The Costco Smart Street Lighting Project is a showcase of how Power Line Communication (PLC) technology is transforming large-scale outdoor lighting infrastructure. Through our partnership with Costco, we delivered a fully connected, energy-efficient, and highly reliable smart lighting network designed for commercial campuses, logistics areas, and large parking lots.
By adopting our PLC-based smart lighting system, Costco successfully upgraded its traditional lighting into a modern, data-driven network—without installing additional communication wiring. This project demonstrates how PLC technology can significantly reduce deployment time, lower maintenance costs, and ensure stable long-distance communication across complex environments.
Project Background
Costco required an intelligent lighting solution for one of its major distribution and retail campuses. The goals included:
- Improve night-time illumination quality for safety
- Reduce energy consumption through automatic dimming
- Enable remote monitoring to reduce maintenance workload
- Build a scalable smart lighting network without costly rewiring
- Implement a system compatible with existing power infrastructure
PLC technology became the ideal choice due to its high stability, strong anti-interference performance, and ability to transmit data through existing power lines.
System Architecture & Components
The Costco PLC street lighting project includes the following key components:
1. PLC Gateway / Concentrator
- Connects all street lights to the cloud management platform
- Manages data communication over the power line
- Ensures long-distance, high-signal-integrity transmission
2. PLC Street Light Controller
- Installed inside each LED street light
- Supports dimming, switching, power monitoring, and fault reporting
- Compatible with various LED drivers and fixture types
3. Loop Controller (Optional)
- Manages segmented lighting circuits
- Ensures system redundancy and enhanced stability
4. Cloud Lighting Management Platform
- Real-time control of every lamp (on/off/dimming)
- Remote fault diagnostics and instant alarms
- Energy consumption statistics for each lighting point
- App + Web management available for operators
How PLC Technology Delivered Superior Results
Costco’s lighting network covers a large outdoor area with multiple distribution poles, extensive parking lots, and logistics traffic lanes. Traditional wireless systems faced challenges due to RF interference and structural obstructions.
By utilizing PLC communication, the system maintained:
- Stable and reliable signal transmission through existing power lines
- High anti-interference performance for industrial and commercial sites
- Long-distance coverage without adding repeaters
- Rapid deployment with no need for fiber or wireless infrastructure
This significantly reduced overall installation cost and complexity.
Key Features of the Costco PLC Smart Lighting System
✔ Real-Time Remote Control
Operators can manage all street lights through the cloud platform:
- Timed scheduling
- Zone-based dimming
- Group control for parking areas, walkways, and logistics roads
✔ Automatic Energy Saving
Lights automatically dim during low-traffic hours, reducing electricity usage up to 40–60%.
✔ Intelligent Fault Detection
The system automatically reports:
- Lamp failures
- Driver issues
- Abnormal power consumption
- Communication interruptions
This improves maintenance efficiency and prevents downtime.
✔ Enhanced Safety & Visibility
High-brightness LED street lights paired with dynamic dimming improve visibility while optimizing energy usage.
✔ Future Scalability
PLC allows easy expansion:
- Adding more street lights
- Integrating sensors
- Building smart campus applications
Project Outcomes
The Costco PLC street lighting upgrade delivered outstanding results:
- Reduced installation cost by 30–50% (no communication cables required)
- Energy savings up to 60% with dimming and intelligent scheduling
- Maintenance cost reduction through real-time alerts
- Improved operational efficiency with centralized cloud management
- Enhanced lighting quality for staff, customers, and logistics operations
Costco now operates a future-ready, high-efficiency lighting network built on stable PLC communication technology.
Why PLC Smart Lighting Is Ideal for Commercial & Industrial Sites
This project reinforces the advantages of PLC over traditional wireless lighting control in environments like:
- Retail chains & supermarkets
- Industrial parks
- Warehouses & logistics centers
- Parking lots
- Campus and community lighting
PLC ensures strong reliability, long-distance communication, and minimal installation disruption—perfect for modern smart lighting applications.
