has its own, and modern lighting and power in the shared rooms.
The result
Rooms residents use every day, brought up to date.
Backup power, Mississauga condo towersBackup power

Automatic transfer switch replaced

Done in a single planned day
What we did
The original transfer switch for the emergency generator was replaced with a modern unit and digital controller, with a temporary generator holding the life-safety loads.
The result
A faster, cleaner handover to the generator that protects the new electronics.
Thermography, Mississauga condo towersThermography

Infrared scan of both electrical systems

Switchgear to generator, under winter load
What we did
Main switchboards, distribution, transfer switches, generators, elevators and pumps, scanned live with no shutdown and reported against the CSA Z463 maintenance standard.
The result
No critical faults, and the short list of items found was fixed before any became a failure.
EV readiness, Mississauga condo towersEV readiness

Seven-day power logging on the panels

Capacity mapped for EV charging
What we did
Power loggers on each candidate panel for a week, a utility capacity request, and an engineered design for dedicated EV charging panels.
The result
A charging plan the board could put out to bid with confidence.
Rebates and recycling

Paid back faster, disposed of properly

$0k$50k$100k$150k$200kYear 0Year 5Year 10Fluorescent $219kLED $59k≈ $16k saved every yearGarage lighting energy cost, cumulative, at $0.10/kWhRebates

The garage alone saves about $16,000 a year

Every fixture was specified from the DesignLights Consortium or ENERGY STAR lists so the retrofit qualifies under the IESO Save on Energy Retrofit Program. The application was packaged with the fixture counts, before and after wattages, and specification sheets, and the incentive was approved and paid.

  • Listed fixtures chosen before anything was ordered
  • Motion sensors on the garage fixtures, which count as lighting controls
  • Lower bills every month on top of the incentive
Fixtures and tubes staged for recyclingRecycling

Mercury kept out of the landfill

Fluorescent tubes contain mercury. Every tube from the garage was staged, collected by a certified recycler and documented.

780tubes recycled
246 lbdiverted
1certificate of recycling
Backup power

A transfer switch that protects what it powers

The original switch was robust but slow, and voltage swings during generator start-up were reaching sensitive equipment, including the new LED drivers. A modern switch with a digital controller transfers cleanly and reports its status. Tap through the changeover day.

Utility feed
Locked out
Temporary generator
Carrying the loads
Emergency loads fed by
Temporary generator

Life-safety loads on the temporary generator

Utility feed locked out, inspector approves the temporary connection, and the emergency loads are carried by the rental unit.

Temporary 250 kW generator staged outside the buildingOn siteENERGABLEProject

Life safety never went dark

A 250 kW temporary generator was staged, cabled and taped off before the switch was touched, and carried the emergency loads all day with inspector approval at each connection.

Electricians landing conductors in the new transfer switchIn actionENERGABLECrew

Wired, torqued and inspected the same day

Line, load and control wiring landed and labelled, every lug torqued to the manufacturer's spec, then re-inspected before the building went back on utility power that evening.

Planning EV charging in a condo?

The order that saves money

  1. Cut the base load first. LED and sensors in a 24-hour garage can free up the capacity the first chargers need.
  2. Claim the incentives. Choose listed fixtures and controls so the retrofit qualifies for Save on Energy.
  3. Recycle the tubes properly. Get a certificate for the board's records.
  4. Check the equipment you will rely on. Thermography and a transfer switch that responds properly.
  5. Measure, don't estimate. A week of logging per panel shows real headroom.
  6. Talk to the utility early. Site-level capacity decides how big phase one can be.
  7. Design for load management. Dedicated EV panels with smart charging stretch the capacity you have.
  8. Bid on one engineered scope. Comparable quotes, not a pile of different ideas.
The process

How a building baseline works

  1. 1
    Walkthrough and records. Drawings, panel schedules, utility bills and a walk of every electrical room.
  2. 2
    Thermography and condition. Live infrared scans of switchgear, panels and the generator system, with no shutdown.
  3. 3
    Measured capacity. Power loggers on the panels that matter, and a capacity request to the utility.
  4. 4
    Engineering report. Findings, priorities and options, written for a board meeting.
  5. 5
    Design and bid support. One engineered scope, so bids are compared on equal terms.
  6. 6
    Delivery in phases. Lighting, controls, backup power and EV charging, each one making room for the next.

For condo boards and property managers

Know your building's capacity before you plan EV charging

Send the address. We start with a baseline of your electrical system and send a fixed quote within 1 to 2 business days.

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Straight Answers

Condo Building Questions

The kind we would give before you commit a dollar of capital. Tap a question.

How much electrical capacity does an LED retrofit free up in a condo garage?
Often enough for several EV chargers. Here, 390 two-tube fluorescent fixtures drew about 25 kW around the clock. 432 LED fixtures with motion sensors average roughly 6 to 7 kW, freeing about 18 kW on the building's own panels, before any new service is needed.
Are there rebates for LED lighting retrofits in Ontario condos?
Yes. The Save on Energy Retrofit Program, run by the IESO, pays incentives for qualifying LED fixtures and lighting controls. Products need to be on the DesignLights Consortium or ENERGY STAR lists, so selection and paperwork are planned from the start.
What happens to old fluorescent tubes?
They are recycled, not thrown out. Fluorescent tubes contain mercury. On this project 780 tubes, about 246 lb, went to a certified recycler and the building received a certificate of recycling.
Can a condo add EV chargers without a utility upgrade?
Sometimes, at first. Seven days of power logging showed room for two or three Level 2 chargers on an existing visitor panel, and more on the switchgear. A full program for residents needs dedicated EV panels and a conversation with the utility, which the engineered design accounts for.
Why replace an automatic transfer switch?
Age and response. An older switch can transfer slowly and let voltage swings from generator start-up reach sensitive electronics such as LED drivers. A modern switch with a digital controller transfers cleanly and reports its status.
What is a building baseline assessment?
A full picture of the electrical system before you spend. Thermography, condition checks and measured capacity, written up in an engineering report, so the board can plan upgrades like EV charging and get comparable bids.

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