Nardy Honda/Smithtown Acura

“Every employee at our dealership understands that if it saves energy, it saves money,” says Premier Motors President Rob Certilman.

As the co-owner of two family-run dealerships on Long Island, New York, Certilman has made it his mission to continuously educate his employees about the benefits of energy efficiency. He maintains that keeping a close eye on operating costs is the secret to making his business competitive. It also helps ensure employment for the staff of 100 who are now part of his extended family at Smithtown Acura and Nardy Honda Smithtown.

Lee Certilman, President of Nardy Honda Smithtown couldn’t agree more. “The automobile market is extremely competitive. With severe downward pressure on prices, dealerships are continuously looking for tools that can generate more revenue to offset declining margins,” he adds. “One key area is energy consumption. As oil and electricity prices continue to rise, any savings go straight to the bottom line.”

And the savings are significant.

The dealers took advantage of the opportunity to undertake a major lighting retrofit throughout their facilities during a recent renovation of their service departments and showroom. They decided to use the latest in high efficiency lighting technology to improve the look and feel of their facilities, and to save energy costs. They have also made a commitment to converting all remaining lighting to the T-5 high-efficiency lighting.

The result is annual energy savings of over 250,000 kWh, and cost savings of more than $50,000 per year.

For Lee Certilman, it all comes down to pleasing a potential car owner.

“By saving money on energy bills, we can afford to pass more savings on to our customers — being even more competitive in our prices and generating more sales while still maintaining our margins.”

That’s a win for Smithtown Acura & Nardy Honda Smithtown, its customers, and the environment.