Lighting Journal – January 2020 by The ILP

Professional best practice from the Institution of Lighting Professionals

January 2020

IMMERSION THERAPY Using colour, intensity and direction to harness light under water NOW YOU SEE ME The ILPâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s updated GN01 on obtrusive light explained EMBRACING THE DARK How virtual reality is re-imagining our night-time cityscapes

The publication for all lighting professionals

With over 60 yearsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; experience in street lighting and power distribution, we provide trusted and reliable connection solutions for EV charging infrastructure

EV solutions brochure coming soon! Find out more about our solutions to support EV chargingâ&#x20AC;Ś Call: 01422 317337

Email: connect@lucyzodion.com

www.lucyzodion.com

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Contents

06 NOW YOU SEE ME…

The ILP’s GN01 on obtrusive light has for many years been the Institution’s most popular and referenced publication. Updates by the CIE have now led to it being revised. Allan Howard explains the changes

IMMERSION 10THERAPY

Colour, intensity and direction are key to harnessing light under water, argues Charlie Wadsworth

IT’S GOOD TO TALK

The ILP’s new ‘Lighting for Good’ portal aims to bring together lighting professionals, academics and others to share knowledge, collaborate and (hopefully) create better lighting for us all

EMBRACING THE DARK

Speirs + Major’s ‘The Third Age of Light’ is using virtual reality to re-imagine our night-time cityscapes. Chloe Martina Salvi listened to how it is questioning long-held assumptions about public realm lighting

MOTORWAY 24 JOURNEY

In the rush to upgrade our ageing motorway lighting stock to LED, is the lighting industry thinking hard enough about the most appropriate solutions in terms of colour temperature, glare, lighting levels, connectivity and weight, asks Scott Pengelly

28 SWEDISH DESIGNS

It was the 20th anniversary of Sweden’s ‘Lights in Alingsås’ light festival during the autumn. Designers, students and visitors from around the world came together to celebrate the power of light

INTERIORS DESIGN

A new lighting scheme has transformed the Redditch plant of Spanish car interiors giant Grupo Antolin, maximising daylight and improving light levels and distribution, writes Liz Hudson

34 HINGE EFFECT

Trystan Williams outlines how a new rail stabling yard for Network Rail in Brighton has made use of bespoke hinged lighting columns to ease maintenance but also to reduce static charge transmission

FIGHTING FIT FOR THE FUTURE?

Effective asset management, better skills and smarter use of data could all be pivotal in helping to protect and enhance the role of the local authority lighting engineer, the ILP’s ‘Lightscene’ event heard in October

x‘IT’S NOT JUST A 40 CASE OF DRILL A HOLE IN IT’

In the last of our series on EV charging, Allan Howard outlines the infrastructure considerations local authorities and lighting professionals should be taking on board

44 GREEN LIVING

Whatever happens with Brexit, the government is likely to remain committed to the European Union’s WEEE electrical equipment recycling regulations. Nigel Harvey explains how collection rates can be increased

46 CLASS ACTS

Light School returns to the Surface Design Show next month, with CPD talks from the ILP and a theatre especially designed by Rebecca Weir of Light.iQ. We look at what members can expect

50 DIARY

p COVER PICTURE

The ‘skypool’ at the Hotel Hubertus, Italy, with a light scheme by Light Projects, illustrating some of the stunning effects that can be achieved with underwater lighting. Photograph by Alex Filz

www.theilp.org.uk

asd.lighting/enso

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Editor’s letter

Volume 85 No 1 January 2020 President Anthony Smith IEng FILP Chief Executive Tracey White Editor Nic Paton BA (Hons) MA Email: nic@cormorantmedia.co.uk

Lighting Journal’s content is chosen and evaluated by volunteers on our reader panel, peer review group and a small representative group which holds focus meetings responsible for the strategic direction of the publication. If you would like to volunteer to be involved, please contact the editor. We also welcome reader letters to the editor.

Graphic Design Tolu Akinyemi B.Tech MSc Email: tolu@matrixprint.com Alex Morris BA (Hons) Email: alex@matrixprint.com Advertising Manager Andy Etherton Email: andy@matrixprint.com Published by Matrix Print Consultants Ltd on behalf of Institution of Lighting Professionals Regent House, Regent Place, Rugby CV21 2PN Telephone: 01788 576492 E-mail: info@theilp.org.uk Website: www.theilp.org.uk

ill the ILP’s new ‘Lighting for Good’ portal take off and change the world of lighting? It is, of course, too early yet to tell. But what came through very clearly to me at the ILP’s launch event in November is the strong appetite that there is among many lighting professionals for using lighting for ‘good’. Whether we’re talking about using light and lighting positively to shape the way we live and interact as individuals and communities, or simply in terms of creating schemes that improve our exterior or interior spaces, these are conversations that – almost without exception – engage and inspire lighting professionals of all disciplines. At a basic level, too, ensuring lighting is ‘good’ in the sense that it has been manufactured, designed, specified and installed to meet best practice and to comply with the highest standards (often ILP-created) will inevitably be a priority for all ‘good’ lighting professionals. Alongside this, and equally positively, is the ongoing appetite within the industry for sharing and improving knowledge. We see this, of course, in the popularity of this journal (and long may that continue) but also in the attendance at ILP-supported events such as Light School and LuxLive or ILP events such as Lightscene, the Professional Lighting Summit and the growing number of technical CPD events now being run by LDCs around the country. Arguably, where things have perhaps not been as joined-up as they might have been is in terms of lighting sharing knowledge and collaborating beyond and outside of the industry, whether we’re talking with academia, think-tanks, government, schools, complementary associations and institutions, or the general public. This isn’t of course to say it doesn’t happen – it does – but simply that perhaps it doesn’t happen enough or with enough frequency. This is where a tool – a portal, a platform, a forum, whatever you want to call it – such as Lighting for Good can (hopefully will) make a difference. As we report in this edition, the aim is that it will allow the industry, academics and simply those with an interest in or question about lighting to come together, seek answers and collaborate. But, as LSE’s Dr Don Slater made clear at the launch, it is only going to work, only going to be effective, as a tool if people actually use it. As he said: ‘It will entirely depend on us, on what material we fill this space with. And how much dialogue there is in in that space.’ So please do take the time to look at the Lighting for Good portal through your ‘MyILP’ login and start to think about how it – and you – can help to change light and lighting for the better.

Produced by Matrix Print Consultants Ltd Unit C,Northfield Point, Cunliffe Drive, Kettering, Northants NN16 9QJ Tel: 01536 527297 Email: gary@matrixprint.com Website: www.matrixprint.com

Nic Paton Editor

The views or statements expressed in these pages do not necessarily accord with those of The Institution of Lighting Professionals or the Lighting Journal’s editor. Photocopying of Lighting Journal items for private use is permitted, but not for commercial purposes or economic gain. Reprints of material published in these pages is available for a fee, on application to the editor.

SUBSCRIPTIONS

ILP members receive Lighting Journal every month as part of their membership. You can join the ILP online, through www.theilp.org.uk. Alternatively, to subscribe or order copies please email Diane Sterne at diane@theilp.org.uk. The ILP also provides a Lighting Journal subscription service to many libraries, universities, research establishments, non-governmental organisations, and local and national governments. www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Reduction of obtrusive light

NOW YOU SEE ME… The ILP’s GN01 on obtrusive light has for many years been the Institution’s most popular and referenced publication. Updates by the CIE have now led to it being revised and a number of important changes made

By Allan Howard

he ILP’s GN01, or Guidance Notes for the Reduction of Obtrusive Light, is the Institution’s most downloaded and referenced publication and has been a core reference for all matters relating to obtrusive light, including light nuisance and skyglow considerations. What many readers may not be aware of, however, is that the document is a distillation of the following two Commission Internationale De L’Eclairage (CIE) documents. These are: • •

CIE 150: 2017 Guide on the Limitation of the Effects of Obtrusive Light from Outdoor Lighting Installations; and CIE 126: 1997 Guidelines for Minimising Sky Glow

Over the years there have been a few concerns over the assessment approach within CIE 150 and hence GN01, and

www.theilp.org.uk

core amongst these is that of light intensity. The concerns relate to:

So what are the main changes that have been made to this document?

•

1. DEFINITIONS

•

This being a per luminaire assessment ignoring that, at times, a cluster of luminaires at a distance is effectively seen as single source; and That intensity is a factor of source size as well as viewing distance and, for a given environmental zone, CIE150 only provides a single preand post-curfew value for assessments.

The review and subsequent publication of CIE 150: 2017 looked to address these considerations regarding obtrusive light. Consequently, the ILP has reviewed and updated GN01 accordingly (GN01: 2020), and the intention of this article is to walk readers through the main changes that have resulted.

The majority of definitions in the guidance note remain unchang ed but, based upon legal comment, the term ‘light trespass’ has been dropped and the terms ‘ light nuisance’ or ‘light intrusion’ will now be used. The classification of environmental zones E0 to E4 remains, but the associated descriptions of lighting environment and related examples have been revised to align with the Dark Skies Association descriptions. T h i s i s t o a i d a m o r e c o n st a n t approach to assessing and classifying areas. Figure 1 above provides a highlevel assessment approach and is supported within GN01: 2020 with associated notes and guidance.

January 2020 Lighting Journal

 Figure 1. An example of the high-level assessment approach

ZONE & SURROUNDING

E1 NATURAL

E2 RURAL

E3 SUBURBAN

E4 URBAN

Dark (SQM 20.5+)

Dark (SQM 20 to 20.5)

High district brightness

Relatively uninhabited rural areas, national parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, IDA buffer zones etc

Low district brightness (SQM ~15 to 20)

Medium district brightness

Astronomical observable dark skies, UNESCO starlight reserves, IDA dark sky places

Well-inhabited rural and urban settlements, small town centres of suburban locations

Town/city centres with high levels of night-time activity

PROTECTED

LIGHTING ENVIRONMENT

2. PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

GN01: 2020 includes the considerations and requirements to be made regarding artificial lighting under the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environmental Act 2006, the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) 2019 as well as the government’s lighting planning guidance. This latter guidance can be found on the government’s www.gov.uk website and is referenced at the end.

Sparsely inhabited rural areas, village or relatively dark outer suburban locations

3. SPILL LIGHT

We are familiar with the limits that have been used regarding vertical illuminance on adjacent premises windows. A further requirement has been introduced in the new GN that any spill light into an already lit area shall be managed. This is to ensure that it will not have an adverse effect on the task lighting performance requirements of the adjacent installation – which may be a highway,

car park or exterior work area, to name three alternatives. All assessment aspects concerning illuminance relate to all artificial lighting falling on the vertical or horizontal planes and not just that from a proposed installation. It is therefore of importance that the designers of a new installation undertake a full existing baseline assessment of the existing lit environment to understand what, if any, additional spill light from their installation may be permitted. Of course, all good lighting design seeks to minimise any spill light and looks to just light the task areas required.

4. LUMINANCE

 An example of how glare from streetlights can affect drivers at night

The CIE 150: 2017 approach now recognises that the limits for the luminous intensity of luminaires is dependent on the viewing distance d, (between the observer and the bright luminaire(s)) and the projected area Ap, of the bright part of the luminaire in the direction of the observer. This has not been an easy approach to understand, as the projected area of a luminaire will depend upon the observation angle to it. The related tables in GN01: 2020 look to the approach advised within CIE 150: 2017. But the GN has also adopted the approach developed by the NSVV Nederlandse Stichting Voor Verlichtingskunde (the Dutch Foundation for Illumination). The GN01: 2020 approach now

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Reduction of obtrusive light

 Figure 2. Two illustrations showing the benefit of mounting height to reduce spill light

(a) Higher mounting height – less spill light and glare

(b) Lower mounting height – more spill light and glare

SKYGLOW EFFECT: LOCAL GLARE EFFECT: LITTLE

looks to a range of luminaire projection areas, the environmental zone within which the luminaire is located and provides a process to determine the maximum luminaire for both pre- and post-curfew times. Both the ILP and the Dutch Foundation for Illumination have written to CIE asking it to consider the approaches we have developed and revise CIE150:2017. The new approach also requires due consideration to be made where a cluster of luminaires appears to the observer to be a single source. In such cases, the total area of all luminaires shall be considered, and a related limited intensity determined and applied to the group and not the individual luminaire.

SKYGLOW EFFECT: SIGNIFICANT GLARE EFFECT: SOME SKYGLOW EFFECT: HIGH GLARE EFFECT: HIGH SKYGLOW EFFECT: SIGNIFICANT GLARE EFFECT: HIGH SKYGLOW EFFECT: MINIMUM GLARE EFFECT: SOME

100-180˚ 95-100˚ 90-95˚

ANGLE OF LIGHT EMITTED

85-90˚ 0-85˚

 Figure 3. The effect on our ability to view the night sky at various angles

5. LIMITATION OF THE EFFECTS ON TRANSPORT SYSTEMS

The effect of light installations on adjacent transport systems such as highways, rail and tram are also considered and requirements relating to veiling luminance and threshold increment for lighting installations adjacent to such systems are advised.

6. INSTALLATION CONSIDERATIONS

Due consideration and guidance regarding the choice of light source, luminaire distribution and mounting in order to mitigate obtrusive lighting effects are discussed. These factors include: •

The benefit of mounting height to reduce spill light as indicated in figure 2 above.

www.theilp.org.uk

•

The control of light output from the installed luminaire at angles between 85o and 100o to minimise skyglow effects, as shown in figure 3 below.

Allan Howard BEng (Hons) CEng FILP FSLL is technical director at WSP Lighting & Energy Solutions

REFERENCE

Light pollution: Advises on how to consider light within the planning system, March 2014, updated November 2019, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, available online at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/ light-pollution

GN01: 2020 is available as a free download from the resources section of the ILP’s website: www.theilp.org.uk The ILP is grateful to the CIE in permitting the use of its tables and diagrams in the publication of GN01: 2020. CIE 150: 2017 and CIE 126: 1997 can be downloaded from the CIE’s online shop and members of CIE-UK can purchase them with a 66% discount.

January 2020 Lighting Journal

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Underwater lighting

IMMERSION THERAPY

Whether weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re talking fountains, water features, swimming pools or leisure centres, getting underwater lighting schemes right can be challenging. As Charlie Wadsworth explains, colour, intensity and direction are key to harnessing light under water

By Charlie Wadsworth

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

umans may not yet be as adept at underwater lighting as bioluminescent jellyfish, but advances in underwater lighting and underwater lighting technology do mean we have come a long way in recent years in terms of producing low-energy, highly efficient methods for lighting our leisure facilities. One of the most important aspects about lighting – whether we’re talking underwater or conventional lighting – is that it is taken into consideration at the conception of the project. Too often, specifiers don’t factor in all the necessary components needed to create a discreet yet effective lighting scheme. Underwater projects in particular have specific technical, design and safety considerations. Aspects such as usage, power, glare and ambient lighting in the space all need to complement each other to make a scheme work.

UNDERSTANDING YOUR GOALS

Simply put, I believe the end-goal of any lighting scheme is to accomplish: • Visibility • Task performance • Safety and security • Atmosphere and aesthetics • Social interaction • Wellness and good mood • Comfort

Great underwater lighting can enliven public places and put them on the map. It can also add value to the bottom line in a commercial context. From the famous ‘dancing fountains’ at the Bellagio in Las Vegas through to the interactive waterspouts at MORE London by Tower Bridge (below), underwater lighting can often be a critical element of bringing in visitors and families to attractions. At project conception it is important to consider the common elements of any project. These are namely: • Location • Building design • Use • Artificial light levels and daylighting • Energy efficiency • Economic considerations • Safety The RIBA’s ‘Plan of Work’ is a great framework for any project (or, as it puts it, ‘the definitive UK model for the building, design and construction process’).

USING ‘CID’ AS PART OF THE DESIGN

The three key underwater lighting applications for specifiers working across public and private sectors are fountains, water features, residential and public pools, along with sports applications. CID or ‘colour, intensity and direction’ are the key aspects of all of these applications, in fact of any underwater lighting scheme

range of between 3000K and 6000K is the parameter to work between. Cooler colour temperatures complement the water surface and reduces glare, while warmer colour temperatures are more inviting. Something also to be aware of are light spectral power distribution (SPD) curves. These are a way to measure the precise colour output of a light source by charting the level of energy at each wavelength across the visible colour spectrum. Dr Walter Wendel, managing director at Form and Light Pty, has created some interesting research around colour and light absorption underwater. Cool light, he has concluded, is absorbed less in water than warmer coloured lighting, and the surface finish had a big impact on absorption, as shown in figure 1. This is important because, when a balanced RGBW scheme is required, as designers we need to factor in the asymmetric absorption rates and tweak the colour settings according to achieve the desired lit effect.

UNDERWATER LIGHTING AND COLOUR RENDERING INDEX

CRI (Colour Rendering Index) also plays an important part of design consideration when lighting under water. CRI is the ability of a light source to reveal the colours of objects faithfully in comparison with a natural light source. The Society of Light and Lighting (SLL) recommends at least a 60 CRI for most water-sport applications, so the CRI

COLOUR – THE ROLE OF COLOUR TEMPERATURE

All lighting designers are, of course, familiar with colour temperature – but colour temperature is critical within underwater lighting schemes. It is generally considered that a colour Distance

10m 12m

Blue%

Green%

Red%

White %

from fitting

p Interactive waterspouts at MORE London t The Hotel Hubertus, Italy. Absorption from dark grey slate tiles is overcome with intense blue RGBW LED while the 90° wide-beam angle and rotationally symmetrical light distribution generates wide light cones. Photo: by Alex Filz

p Figure 1. An indication of the percentage of colour absorption in water, calculated by distance

2700K CRI 100

2700K CRI 90

2700K CRI 80

2700K CRI 70

p A visual illustration of the effect of adjusting CRI

required is not the same as for, say, a museum showcase (90+ CRI).

THE ROLE OF FINISHES

The finishes of a pool surface can also play an important part in design, as they absorb light in varying degrees, as previously mentioned. Dark surface finishes (for example slate) are increasingly popular. But they can pose a challenge for underwater illumination because of their light absorption, which can in turn create a health and safety risk.

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Underwater lighting

For example, in the image on the left which shows an underwater lighting scheme at the Hotel Hubertus in Bozen, Italy, absorption from dark grey slate tiles is overcome with intense blue RGBW LED. At the same time, the 90° wide-beam angle and a rotationally sy m m e t r i c a l l i g h t d i s t r i b u t i o n generates wide light cones in the water. The staggered positioning on both longitudinal sides of the pool creates a curved light line, which adds a fun and quirky dimension.

THE VALUE OF RGBW

With RGBW sources and controller sequences, creative colours and displays can be achieved that enliven public spaces. The image below shows a recently completed renovation of a historic town hall and square in Tours, France – a city known as the ‘the garden of France’. The old, maintenance-intensive PAR38 spotlights with 120W were replaced by durable POW-LED 42W spotlights in stainless steel. This has saved up to 70% of power consumption and has reduced maintenance to a minimum. In the outer ring of the fountain, 18 luminaires are evenly installed directly behind the nozzles.

INTENSITY – INTENSITY WITHIN UNDERWATER LIGHTING

As a rough guide, 85 lumens per sq m of water surface is recommended. So, an 8m x 3m pool = 24sq m x 85 lumens = 2,040 required lumens. However, this is not an exact benchmark, and there are many variables to take into account. Calculating the level of light you need for a water body encompasses many factors, and a lighting professional will consider factors such as area, the shape of pool, finishes, desired atmosphere and uses.

Another interesting example is shown below at the Crown Towers Hotel in Perth, Australia. Here we see a 10° beam used to great effect on a much larger scale complemented by a linear border on the inner pools to create a framing contrast.

FOUNTAINS AND WATERFALLS

Fountains and waterfalls work best when droplets ‘catch’ the light. This is achieved by positioning spotlights in the water. A common technique is to locate spotlights alongside water jets.

DIRECTION – THE ROLE OF DIRECTION

The last aspect of CID (colour, intensity and direction, to recap) is direction. Direction encompasses the direction of light and beam angles. Different beam angles can create interesting effects. In this image below, for example, from a project in Greece, a 10° narrow beam creates an interesting linear pattern. Note how the fittings are pointed away from the sitting area and decking to mitigate the risks of glare away from the regular viewpoint. The narrow beams create an interesting display of dots along the far side of the pool while casting an interesting linear pattern within.

These Wibre fittings (above) are IP68 rated to 3m and manufactured entirely of stainless steel 316Ti. The jet nozzle passes through the centre of the fitting for optimum carry effect

The new light scheme for the town hall and Place Jean Jaurès, Tours, France. The colours are optimally carried by the flowing water, causing the water jet to shine. For this scheme the lighting manufacturer was Wibre and the partner for the project was MW MarvalWay. Photo: Caroline Gasch

Inside, four spotlights each illuminate the falling water or the individual fountains. The colours are optimally carried by the flowing water, causing the water jet to shine. The entire lighting installation is integrated into the existing DMX system so that the fountains can be c o n t r o l l e d sy n c h r o n o u s l y a n d illuminated as desired. The fixtures in an installation such as this should be placed at a maximum distance of 50mm from the jet to ensure the light is carried by the water. www.theilp.org.uk

Top: The Amanzoe, Argolida, Greece, with FOSS SA as the planner. A 10° narrow beam is used to create an interesting linear pattern. Above: The Crown Towers Hotel, Perth. Again a 10° beam is used, this time complemented by a linear border on the inner pools, to create a framing contrast. The partners for this project were Form and Light Pty and Think Lighting. The manufacturer, again, was Wibre. Photograph by George Apostolidis

January 2020 Lighting Journal

TRICKS OF THE TRADE

The environment outside the pool can play an important part in the overall design. For example, still water reflects nearby trees and buildings, creating interesting reflections. It is also possible to ‘light’ a pool or small lake by lighting the surroundings, which are reflected in the water, achieving twice the effect. Waves and ripples will produce interesting shapes and reflections. Other important tricks of the trade relate to sport and leisure environments. The main requirement here is to ensure user safety and the control of surface reflections, which are both critical to allow staff to monitor swimmers below the surface. Indirect luminaires should therefore be positioned high enough to avoid direct views and glare. It gets even more complicated for specific sports. For example, in synchronised swimming good vertical illuminance across the pool surface is required to ensure leg movements can be observed. However, for racing and water polo no underwater lighting should be used at all!

The Fountain Workshop scheme near King’s Cross in London. The scheme allows for full Internet of Things control of both the colour and jet performance. For this scheme the designer was David Bracey of Fountain Workshop, the landscape architect was Townshend Landscape Architects, the lighting manufacturer was NJO and the client was King’s Cross Estates/Argent Photo: John Sturrock

Figure 2: How a ‘starry sky’ installation is created: - 6 mm PMMA fibre cables, connected to an energy efficient LED projector to create vast star ceilings - After guiding the fibre cable to the area where the stars should be placed, 1-1.5m of coatig is removed, and the 50 ‘raw fibres’ that appear are mounted as stars An example of a ‘starry sky’ pool lighting installation. Photograph courtesy of RobLight

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Underwater lighting

This is because every hundredth of a second counts, and glare can be very offputting for the athletes. The image opposite shows a landmark scheme by the Fountain Workshop near London’s King’s Cross. It really pushed the boundaries of what is possible for public fountain lighting, as it allows for full Internet of Things control of both the colour and jet performance.

for easy access. This means that the water doesn’t need to be drained for lamp changes or scaffolding needed to maintain any features in the ceiling above the water. Fibre optics can also be used for unique designs, such as ‘starry sky’ installations, which can be above the pool or in the pool floor. Figure 2 shows some of the mechanics behind creating this sort of installation.

A WORD ON TECHNOLOGY

• Position fittings 0.5m and 0.70m below the water surface top so as to enable poolside maintenance without having to drain the pool. • Placing fixtures on the long side of a pool ensures beams travel less distance and cause minimum annoyance to swimmers. • Consider maintenance access requirements, such as cleaning and re-lamping. • Avoid positioning lights over a pool, unless catwalks, gantries, rear access from the ceiling or fibre optics are used. • End users should not have a direct view into luminaires where possible.

LEDs use a tenth of the wattage of traditional halogen sources, with 10 times the lamp life. This, naturally, makes them the first choice for fittings. Quality LED fixtures provide considerable lifecycle cost-savings when compared to halogen (50,000 hours before replacement versus 5,000 hours) as well as saving on both maintenance and energy usage. Fibre optics are also a great choice for wet areas and underwater lighting, as there is no electricity or heat at the output. In addition, the light source requires minimal maintenance and can be placed remotely

SOME KEY TAKEAWAYS

• All underwater luminaires should be IP68 . • The rating should be for the appropriate depth – for example, some IP68 luminaires are only appropriate for 1m depth. • 1.4539 high-grade stainless steel is required for water with 0.5% to 3.5% salinity. • Warmer temperature saltwater increases corrosion risk .

FINALLY, AND MOST IMPORTANT OF ALL

It is vital throughout any lighting project to remember that lighting quality exists when the luminous conditions are suitable for the needs of the people using the space to enhance their experience.

Charlie Wadsworth is commercial director of Light Projects

REFERENCES

RIBA Plan of Work, https://www.architecture.com/ knowledge-and-resources/resources-landing-page/ riba-plan-of-work

FOOD FOR THOUGHT While of course not technically underwater lighting in the sense that Charlie Wadsworth is describing, the lighting scheme for what is thought to be Europe’s first underwater restaurant is nevertheless arresting, writes Nic Paton. ‘Under’ in the town of Båly in southern Norway was designed by Norwegian architects Snøhetta and built first on a moored barge and then lowered into the sea and fixed to the ocean bottom using steel rods. It has 0.5m-thick concrete walls to withstand the water

pressure and sea conditions as well as a massive panoramic acrylic window, 11m x 4 m and 288m-thick, offering a view of the seabed. As well as serving food, the restaurant houses an interdisciplinary research team who study marine biology and fish behaviour. The lighting scheme, designed by AF Lighting and using luminaires from iGuzzini, comprises approximately 400 one-cell, recessed Laser Blade XS luminaires positioned to ensure light is focused on the tables. This means the general environment around the diner remains in semi-darkness so as not to disturb the marine life. The compact

dimensions of the luminaires mean they are completely concealed in the ceiling and look as if they are off even when seen from different perspectives, argues iGuzzini. The service lighting system, required for table service, has again been reduced to a minimum thanks to the use of tags that interact with the luminaires. The Laser Blade XS luminaires come on when waiters approach and turn off once they have passed. This creates an atmosphere of intimacy for the guests and, again, respects the marine environment.

January 2020 Lighting Journal

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

The ILP’s ‘Lighting for Good’ initiative

IT’S GOOD 16

Building on its event of two years ago, the ILP’s new ‘Lighting for Good’ portal aims to bring together lighting professionals, academics and others to share knowledge and collaborate. The hope is that, in the process, we can all start to bring better lighting to communities, clients, individuals and our planet as a whole

By Nic Paton

wo-and-a-half years ago, in May 2017, the ILP brought together a compelling array of names from across the lighting world to think about, and reflect upon, how light and lighting can be used to promote ‘good’; how lighting professionals can use their skills to contribute to and create a better world. As Lighting Journal reported at the time (‘Community Spirit’, vol 82 no 7, July/August 2017), ‘Lighting for Good’ discussed everything from Michael Grubb Studio’s ‘Re:LIT’ community lighting project through to how to create a more ‘democratic’ design process, how to design both with and for people and how to design for changing demographics, especially our ageing population in the UK. That event, while inspiring for everyone concerned, was nevertheless something of a one-off, acting as a bookmark between the International Year of Light in 2015 and UNESCO’s International Day of Light that followed it in May 2018. But the idea of lighting for good, the question of how the lighting industry, individuals, communities and academia can get better at sharing knowledge and skills to enable best practice in lighting design and delivery, didn’t go away. Scroll forward therefore to November 2019 and ‘Lighting for Good’ has returned, but this time in a very different format, one that it is hoped both ILP members and non-ILP members will engage and interact with on an ongoing basis.

INTERACTIVE RESEARCH PORTAL

Lighting for Good has become an interactive online portal, accessed through www.theilp.org.uk/good, where lighting researchers and practitioners can come together to ask questions, seek answers and share knowledge – all with the aim of building a better evidence base for ‘good’ lighting. Turn to page 19 for an explainer of how the portal works and how to join in. To mark the launch of the initiative, the ILP once again brought together highlevel speakers from within and outside the world of lighting for an event, chaired by Greta Smetoniute, project lighting designer at Michael Grubb Studio, to discuss ‘knowledge for the future’ in terms of light and lighting. The event was held at the Neuron Pod learning and community centre in London’s Whitechapel. The opening, www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

keynote, speaker was Mark Sutton Vane of Sutton Vane Associates, who designed the lighting scheme for this intriguing building created by architect Will Alsop. ‘I think lighting schemes should tell a story; should take the ideas that the building wants to tell, that the rest of the design team wants to tell, or that the function of the building needs to have to make it work. And then the lighting designer takes those requirements and exaggerates them a bit maybe, emphasises them, makes them work. And that is how the lighting designer can tell the “story”, can sell the dream, can make that emotional “thing ” happen, can grab the heart. Through what the eyes see, the heart can then feel the emotions of the building,’ he explained. Mark took his audience through the ‘story’ behind his work at the Sheik Abdullah Al Salem Cultural Centre in Kuwait, the Painted Hall at Greenwich’s Old Royal Naval College, his Lighting Design Awards-winning scheme for York Minster (as profiled in Lighting Journal, ‘Power to the People’, vol 82 no 9, September 2017), the venerable 1698 wine merchants Berry Bros & Rudd and, finally, the Neuron Pod itself. As it acted as a precursor to the main ‘knowledge for the future’ event, his presentation, especially how he and his team created and installed the Neuron Pod’s illuminated ‘dendrites’, will be looked at in more detail in a future edition of Lighting Journal. So, watch this space.

EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICE

ILP Vice President – Architectural Graham Festenstein welcomed everyone to the launch, highlighting that this new iteration of Lighting for Good was a ‘highly exciting project that hopefully has a really good future’. ‘It came,’ he explained, ‘out of our desire as an Institution to benefit our members and also inform the rest of the lighting industry of good, evidence-based practice and to create a collaborative environment between practitioners and researchers.’ Dr Jemima Unwin, lecturer at UCL’s The Bartlett, then outlined a range of important themes or topics for future research that she argued the lighting industry should be addressing. These included the role light and lighting could play in helping to tackle the global problem of growing populations

and diminishing resources. ‘It is a huge challenge and I think, actually, people are part of the solution. We are very good at doing more with less, both researchers and lighting designers,’ she said. ‘A lot of the issues we have with rising populations are social; so what we have to do is make sure lighting doesn’t inhibit social interaction. For example, if someone is too scared to walk to the busstop at night that might stop them going out, might inhibit their social interaction. Or it might be night-shift workers feeling worried on their walk home,’ she added. The role lighting has to play in promoting, sustaining and protecting wellbeing was also important. ‘It is really important to remember that it is not just

TO TALK vision in lighting; we are multi-sensory beings. We hear things, smell things; we need to look at a person as a whole system and ask “why?” as well as “how?” questions,’ Dr Unwin explained. Another important question was around the amplitude of the dark-light cycle, she emphasised. ‘So how bright should “bright” be and how dark should “dark” be? We’ll probably find out that the requirements are very different for everybody. But even that would be a useful thing to understand, particularly for the approximately 5% of the population who are completely immobile. Because they can’t go outside as easily to get daylight. ‘And we need to decide whether it is best to research what is best or how to avoid the worst. The latter is quite easy, as you can see what people’s tolerances are. What is best is much harder. So that is another question we need to consider,’ Dr Unwin concluded.

A LOT OF THE ISSUES WE HAVE WITH RISING POPULATIONS ARE SOCIAL; SO WHAT WE HAVE TO DO IS MAKE SURE LIGHTING DOESN’T INHIBIT SOCIAL INTERACTION www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

The ILP’s ‘Lighting for Good’ initiative

Dr Alejandro Sanchez de Miguel, postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Exeter, then revisited his ongoing research on blue light and health, also presented at the ILP’s 2018 Professional Lighting Summit. As he argued: ‘Always, always lights must be human-centric. LEDs are a tool and it depends on how you use that tool.’

LIGHTING FOR AGEING POPULATIONS

Dr de Miguel was followed Dr Navaz Davoodian, honorary senior research associate at The Bartlett, who looked at some of the challenges around creating lighting schemes that can better accommodate our changing (and ageing) demographic. In particular, and echoing Dr Unwin, she questioned how older people can be encouraged to engage with and be a part of our increasingly important night-time economy. ‘One in three night-time workers is over the age of 50. Night-time workers need to be able to move around the city easily and safely. Also, we have the problem of inactivity and social isolation in older adults. We want to diminish every barrier that makes them not want to go outside, to be physically active but also to be socially active. We want them to go out at night to interact and mingle with people of other generations, or their friends, or their children or grandchildren,’ she said. ‘But how inclusive are our urban spaces? There are many studies in urban design areas looking at accessibility of paths and walking and sitting areas. But most are focused on daytime; rarely do they mention night-time. And when they do they say, “we need ‘good’ lighting”. But what does that mean? Also, they tend just to mention hazard detection and fear of crime,’ Dr Davoodian added. Next up to speak was Kerem Asfuroglu, founder of the Dark Source, a lighting design studio with a strong focus on social and environmental schemes. He highlighted a number of projects he and has team had been working on. This included a charity collaboration in west Gambia with The Vessel UK and Daughters of Africa to light a community centre in the town of Abuko. The aim was twofold: to help train 30 local electricians about solar-powered lighting and lighting design and to create a functional, engaging, well-lit space for the children who use the community library. ‘Some of them were travelling up to an hour to come here and lighting conditions were terrible, even during the daytime. So www.theilp.org.uk

LIGHTING FOR GOOD IS A GREAT REPRESENTATION OF WHAT YOU CAN BE AS A LIGHTING PROFESSIONAL, WHAT YOU CAN EXPERIENCE AND WHAT YOU CAN BE A PART OF the idea was we would create the workforce and collectively do the work together to deliver the project,’ Kerem explained. The new scheme has created multiple layers of light in the building. This includes locally commissioned, biodegradable pendant luminaires for task lighting and spotlights for vertical emphasis. ‘It has been a great experience. Gambian electricians, young people, they have got so much experience under their belts. I allocated a week on site and it ended up being only two days, which was remarkable,’ he said. ‘We also saw some kerosene lamps in a local shop and just thought, “the best thing you can do to a kerosene lamp is stick an LED bulb in it”. So we have designed them [with LEDs in] to create flexibility. If people need it they can borrow the lighting and just put it on their table. ‘One of the best things was that when it was all done and dusted and we were finished we stepped outside and realised the power had gone down in the town. And the children inside had not even noticed,’ Kerem added.

COMBINING LIGHTING AND RESEARCH

The final speaker was Dr Don Slater, associate professor in sociology at London School of Economics and lead researcher (with Dr Joanne Entwistle of King ’s College London and Dr Elettra Bordonaro of Light Follows Behaviour) of the ‘Configuring Light/Staging the Social’ research project, which explores the ways in which light, as a material, is configured into urban and public realm infrastructures, spaces and practices. As he put it: ‘What we’re interested in is

the way in which light is socially shaped. It is made, constructed, assembled by lighting professionals but also by people just driving around in their cars and switching on their lights and so on and so forth. It is all the different ways in which light is configured – hence the title – and becomes the ubiquitous background.’ For Dr Slater – as for the other speakers – the idea and potential of a collaborative knowledge-sharing platform such as Lighting for Good was immense. ‘You cannot imagine how happy and excited I am to see a technological arena, a match-making system for bringing together lighting people and researchers of all sorts, whether academic or not,’ he said. ‘I have spent the last six years trying to convince social science people that lighting is both important and interesting, and convincing lighting professionals that knowing their social spaces is pretty important too. So bringing this together in this space is really, really exciting. ‘It will entirely depend on us, on what material we fill this space with. And how much dialogue there is in in that space; how many knowledges get put together. It is probably not going to be done that easily or not without conflict. But that doesn’t matter. ‘The point is to have all these voices speaking to each other in a field as complex and diverse as lighting. And lighting is just one part, as you know, of a much broader world of urban and domestic design. We have a lot of different knowledges and we have to make space for them,’ Dr Slater added.

SHARING KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE

The event was then concluded by ILP Vice President – Education Kimberly Bartlett, who made a passionate call for members, and the industry, to try out the portal, engage with and get involved with this new resource. ‘Thinking about the future, it is all here, now. All of you sitting here are the future, regardless of whether you have just come into the profession or have been in the industry two years, 20 or 50. Look at what you’ve actually done and understand; use that information, use that knowledge. There is something here for everybody,’ she said. ‘Lighting for Good is a great representation of what you can be as a lighting professional, what you can experience and what you can be a part of. So please do get involved, and let’s talk,’ Kimberly added.

January 2020 Lighting Journal

HOW ‘LIGHTING FOR GOOD’ WORKS

The Lighting for Good portal (www. theilp.org.uk/good) is the culmination of work by a small team of ILP volunteers to create an online ‘bridge’ between lighting researchers and practitioners. Its aim is very simple: to provide a forum, a platform, where people – practitioners, manufacturers, academics, individuals with an interest and so on – can go to ask questions, seek answers and share knowledge. There are 10 categories for collaboration: • Collaboration corner • Daylight • Earth’s resources • Glare • Human wellbeing • Knowledge for the future • Knowledge from past times • Lighting quality • Road, street and city lighting • STEM and education

The step-by-step graphics below shows you how to login to and then navigate through to the portal. Entry is free to ILP members, who can simply login through their ‘MyILP’ portal, although there is then an extra layer of security they will need to go through. But non-ILP members can also test out and experience the Lighting for Good portal by taking out a trial ILP membership. This enables you to access the portal and enjoy ILP member benefits until the end of February, at which point the membership will expire automatically without any payment or card details needing to have been given (or of course you can join). So, if you’re an ILP member why not mention this to a colleague as a way to encourage them to find out just how valuable ILP membership can be for them? To arrange a trial membership, simply email membership manager Chantal O’Sullivan at chantal@theilp.org.uk for more details.

Log into MyILP portal using your ILP member portal email and password

Select ‘Lighting for Good’ from the menu

Explore the categories, share information, ask for help, get involved

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Urban lighting

A LONDON FAR IN THE FUTURE

DARK From swarms of illuminated drones through to ‘light fashion’ and urban spaces where darkness can be celebrated, Speirs + Major’s ‘The Third Age of Light’ is using virtual reality to re-imagine our night-time cityscapes. In the process, as Chloe Martina Salvi explains, it is working to question longheld assumptions about public realm lighting By Chloe Martina Salvi

www.theilp.org.uk

hen it comes to darkness, particularly in urban environments, there still seems to be a very strong general assumption that ‘brighter is better’ and that ‘the dark’ is something to be fearful of. Despite research evidence that has disproved this idea (there is officially more crime happening in London in the daytime than at night) there is a deeply ingrained cultural belief that somehow resists any significant conceptual challenge. This is where, I think, speculative design thinking comes into play. It can provide us with a vision of the future that feels distant enough while at the same time keeping some relatable aspects. It thus allows us to question our current views and beliefs in a more approachable way. In terms of darkness and lighting design, ‘The Third Age of Light’ by Speirs + Major is a perfect example of a great speculative lighting design.

Set in a London far into the future – 2053 – the project is an immersive virtual reality (VR) experience of compelling visual 3D sketches of three areas of the city: South Bank, King’s Cross and Primrose Hill. For each, it provides imagined views of how they might appear in the future after dark. The idea was born from an exhibition called ‘The Future of Urban Lighting’, created as part of the 2017 Paris Professional Lighting Design Convention (PLDC). It then travelled to last year’s ILP Professional Lighting Summit in Newcastle upon Tyne, where I had my first chance to experience it, to a talk at the Royal Society of Arts (RSA) and most recently at the London Design Fair’s darc room event. As Mark Major explained during his RSA talk, the Third Age of Light was born to challenge the way we think of light in our cities. It takes as its starting point the most lightpolluting aspect of urban lighting, street lighting, and playfully imagines a future where, thanks to technological advances already being developed, this type of lighting no longer has reason to exist. Inspired by some of the thinking of media theorist Marshall McLuhan, who described an age of convergence between information and light media, Speirs + Major has through the project imagined new visions for the city after dark by incorporating new technologies into its fabric. The project name, The Third Age of Light, refers to the ways in which public lighting could be categorised over time in different phases. The first phase was of burning (candles, lamps) when the naked flame was our primary source of light. This was, of course, a time of limited technology, with the start of organised lighting systems that

January 2020 Lighting Journal

culminated in the appearance of gas lighting. The second phase was one of coexistence of new and traditional light sources (including LED) where these same public lighting systems got to be further developed and where we moved towards a more wasteful use of light. This shift led to over-lit environments and light pollution with, as consequence, the loss of darkness and of our night sky. Finally, we reach the Third Age of Light, where (or so the hope goes) advancements in technology and awareness of the environmental impacts of lighting are allowing us to re-evaluate the urban realm after dark. Mark Major’s RSA talk discussed the thinking process behind this project by using many engaging cross-references between historical habits and future trends in technology. For example, historically, as early as Roman times we used to carry our light or lamp with us – or, if wealthy enough, have people carry them for us. But have now become ever-more reliant on public lighting systems. As he explained: ‘We have now in a way surrendered personal and social control of lighting to local authorities to the point where we expect it to be light and we take it for granted.’

EVOLUTION OF OUR URBAN REALM

The idea therefore of a Third Age of Light sees evolutions in mobility patterns within our urban environment as a unique opportunity for change, for a more dynamic rather than static way to provide illumination in the city. After discussing new ways in which streets are moving, notably more becoming networks through the advancement of smart cities, and where each single element inhabiting them is becoming more and more illuminated, Mark showed us how this can open up possibilities to question public lighting’s ‘status quo’ through a series of interesting ‘what-ifs’. For example, what if autonomous vehicles will have to have their own lighting solution and will become themselves illuminated and sources of

illumination? What if cyclists, whose numbers are growing and who are already somehow lighting the roads of cities, will become even more prominent moving light sources? What if new developments in OLED fashion turn us into ‘light wearers’? What if advancements in drone technologies could be used to bring swarms of light, as in drones with light sources as primary functions, to areas that need it? What if we could, through the use of eye filters, augment our ability

to see at night, and therefore to be able to see environments in different ways? Could all these new, more dynamic, elements provide us with enough legibility and sense of security to allow for a reduction of traditional public lighting? There is a strong connection, in this Third Age of Light proposition, between these visions of our future cities and the reclamation and preservation of darkness as a tool capable of adding value to our experience of spaces in the city. The dark in this new thinking is no

The Third Age of Light project imagines the future city at night, including how communal spaces (such as King’s Cross above) might work but also how light might be used within horticulture and food generation in our future urban environment

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Urban lighting

longer a fearful concept but something that could contribute to creating new identities for our urban space in unexpected and exciting new ways. And it is us, as lighting designers, who are the most equipped to tune into this palette of possibilities and challenges. As Mark explained, we usually design by starting with a dark atmosphere and decide what needs to be added in order to create a certain balance. Could we turn darkness in our cities i n t o a p o s i t i ve c o n c e pt altogether?

CHARACTER AND NEW SPACES

For example, as much as it is true that changes to the city after dark can make us feel disoriented, it is also true that they provide opportunities to create character and new spaces for people to dwell within. A great application of this concept can be seen in the enchanting southern part of the Queen Elizabeth II Olympic Park in Stratford, east London, with a lighting design by Speirs + Major and Michael Grubb Studio. In this carefully designed experience, the night promenade is lit by animated ‘dapples’ of light from suspended custom-designed perforated spheres hanging over the pathway, in the process creating soft shifts of light and darkness over the passers-by. The project manages to create a unique atmosphere while at the same time maintaining safe l e ve l s o f l e g i b i l i t y a n d wayfinding. Our eyes have an incredible adaptive quality to dark environments; we can see a very wide range of illumination, from 10,000 lux to 1 lux and moonlight. As soon as we use more light in one area, we end up creating a darker adjacent area. So, in a way, it’s those same over-lit environments that are creating the phenomenon of perceived darkness. Could it be that the idea of the dark as loss of security is in great part because of contrast and transition rather than darkness itself? www.theilp.org.uk

The Queen Elizabeth II Olympic Park in Stratford, east London. The scheme by Speirs + Major and Michael Grubb Studio creates animated ‘dapples’ of light through custom-designed perforated spheres that hang along the pathway. Photos by James Newton

If public lighting did become as dynamic as the Third Age of Light proposes, then I guess we could embrace fluctuation of light levels and become more accustomed to an occasional absence of light? As Mark put it: ‘It’s not so much that I believe that street light will disappear altogether, but I think we have to challenge the ways in which we need to do things. This is what smart lighting is in theory about.’ I believe it will be possible – and necessary – going forward to reclaim the value of darkness and improve our impact on the various species we share our environment with. Finally, it is exciting thinking that we, as lighting designers, can lead the way towards this sustainable future of lighting. But, rather than just addressing the design of our cities at night for the sake of financial reasons ( because artificial light and the nighttime footprint provides billions to our economy), we should also do so for the sake of our emotional wellbeing when inhabiting within and using these night-time spaces. There is wonder and hope in thinking that we could, one day, turn our gaze up from our winter commute home and be able to look at a city sky full of stars.

Chloe Martina Salvi is a YLP member and junior lighting designer at Birkenstock Lighting Design

New AcRo Mini Sealed Photocell

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Engineered for use in any Luminaire regardless of IP rating Westire Technology, continuing our 37 years history of supplying innovation and quality to the lighting market. Our past experience allows us to boast long standard product warranties and life expectancies far beyond.

For further details visit westire.com

Fully Encapsulated

Specifications

The AcRo Mini Sealed series Photocell is unique and brings innovation to the lighting industry. It now features fully encapsulated Electronic Circuitry and Light Sensor using a UV stabilised, high temperature long life potting material.

• • •

Available with Industry Standard wire to wire connectors. Enhanced light level switching accuracy with additional custom configurations available. 12V, 24V, 36V and 48V DC variants available.

UK & International Sales

North & South America

Irish Sales

HQ & Manufacturing

James Wright E: jwright@westire.com T: +44 7713 958962

Michael J Duffy E: mduffy@westire.com T: +1 847-274-6756

Fiona Gallagher E: fgallagher@westire.com T: +353 97 81209

Westire Technology Ltd, Ind. Estate, Belmullet, Co. Mayo, Ireland. E: info@westire.com T: +353 97 81200 F: +353 97 81400 www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Motorway lighting

In the rush to upgrade our ageing motorway lighting stock to LED, is the lighting industry thinking hard enough about the best, the most appropriate, solutions in terms of colour temperature, glare, lighting levels, connectivity and weight?

By Scott Pengelly

t’s fair to say that exterior lighting has come on leaps and bounds since we saw the first LED luminaires launched what must be 10 years ago now. From those early days of barely being able to light residential roads to the lower lighting levels, we now find ourselves in the position that every single road lighting scenario now has LED solutions available. So, what does this mean for the humble motorway network in the UK? Quite simply, modern LED technology means all of our illuminated network of motorways can now be www.theilp.org.uk

upgraded to LED, delivering massive energy and maintenance savings. According to the lighting press, it wasn’t until the middle of 2017 that the UK saw its first chunk of motorway lit using LED technology. The scheme on the M62 near Huddersfield delivered energy savings in the region of 53% when compared to the existing scheme. With the total number of lighting units located on the UK’s motorway and trunk road network totalling well over 160,000, these savings can easily deliver significant change to the amount of energy consumed for public lighting needs. There are, however, a number of considerations that need to be front of mind when looking at upgrading to LED for this type of application. Where lighting levels are increased, mounting heights are higher and safety issues more critical.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF MOTORWAYS…

The first day of November 2019 marked the sixtieth anniversary of the opening of the first section of M1, linking north London to

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Rugby via 62 miles of a brand new inter-urban motorway network. It was revolutionary at the time, and marked a change in driving environments for long-distance travel throughout the country. Prior to this, however, a smaller section was opened at the Preston bypass (which now makes up a section of the M6) marking the UK’s first ever motorway. This eight-and-a quarter mile section was opened on the 5th of November, 1958, with the then prime m i n i st e r, Harold Macmillan, becoming the first person in Britain to travel on a motorway. It wasn’t without its own issues of course, as the early motorways had no speed limits, no central reservation or crash barriers – and no lighting. The result were, sadly, tragic. On 17 March, 1972 an accident involving over 200 vehicles occurred during a period of thick fog, which led to nine deaths and more than 51 injured people – a figure that still makes this as one of the worst incidents on the UK road network. This led to an evaluation period and the decision in July 1972 to illuminate a total of 83 miles of the most fog-prone areas of motorway, including major sections of the M1. So, what must we now consider when looking at upgrading our motorway network to LED technology, based on our knowledge so far?

COLOUR TEMPERATURE

As an industry, we have seen the surge in popularity for the 4000K colour temperature, which has become somewhat standard for exterior street lighting. There are, however, many who believe this colour temperature to be harmful not only to humans but also flora and fauna. The spike we often see within the blue spectrum has been identified as having the potential to affect melatonin production and therefore cause changes

to the human circadian rhythm. Without wanting to go too in depth into this issue whilst discussing motorway lighting, it will inevitably become a key talking point for this application too. In order to deliver energy savings, there will no doubt be many motorway lights using the 4000K colour temperature LEDs we have seen specified elsewhere. However, perhaps consideration for 3000K can be reviewed at this point. It could be argued that wanting people to stay awake whilst driving on the motorway road network is of course not necessarily a bad idea. But is it our job – as the lighting industry – to enforce this? Our traditional high-pressure sodium lamptype, which adorns most motorways to this day has a colour temperature of around 2000K, and has been more than suitable for many years. With an average energy saving of ~50/60% achievable on motorway lighting schemes, does the small additional amount of around 5% extra savings when moving from 3000K to 4000K make enough of a difference?

have an issue with glare unfortunately, as almost all technology on the market utilises small-form LEDs behind individual lens arrays. The intensity of this type of LED very quickly leads on to discomfort glare, which could ultimately be dangerous on long stretches of motorway where the users cannot easily escape the environment. It is therefore worth considering other LED chip types, which are available in high output options too, such as COB or chip on board LEDs. These have a much larger lit areas and, as such, tend to deliver a less glary solution. But there is a further question. How can we ensure from a design stage that glare

GLARE, G RATINGS AND LIGHT CONTROL

For me, this is one of the most important factors for almost any lighting scheme. Glare can ruin even the longest life and most energy efficient projects out there. The use of LED technology does still www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Motorway lighting

does not become an issue in application? When referring to BS 5489 – our bible on these matters – you can see that the use of ‘Threshold Increment’ is identified as the metric for ensuring a scheme is not glary and causing issues for the visibility of users. All too often, the G ratings are used as a benchmark for identifying how comfortable or not a luminaire is going to be. Whilst this is partly correct, it should be noted that even the glariest of products, when designed correctly into a scheme, should not actually cause a problem in application.

LIGHTING LEVELS

The standards are very clear on lighting levels for motorway and dual carriage applications. applications. BS5489 again provides guidance on this. As you may know, the highest M class – M1 – is no longer used for this application and most motorways only need to be lit to M2 at most. It is worth considered the provision shown here for applying lower lighting levels should the traffic conditions or locations of junctions allow. Dropping to M3 or even M4 can save significantly on energy costs over the lifetime. It minimises the capital cost of the lantern in the first instance as well as ensuring good practice when considering the surrounding areas adjacent to motorways as well.

CONNECTIVITY

The term ‘connectivity’ is the absolute buzz word of the moment. We have all become accustomed to being ever-more connected and using data to influence our decisions. There are many fantastic CMS solutions on the market that provide us with the ability to monitor and control equipment from the comfort of the office or depot. Within the world of street lighting, we can consider technology from day one to help us make informed choices about control. Remote monitoring can inform decisions over maintenance programmes, minimising the need for having operatives on site in some of the more dangerous situations. CMS can allow us to apply dimming and trimming patterns for further energy savings as well as consider constant light output regimes to ensure that the over-lighting of a scheme becomes a thing of the past. With the ever-growing network of constantly monitored roads, we can perhaps use this collection of data to provide more adaptive lighting. www.theilp.org.uk

Perhaps we should consider reducing or increasing the lighting level in line with the roadway environment? For instance, we can use smart motorway technology to review real-time traffic data and use this to further reduce lighting levels at periods of low traffic flow. Incidentally, on the subject of smart motorways, it was announced in October by transport secretary Grant Shapps that the roll-out of smart motorway schemes would be reviewed and his department would carry out an ‘evidence stock-take to gather the facts quickly and make recommendations’. This came after comments from the chief executive of Highways England, Jim O’Sullivan, that, in his view, smart motorways were ‘too complicated for people to use’ following a spate of deaths that have occurred when vehicles have been stopped in a running hard shoulder, so leading to fatal accident.

WEIGHT AND WINDAGE

When working on such safety-critical road networks, both the weight and the windage of the new luminaire type must be considered a top priority. At INDO, our column and bracket structures were optimised to be the smallest wall thickness and as light as possible, ensuring the original equipment was held up safely and in accordance with the BS EN40 standards. Indeed, it is not uncommon to find an LED lantern for motorway applications to be anything up to 20kg in weight. The thin overall profile of newer lanterns does reduce windage, but may well cause the lantern itself to act as an aerofoil. This puts additional stress on to the column and bracket arm assembly, for which it perhaps wasn’t designed originally.

We must also consider the ageing stock of lighting columns, which are invariably having heavy lanterns fitted on to the existing equipment, and therefore the importa nc e of proa c tive asset management.

SUMMARY

To summarise, if we want to consider upgrading motorway lighting to LED what should be top of our minds? To my mind, there are five takeaways for lighting professionals here. •

•

• •

•

Colour temperature. Where possible, opt for warmer colour temperatures to provide a clear white light whilst not being seen as overly blue. Glare. Using the application of threshold increment is a better way of considering glare in a scheme compared with the G rating for lanterns themselves. Lighting levels. Using the breadth of standards could help to reduce lighting levels where the scenarios allow this. Connectivity. Consider connectivity to provide data-based information for controlling light outputs as well as influencing maintenance decisions . Weight. Keeping both weight and windage to a minimum is worth considering for safety reasons as well as reducing risk on existing infrastructure too.

Scott Pengelly EngTech AMILP is account manager, London and South East, for INDO Lighting as well as the ILP’s Vice President – Products

INSPIRED BY LIGHT AN EVENT FOR ARCHITECTS AND DESIGNERS TO EXPLORE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LIGHT AND SURFACE. CO-LOCATED WITH SURFACE DESIGN SHOW, THE UKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S MOST DYNAMIC DESIGN EVENT LIGHT-SCHOOL.CO.UK

@SURFACETHINKING

NOW

January 2020 Lighting Journal

The ‘Lights in Alingsås’ festival, Sweden

SWEDISH DESIGNS 28

In its time Lights in Alingsås has grown to become the largest lighting festival in northern Europe, attracting some 70,000 visitors every year. For 2019, under the theme ‘be the light’, 100 people from 27 countries came together to create the installations – essentially a light trail across the city – and we show a selection over these two pages. The focal point of the festival is now the permanent ‘Jubilee’ installation in the main square, a collaboration between lighting designers Kai Piippo and Torbjörn Eliasson, who have been involved with the festival from its inception. By day, this installation’s mirror-covered pillars reflect the trees, water and surroundings. Once night has fallen, it then illuminates the surrounding trees and river. Finally, cables hung along the whole stretch of the installation can be used as the basis for other light artworks. ‘The installation will be in place for many years and will retain its basic design, although it may experience greater or smaller changes,’ says Torbjörn Eliasson. ‘Our dream is that future lighting designers will be able to use what we have made as a good base for their own creations. This is a way of thinking common to many lighting designers – sharing things with colleagues all over the world.’

IMPROVING LIGHT QUALITY

www.theilp.org.uk

very autumn since the turn of the millennium the city of Alingsås, near Gothenburg in the west of Sweden, has over five weeks turned the lengthening Scandinavian nights into a celebration of light and lighting. For 2019, the ‘Lights in Alingsås’ festival, which ran from 27 September to 3 November, celebrated its 20th anniversary, even though the city argues it has embraced light installations for some 400 years.

The idea of having a permanent installation in this way was also about working to improve the quality of lighting within Alingsås itself year-round, explains Jan Olofzon, chief executive of festival organiser Alingsås Energi. ‘The goal of this installation is to create beautiful lighting in the space round the river, improve street lighting and illuminate the way from the square in the direction of Nolhaga. The pillars have been constructed to make it possible to experiment with different lighting designs at different times of the year,’ he says. Finally, an innovation for 2019 was an ‘Interact Light play’ app that visitors could download to their phones to allow them to control the ‘Site-Luke’ installation on Alingsås Energi’s Pumphus and Momenti bridge.

January 2020 Lighting Journal

 The Eye (main image) Workshop heads: Claire Tomara and Natalie Redford, from Scotland. The installation team: Farahbee Rahman, Petra Koza, Nathalie Olsson, Julio Orson, Hanna Pettersson, Chaitanya Dang, Kristina Karlberg, Tim Andersson, Ronny Nummelin, Oskar Johansson, Adbdirahman Mohamed Abdule The Mother Tree  Workshop head: Jim Farula, from Sweden. The installation team: Zhuo Chen, Benjamin Bichsel, Angye Granda Gómez, Lisa La, Tong Liu, Ipek Yalcin, Sarawood Fueangfoo, William White, Albin Guterstam, Edvin Karlsson  The Energy Hill Workshop heads: Juha Hälikkä and Vladan Paunović, from Finland and Denmark. The installation team: Denise Garbov, Juan Pablo Cuevas, Berta Teixidó, Isac Sanderberg, Gustav Rällfors, Charlie Nilsson, Giovanni Corsini, Adrian Bergström, Olle Svärdström

 The Grove Workshop head: Jackson Stigwood, from Australia. The installation team: Camila Egenau, Sebastian Evangelista, Marta Fernandez Turu, Andrus Marin, Jenny Netz, Natvalun Tavepontakul, Reza Jalalzadeh, Samuel Wedberg, Abdolsatter Zohori, Hannes Lundqvist, Oliver Wust  The Pond Köllera (2 images) Workshop head: Erin Slaviero, from the United Arab Emirates. The installation team: Naxelli Burgoa Balzabal, Lisa Holmgren, Constanza Solis Navarro, Naslu Tharayil, Agata Terpinska, Nick Dankers, Ali Abbasi, Jacob Ritari, Melker Warfvinge

www.theilp.org.uk

R E D A C T E D

January 2020 Lighting Journal

ORATE

B COLLA

ATE INNOV RE PREPA

DELIV

WORKING WITH YOU

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

EFFEC T

Railway lighting

HINGE

A new rail stabling yard for Network Rail in Brighton has made use of bespoke hinged lighting columns to ease maintenance but also to reduce static charge transmission

By Trystan Williams

f there was one lesson to be learnt during our supply of lighting columns to building firm Emico’s construction of Network Rail’s new rail stabling yard in Brighton, it was that ‘one size does not fit all’. In other words, whilst one product may be the ideal solution to a problem in street lighting, in the rail sector this solution may be wholly inadequate. As a result, a column supplier such as ourselves at the Aluminium Lighting Company must be flexible, responsive and, above all, have a meticulous eye for detail when venturing into the rail market. The rail stabling yard in Brighton constructed by Emico on behalf of Network Rail was no exception to this. It was a project requiring 4m and 5m raise and lower columns that were simple to install and maintain with single-key and one-person operation. But they also needed to mitigate against some of the major issues associated with rail electrification and vicinal structures.

THE DESIGN

Network Rail’s Brighton facility is a DC railway siding, opening the possibility of www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

touch potentials and stray currents, owing to the close proximity of various power supply systems. As the EFCOG (Energy Facility Contractors’ Group) Electrical Safety Improvement Project explains: ‘It involves a fault current flow in the earth establishing a potential difference between the earth contact point and some nearby conductive structure or hardware’. Network Rail also commonly received complaints that its lighting columns were ‘live’. However, the reality was that train passengers built up a static charge whilst travelling and upon exiting the carriage were ‘shocked’, as the static current discharged through the columns. To mitigate against such issues, a bespoke isolation solution was utilised. Usually our aluminium columns are supplied in their brushed natural state or with a high-gloss finish where requested, despite there being no need for any corrosion protection. But the addition of an Abcite coating reduced the touch potential to the lowest practical values, so minimising exposed contact points and ensuring the depot’s operatives could safely operate our trademarked Echalon Mk III hinge system without solely relying on personal protective equipment such as conductive mats. The Echalon hinge has come a long way since its Mk I debut in 2009. Our Mk IV is currently in development, with our design and technical teams using 3D printing technology to construct our most advanced hinge system to date.

THE DESIGN PROCESS

The design stage of our bespoke products is critical. It is a stage of development that is a distinguishing feature of our role in the market, with an independent chartered structural engineer working alongside R&D and mechanical engineers on-site. For this project, the process broke down into three stages. 1.

Once we received Emico’s enquiry, draft specification drawings were completed and were followed by a set of calculations. These were verified by an independent structural engineer to determine whether the product was fit for purpose. 2. The product was assessed for conformity to applicable standards and requirements. 3. CAD drawings and calculations were returned for customer verification. The order was then received, a delivery date was set and production began.

 The Aluminium Lighting Company’s Echalon Mk III hinged column. The development of bespoke products such as this, in this case for the railway market, requires strong collaboration and communication between customer and manufacturer

MANUFACTURE

Assembling the product at our facility in Port Talbot, south Wales was equally important. This incorporates patent-pending processes to ensure the products leaving our premises are compliant, exactly to specification and ultimately represent the quality of design and craftsmanship that we are known for. This, again, broke down into three stages. 1.

Inspection and cutting. Both the column and the Echalon hinge cartridge were inspected before the column was measured, marked and cut. 2. Preparation. Burrs and the oxide layer were removed from the column’s inner surfaces to ensure optimum bonding. The Echalon cartridge was then inserted as per the specified lowering directions and four structural adhesive feed holes were drilled. 3. Bonding and coating. The bonding of the hinge system utilised our patent-pending process. Structural adhesive was injected into the feed holes and cured for 30 minutes.

CUSTOMER SUPPORT

The development of bespoke products requires a synergy between customer and manufacturer. It necessitates regular communication, customer support and, ultimately, the development of a strong working relationship to produce the correct solution which, in this instance, was particularly appropriate to meet Network Rail’s stringent specifications. Following the installation, a site visit

was organised to ensure compliance and customer satisfaction. As Matt Cunningham, director of engineering at Emico, put it: ‘These are light enough to carry into position. The hinge mechanism is very simple to operate so we could ﬁt the lanterns quickly and get the columns up with a minimum of fuss.’ Trystan Williams is market analyst at the Aluminium Lighting Company

UNDERSTANDING ASSET MANAGEMENT

The ILP’s new GN22 Asset Management Toolkit: Minor Structures (ATOMS) is designed to be a muchhave asset management guidance note for all industries that rely on, and need to maintain, lighting columns. This could include those management railway networks and stations, retail parks and private operations as well as highways. The GN is free to download from www.theilp.org.uk/atoms. Accompanying ATOMS is a model into which inspection data is input to generate condition information and CCI, either of the individual asset or grouped by road, by district or area. Keep an eye out, too, for regular ILP training events on the new toolkit, which will often be delivered through y o u r l o c a l L D C. O r g o t o www.theilp.org.uk/events

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

The ILP’s Lightscene CPD event

Effective asset management, better skills and competency and smarter use of data and intelligence could all be pivotal in helping to protect and enhance the role of the local authority lighting engineer, delegates to the ILP’s ‘Lightscene’ CPD event heard in October

By Nic Paton

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

‘C

an we save lighting engineers from extinction?’. As titles go, the headline f o r O c t o b e r ’s I L P Lightscene CPD event was certainly provocative. And the day itself, held at Uttoxeter Racecourse, provided intriguing food for thought even if, perhaps unsurprisingly, no ‘silver bullet’ answers. The day consisted of three keynote speakers: Professor Steve Fotios, professor of lighting and visual perception at Sheffield University; marketing specialist Liz Hudson, of the Yorkshire Marketing Machine; and Richard Hayes, chief executive of the Institute of Highway Engineers. Their presentations were then followed by a lively panel discussion that brought in LDC Birmingham chair Michala Medcalf (which was hosting Lightscene), ILP President Anthony Smith and Ian Jones, ILP VP – Local Authority. As well as the CPD, Lightscene was an opportunity for the approximately 150 delegates to meet and get to know the 18 industry-leading exhibitors, many of them ILP Premier members, and simply network and share knowledge. Given the finite space within a print publication such as Lighting Journal, the focus for this article will be the keynote presentations, especially that of Richard Hayes. The aim will then be to bring you a flavour of the follow-on panel debate – which used the keynotes as a springboard into discussing a range of important future challenges facing the industry – in next month’s (February) edition.

LIGHTING FOR PEDESTRIANS

The day started with Steve Fotios discussing some of his latest thinking and research around lighting for pedestrians, notably his belief that we need a new measure for uniformity if

we are going to enhance the safety and perceived safety of pedestrians. As he put it, the challenge remains around picking the right and most appropriate light level in this context, ‘trying to get the science behind it, the empirical evidence’. This built on Professor Fotios’ article this time last year in Lighting Journal (‘P-class lighting: what illuminance and why?’, vol 84, no 1, January 2019) but also his work as chair of the CIE’s TC4-52 Division 4 panel on developing new light levels for pedestrians. As highlighted by Nigel Parry in our November/December edition (‘Washington Post’, vol 84, no 10) this is now largely complete and, following a final review process, is expected to be moving forward for publication in the near future. Professor Fotios will also, separately, be writing up the research he presented at Lightscene for publication within Lighting Journal in the coming months.

NATIONAL LIGHTING SURVEY

Next up was Liz Hudson who, working for Carbon Reduction Technology and the ILP, was the lead author of last summer’s National Lighting Survey, (‘State of the nation’, vol 84 no 6, June 2019). Liz recapped the key results from the survey for the Lightscene audience, in particular the headline finding that, of the 38% of local authorities that responded, just a fifth (22%) employed more than three lighting specialists and 13% reported having no lighting specialists on their staff at all. Just over 600 lighting specialists were at the time employed within local government in the UK, it also found. Liz conceded the survey had inevitably been just a ‘snapshot’ but argued it had sparked a valuable discussion – not least in the run-up to Lightscene itself – that could hopefully act as a catalyst to follow-up survey, perhaps later this year. ‘I think one of the key things that would help would be a group of companies all working together to provide this data to the industry; that would add even more credibility to it; people would feel happier about it,’ Liz Hudson said.

WE NEED A NEW MEASURE FOR UNIFORMITY IF WE ARE GOING TO ENHANCE THE SAFETY AND PERCEIVED SAFETY OF PEDESTRIANS

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

The ILP’s Lightscene CPD event

‘From looking at and interrogating the data, my thought is we did get a great cross-section and quite a fair representation. But, of course, the only way to 100% authentically answer these questions is to get the other 62% to send in their responses,’ she added.

YOU NEED A STRONG ASSET MANAGEMENT PLAN, ONE THAT IS UNDERSTOOD AND DELIVERS THE OUTCOMES OF THE ORGANISATION, PROTECTS THE ASSET www.theilp.org.uk

‘PRECARIOUS’ ROLE OF THE ENGINEER

The final keynote speaker was Richard Hayes, who addressed what he termed, ‘the precarious role of the professional engineer in local government’. Richard agreed that, just as the seachange we’ve seen within lighting in recent years has led to a sharp decline in the numbers of directly-employed local authority lighting engineers or specialists, so highway engineering as a whole has been going through a period of rapid, and often austerity-driven, change. ‘When I first started, a local authority highways manager, you were usually ex-military, you were usually somebody who would have experience of running a big organisation. The county surveyor was king; the county surveyor told members what they were going to get, and members said, “yes sir, thank you very much, how m u c h d o y o u wa n t f o r i t ? ” ,’ h e explained. ‘The tables have changed quite a lot. No longer do we have county surveyors. No long er do we have chief officers who are engineers; we have people who have a different vocation and they need convincing,’ he added. There were three key things making life difficult or ‘precarious’ for local government highway engineers at the moment, he argued: asset management; skills and competency; and ‘big data’ and artificial intelligence.

ASSET MANAGEMENT

Turning first to asset management, this is a subject of course very much on the ILP radar, what with the launch last summer of the new ILP’s Guidance Note 22 Asset Management Toolkit: Minor Structures (ATOMS). In fact, the ILP could be pushing at an open door in terms of the crying need for effective asset management tools, competencies and joined-up approaches across local government, Richard argued. ‘There are questions for all organisations: how well do you know your asset? How does your asset perform? How do you look after it? And when will it be exhausted or need to be replaced? ‘You’ve got information about its location, size, material, what it is intended to do. But do you know how it performs; do you understand how it performs? Have you been able to identify particular issues? How do you look after it?’ he pointed out. ‘To look after your assets, we have to have a good asset management process. And that doesn’t necessarily mean just watching it decay day by day, week by week or year by year. Do we actually understand how it works over that period of time? What is the effect of the external environment on that process? What is the effect of the public or traffic on that process or asset? Do we know what that is? ‘You need a strong asset management

January 2020 Lighting Journal

plan, one that is understood and delivers the outcomes of the organisation, protects the asset. But one that also seeks to maximise the shelf-life of that particular piece of infrastructure. It is a question for everybody: how do you ensure your asst management plan is fit for purpose?’ Richard argued passionately.

SKILLS AND COMPETENCY

This imperative to be ensuring your asset management was fit for purpose required, in turn, an important focus on skills and competency, Richard said. ‘We have all this asset information, but have we got the skills and competency to actually understand that information?’ To often, there was not enough joined-up thinking when it came to skills, training and competency, he suggested. ‘The fall-back for too many managers too often is it gets to February, “I’ve got a bit of budget left, I know, I’ll send you on a course – what’s available next week?”. That’s all we ever do. Our attitude to training and development is not particularly good. ‘We all agree that our staff are our biggest asset. But do you have a staff management plan or policy? Have you got that? Why are you letting it wither in the wind? Because that is what you’re doing. ‘Training budgets are not as much as we would like. So we expect people we hire to come in and we just teach them on the job. We are all so busy now that we haven’t got

that time to mentor people, to have someone shadowing someone else, to give somebody the opportunity to learn. Training budgets are easy to cut,’ he said.

BIG DATA AND ARTIFICAL INTELLIGENCE

The final stressor generating ‘precariousness’ in this context within local government was ‘big data’ and artificial intelligence (AI), Richard argued. ‘I’ve talked about asset management and staff management processes. But putting the two together we’ve got a problem in that we’ve got now an overload of information; we’ve got data flowing out of everything. We know more about “things”, more information than we’ve ever known before. But do we do anything with it; are we using that data effectively?’ he asked. A good example of this was the evolution towards autonomous vehicles and what this might mean in terms for our road and highways infrastructure and urban street furniture, and how in turn local authorities may need to respond and prioritise their spending as a result in the future. ‘For autonomous vehicles to work – when we get to the point where there is no driver intervention – the highways assets around it need to be good. The road markings, the street furniture, every little bit of the network has to be properly working because the data

coming from it will drive those autonomous vehicles around,’ Richard pointed out. ‘So we’re being challenged to get our infrastructure up to scratch, to allow the motor industry – government-led, government-driven – to move towards that process. Asset management information, keeping you up to scratch, keeping you fit for purpose, is key. ‘But the threat is that all this data is too much for us to manage; it is too difficult for us. You’ve got to understand what the asset will do and can do and what it’s currently doing. The threat, too – or is it a benefit? – of computer-led maintenance is coming. It’s not that far away. But is that what we want?’ Richard mused. ‘The challenge is that everybody out there, every member of the public, uses our network. They have access to it, they understand it and expect it to work. Without us working with good asset management, with good skills and competency and using our data and intelligence effectively, we’ll never produce an infrastructure that works and is fit for purpose,’ Richard concluded.

The ILP’s GN22 Asset Management Toolkit: Minor Structures (ATOMS) is free to download from www.theilp.org.uk/atoms www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Electric vehicles and EV charging

‘IT’S NOTJUST A CASE OF www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

HERE’S A VERTICAL TUBE, LET’S GO AND DRILL A HOLE IN IT

In the last of our three-part series, we look at how Allan Howard of WSP wrapped up the mini focus on electric vehicles and EV charging at June’s Professional Lighting Summit by outlining a range of important EV infrastructure considerations that local authorities and lighting professionals should be taking on board

By Nic Paton

n our series on electrical vehicles and EV charging we reviewed, first, Nick Ebsworth’s talk at June’s Professional Lighting Summit (PLS) looking at how the growing numbers of EVs on our roads is generating (no pun intended) demand for EV charging infrastructure. We then examined, through Josey Wardle’s presentation, some of the funding streams and opportunities available to finance and get EV charging projects off the ground. Those articles, in the October and November/December editions of Lighting Journal respectively (‘Electric Avenues’,

vol 84 no 9 and ‘Plug in and Play?’, vol 84 no 10), broadly followed the three-part structure of the presentations at the PLS. It is therefore only appropriate this series wraps up with a review of Allan Howard’s concluding presentation from June, on EV infrastructure electrical considerations. As technical director lighting and energy solutions at WSP, Allan’s presentation was focused on some of the important practicalities of bringing EV charging points to our streets and, in particular, some of the challenges associated with incorporating EV charging into our street lighting infrastructure.

NETWORK CAPACITY CONCERNS

Allan opened his presentation by highlighting some of the concerns growing within the UK and Europe around the spread of EV charging, notably the extra pressure this is already beginning to put on electrical and network capacity and street lighting infrastructure. ‘There is a big issue with the electrical capacity across Europe,’ Allan said. ‘The electrical grid can’t take this. Some of these charge points are up to 750KW, that’s a small office effectively, because you really want to charge your car in a very short time. If you have a few chargers www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Electric vehicles and EV charging

within a street, even if they’re just 22KW, that is still adding a heavy electrical load to the street, especially if they’re all being used at the same time.’ The Energy Networks Association (www.energynetworks.org) offers surveys and tools to help lighting/electrical professionals understand the capacity available in their area, he advised. Nick Ebsworth in his presentation had highlighted the role that ‘smart’ EV chargers could play in terms of easing these

pressures by ensuring vehicles are being charged at times of spare capacity (such as overnight) rather than during peak capacity. But Allan cautioned against assuming such innovations could provide all the answers. For example, if you’re starting to see lots of charging or energy storage taking place overnight, that will inevitably lead to rising demand overnight and, in turn, a potential knock-on effect on the average price of electricity you are buying as a local authority, he pointed out.

Similarly, the more cars charging on a single street, even if they’re using flexible charging solutions, the more pressure on that network. ‘It might be that you have six EV charging points in the street. If you have two cars, they can be fully charged in the time expected. But if there are six cars all wanting to charge up and the capacity is not there, what you then do is down-rate the charger. So each charger is charging but charging slower. But that’s not what you want as a user of course. After you come back after so many hours, you expect your car to be charged,’ Allan pointed out. ‘Capacity is a big issue and it is going to get worse because in a couple of years’ time all new houses, all new build, will have to be heated by electricity rather than gas. Moving from gas to electric heating is going to cause a big problem,’ he forecast.

USER SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS

Another important consideration was understanding user requirements and managing any concomitant safety risks, Allan emphasised. ‘Who, for example, is responsible for the cable? Is it the market trader? Or me with my EV cable? My car, a Mitsubishi Outlander, only comes with the cable to charge at home and so if I want to charge at a charge point I have to go and buy a different one, at £130 each. But there is nothing apart from common sense that requires me to check that cable, test it, no PAT testing. And the same goes for market traders. Who looks at who needs to be managing the equipment that we have got to go and plug our cars and other equipment into safely?’ he argued. ‘Where does ownership end, at the plug or the socket? What is the provision for connecting the charge point? Testing and maintenance is vital of course to ensure they are safe, but we need to look at some way of enforcing this. ‘Another aspect is that, actually, we need to make parking bays wider. If we’re doing charging in the street, from a lighting column, you have now got this plug that hangs out the side of the car and which effectively narrows your footpath or space between cars. So you need to look at the width to make sure people can get through, especially if they disabilities or other requirements, and that you can get between cars as, actually, cars anyway have got wider. Now we have this plug hanging off the side of it, this starts to restrict how people can get through areas even more,’ Allan said. A further important question was the

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

potential for earthing and slip and trip hazards on pavements, especially if we are ending up with a situation where cables are running from domestic charge points across the street to parked vehicles.

INSTALLING CHARGE POINTS IN LIGHTING COLUMNS

When it comes to installing a charge point in a lighting column, this is helping to meet demand for charging from EV motorists who do not have off-road parking, Allan conceded. ‘As we have seen, it is not practicable for residents to start running cables from their houses through to their cars. So we are seeing that residents are making requests for on-street solutions and quite often, across London and so on, these points have actually been taken up,’ he said. Nevertheless, it was vital that the right earthing is in place and the use of column roots is not an acceptable solution, he argued, advising that a looped cable network of three or more electrical items from a pillar should have an earth electrode at the supply point and at the end of the circuit. ‘Last year there were more than 500 reported health and safety DNO losses of neutral earth. These are mainly domestic where an electrician had to be called in. But we don’t know what happens within the street lighting industry,’ he pointed out. ‘And then we have to look at what else is around us? We have got to consider any electrical equipment that is within 2.5m of the charge point. We are not just talking about the charge point, we are talking about the vehicle that is being charged too. And all such equipment within that zone needs to be changed to have a TT supply. Columns that have charge points built in, you obviously need to have picked up as having a TT supply as well,’ Allan added. Ideally it was best that any charging furniture was located towards the front of the footway so as to mitigate the risk of trailing cables. ‘A number of authorities are looking at small pillars that go in front of the footway where the lighting column is at the back in order to provide this essential service to their residents,’ Allan said.

DRILLING INTO COLUMNS SAFELY

With the ILP launching its GN22 Asset Management Toolkit: Minor Structures (ATOMS) at the Summit, it was appropriate that Allan concluded his presentation by addressing the question of considerations when drilling

into a column and, crucially, the need not to weaken a column as a result. The location of any holes made needed to be controlled, Allan emphasised. For example, it was important multiple holes should not be provided within the same horizontal section and should instead be placed vertically up and down from the designated height. Equally, it was important holes should be placed one or two

the base and the shaft – you don’t want to do that; you will weaken the column and it could be dangerous for your street. A general recommendation is, depending on the column, that you shouldn’t put a hole in a column within 1.5m vertically of the base/swage construction joint, but consult a structural engineer’ he said. The ILP is currently developing a guide on how third-party attachments,

diameters apart vertically to ensure there was no interaction of the stress paths around the holes, he advised. Holes also should not be within 1.5m of the shoulder of the shaft. Particular care needed to be taken for holes in the base, where they are at the same level as an unreinforced door opening, as sections subject to torsion will be affected by the additional hole, which should therefore be placed at the rear of the face opposite the door, Allan argued. Finally, the height of the holes relative to the equipment should be positioned to ensure suitable drip loops are provided in the equipment so as to minimise water ingress problems through the glands, he emphasised. ‘A lot of these holes have been drilled through the construction joint between

including the need to drill holes within the column, should be considered. This should be available later in the new year. ‘If you have an extruded column, that’s different. But, again, you need to go and seek proper assurance and competency. It is not just a case of, as we are finding with a lot of these things and smart cities, “here’s a vertical tube, let’s go and drill a hole in it”. Most columns are being fundamentally weakened. I would suggest local authorities go and have a serious look at their infrastructure in this context in case something happens. You have got to have the right processes in place,’ Allan warned. GN22 Asset Management Toolkit: Minor Structures (ATOMS) is free to download from www.theilp.org.uk/atoms www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

WEEE compliance and recycling

GREEN LIVING

By Nigel Harvey

Whatever happens with Brexit, the government is likely to remain committed to the European Unionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s WEEE electrical equipment recycling regulations. So, what are the options for getting waste lighting equipment recycled, and how can collection rates be increased?

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

he Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) regulations make producers of new electrical equipment responsible for financing the recycling of the equipment they make, when it becomes waste. That is why Recolight was established. We are a not-for-profit company owned by the lighting industry and set up to provide contractors and end users with a simple mechanism to get their waste lighting collected and recycled.

As a result, organisations should as a general rule contact the company that produced or imported the fittings. That company is legally required to be a member of a WEEE scheme and can arrange for the scheme to recycle the waste for free, although there may be a charge for collecting the waste. At Recolight we will also offer free collection, subject to minimum quantities, where new fittings are being purchased from a producer in our scheme.

LARGER QUANTITIES OF LAMPS

STREET LIGHTING

Companies that can collect 1,000 or more waste lamps per quarter on a regular basis are eligible for a free Recolight waste lamp container. When it is full, Recolight will arrange for the container to be collected and the waste lamps recycled, all free of charge. We apply the 1,000 lamp/quarter threshold to ensure that the containers Recolight supplies are used as efficiently as possible.

SMALLER QUANTITIES OF LAMPS

Where companies do not meet the 1,000 lamp/quarter threshold, a range of options is available. End users can request a low-cost leased container, which is then emptied for free. Alternatively, they can take waste lamps to one of the 800 open collection points listed on our website (www.recolight.co.uk). Another option is to take waste lamps to the wholesaler from which the new lamps were bought. Wholesalers have a legal duty to provide a free-of-charge take-back service for most waste lamps, where they have sold new lamps. It is worth noting, however, that they can charge for a ‘Hazardous waste consignment note’ if you do not provide one. This is a tracking document mandated by the Environment Agency (for England – each nation in the UK has its own environment agency). These can either be purchased or downloaded for free from the Environment Agency [1].

HOW TO RECYCLE FITTINGS

The requirements for the recycling of waste luminaires that were designed for business use are slightly different. This is because WEEE schemes such as Recolight do not receive a mandatory government target for recycling these.

With the ‘LEDification’ of street lighting still underway, large quantities of waste sodium lamps continue to arise. These are best stored in a dedicated container, separate from any conventional fluorescent lamps. And, given the fire risks associated with sodium when it comes into contact with water, this container should always be stored under cover. For waste lanterns, we generally provide dedicated WEEE skips, although it is important to ensure these are just used for WEEE and not for general waste.

WEEE directive. Irrespective of what happens with Brexit, the government is likely to want to see an increase in collections.

WAYS TO IMPROVE RECYCLING

What actions, then, can we as an industry all take to increase WEEE collections? The lighting industry can be justifiably proud of its track record in WEEE recycling. The industry has probably done more than any other sector. In part, that is because gas discharge lamps contain mercury, and so must be recycled properly to prevent the mercury from entering landfill. But it is also because the industry has taken a very joined up approach to the problem. But there is always more we can all do. To reiterate, and build upon, the suggestions I made in Lighting Journal back last summer (‘Want not, waste not’ vol 84, no 7, July/August 2019), here are some suggestions. •

THE RECYCLING PROCESS

Waste lamp recycling takes place at around half a dozen specialist facilities in the UK. The first stage of the process is to crush the lamps. This happens under negative air pressure to capture the mercury vapour, and to prevent it escaping to the atmosphere. The crushed lamps are then passed through a series of mechanical separation stages. This process separates out the different components, such as metals, glass, plastics, and phosphor powders. Most of the mercury is captured within the powder, which is then sent for further treatment. The other fractions are then sent for further processing to recover and reuse the raw materials they contain. Waste fittings go through a similar process – they are shredded and then separated into different waste fractions.

THE BIGGER PICTURE

All these mechanisms have been set up to maximise the recycling of our waste electricals. However, the tonnages being collected are not growing as fast as the government would like and, importantly, are not meeting the targets laid down in the European

•

End users. End users can ask for evidence that the waste lamps and fittings their contractors take away have been properly recycled as WEEE. They can also make the collection and recycling of WEEE a requirement in all their contracts when purchasing new lighting equipment. Contractors. Contractors can remind their staff that it is an offence for businesses to put waste gas discharge lamps into a general waste skip and can give them clear instructions for where they can recycle. At Recolight, we may well be able to offer a container at their main depot. Producers. Producers of new lighting can offer a full service that includes supply of new fittings, and collection of the waste fittings and lamps that arise. Where producers are members of the Recolight scheme, this can usually be provided on a free-of-charge basis.

Nigel Harvey is chief executive of lighting WEEE scheme Recolight

REFERENCE

Hazardous waste consignment note, Environment Agency, www.gov.uk/government/publications/ hazardous-waste-consignment-note

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

Light School at the Surface Design Show

CLASS ACTS Light School returns to the Surface Design Show next month, with a high-end programme of CPD talks from the ILP and a theatre especially designed by Rebecca Weir of Light.iQ. Here is a preview of what members can expect

By Nic Paton

www.theilp.org.uk

January 2020 Lighting Journal

u r a t e d by t h e I L P, n e xt month’s programme of ‘Light Talks’ at Light School at the Surface Design Show promises to offer a veritable feast of CPD and, importantly, an opportunity for lighting professionals to collaborate and engage with architects, interior designers and surfaces and materials professionals. And it is not just the speaker line-up (see panel opposite) that is set to be a talking point this year. A highlight of this year’s Light School will be a new ‘Light Talks Theatre’ designed by Rebecca Weir, creative director of product supplier Lightbout.iQ and lighting design consultancy Light.iQ. The theatre will emphasise the essential link between light and materials, and will feature a range of surface materials creatively lit by Rebecca to accentuate and play with their intrinsic essence. As Rebecca said ahead of the show: ‘Playing with light, reflectance and colour and incorporating the calming elements of biophilic design we have created an immersive, reflective space to contemplate and enjoy Light School’s lecture series.’ Installations for the theatre will be supplied by, among others, Evans T u r n e r, I n n e r s p a c e , A p p l e l e c , Corian and B&S Glass Industries. There are expected to be approximately 40 presentations from 65 speakers during the two-and-a-half days of both Light School and the Surface Design Show. Last year’s show and Light School saw more than 5,000 professional and trade visitors coming together, and therefore it is a networking and CPD opportunity not to be missed.

A FLAVOUR OF THIS YEAR’S SPEAKER LINE-UP

The full speaker line-up for this year’s Light School was still being finalised as Lighting Journal went to press. But already it is looking like the CPD this year will be top-notch. Confirmed speakers so far include Seraphina Gogate and Sophia Rourke from Nulty+, who will be speaking about the importance of ‘drawing’ light in order to understand and maximise it. Nulty as a lighting design practice emphasises both analogue sketching and digital design methods of expression, and runs regular workshops on this for its team. Seraphina and Sophia will be explaining why it is important to explore and express on paper, and what this means in terms of designing with light. As they explain: ‘Drawing light can go a long way when it comes to understanding illumination and indeed spatial composition. Using seminal artistic and design works through the ages as precedent, this talk discusses how light has been drawn and painted through the ages, from charcoal and chalk to Adobe Photoshop.’ Dan Lister, associate at Arup, will be speaking on ‘from space to place: how lighting helped revitalise a university campus’, in this case looking at a project for the University of Sheffield. Dan’s presentation will focus on how taking a bold approach to lighting the university’s brutalist architecture has transformed its disused spaces and instilled a sense of placemaking across the campus. And Greta Smetoniute, project designer at Michael Grubb Studio, will be discussing ‘responsible lighting options in a climate changing world’, or the role that lighting can play in creating healthy and beautiful spaces in the most sustainable way. Keep an eye out online for additions to the speaker line-up, at www.surfacedesignshow.com/light-school .

What: Light School at the Surface Design Show When: 11-13 February Where: Business Design Centre, Islington, north London How to register: www.surfacedesignshow.com /light-school

www.theilp.org.uk

Lighting

Consultants

This directory gives details of suitably qualified, individual members of the Institution of Lighting Professionals (ILP) who offer consultancy services

Herbie Barnieh

Stephen Halliday

Anthony Smith

Project Centre

WSP

Stainton Lighting Design Services Ltd

BEng IEng MILP

London WC1X 9HD

EngTech AMILP

Manchester M50 3SP

T: 0330 135 8950, 077954 75570 Herbie.Barnieh@projectcentre.co.uk

T: 0161 886 2532 E: stephen.halliday@wspgroup.com

Efficient, innovative, and bespoke lighting design services from an award winning consultancy. Experienced in delivering exterior lighting projects from feasibility studies to post construction. Whether it’s highway, street, or public realm lighting, let us assist you to realise your project goals.

Public and private sector professional services providing design, technical support, contract and policy development for all applications of exterior lighting and power from architectural to sports, area and highways applications. PFI technical advisor and certifier support, HERS registered personnel.

www.projectcentre.co.uk

www.wspgroup.com

Steven Biggs

Allan Howard

Skanska Infrastructure Services

WSP

IEng MILP

Peterborough PE1 5XG

T: +44 (0) 1733 453432 E: steven.biggs@skanska.co.uk

www.skanska.co.uk

Award winning professional multi-disciplinary lighting design consultants. Extensive experience in technical design and delivery across all areas of construction, including highways, public realm and architectural projects. Providing energy efficient design and solutions.

BEng(Hons) CEng FILP FSLL London WC2A 1AF

T: 07827 306483 E: allan.howard@wspgroup.com

www.wspgroup.com

Professional artificial and daylight lighting services covering design, technical support, contract and policy development including expert advice and analysis to develop and implement energy and carbon reduction strategies. Expert witness regarding obtrusive lighting, light nuisance and environmental impact investigations.

Simon Bushell

Alan Jaques

SSE Enterprise Lighting

Atkins

MBA DMS IEng MILP

Portsmouth PO6 1UJ T: +44 (0)2392276403 M: 07584 313990 E: simon.bushell@ssecontracting.com

www.sseenterprise.co.uk Professional consultancy from the UK’s and Irelands largest external lighting contractor. From highways and tunnels, to architectural and public spaces our electrical and lighting designers also provide impact assessments, lighting and carbon reduction strategies along with whole installation packages.

Lorraine Calcott

IEng MILP IALD MSLL ILA BSS

it does Lighting Ltd

The Cube, 13 Stone Hill, Two Mile Ash, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, MK8 8DN

T: 01908 560110

E: Information@itdoes.co.uk

www.itdoes.co.uk

Award winning lighting design practice specialising in interior, exterior, flood and architectural lighting with an emphasis on section 278/38, town centre regeneration and mitigation for ecology issues within SSSI’s/SCNI’s.Experts for the European Commission and specialists in circadian lighting

Mark Chandler EngTech AMILP

T: +44 (0)115 9574900 M: 07834 507070 E: alan.jaques@atkinsglobal.com

www.atkinsglobal.com

Professional consultancy providing technical advice, design and management services for exterior and interior applications including highway, architectural, area, tunnel and commercial lighting. Advisors on energy saving strategies, asset management, visual impact assessments and planning.

IEng FILP MIES

Nick Smith Associates Limited Chesterfield, S40 3JR

T: 01246 229444 E: training@nicksmithassociates.com

www.nicksmithassociates.co.uk Specialist exterior lighting consultant. Private and adopted lighting and electrical design for highways, car parks, area and sports lighting. Lighting Impact assessments, expert witness and CPD accredited Lighting design AutoCAD and Lighting Reality training courses

IEng FILP FSLL

Winchester, SO22 4DS

T: 01962 855720 M:0771 364 8786 E: alan@alantullalighting.com

www.alantullalighting.com Site surveys of sports pitches, road lighting and offices. Architectural lighting for both interior and exterior. Visual Impact Assessments for planning applications. Specialises in problem solving and out-of-the-ordinary projects.

Michael Walker

Vanguardia Consulting

McCann Ltd

BSc (Hons) CEng MILP MSLL

IEng MILP CMS.

Oxted RH8 9EE

T: +44(0) 1883 718690 E:tony.price@vanguardia.co.uk

Nottingham NG9 6DQ M: 07939 896887 E: m.walker@jmccann.co.uk

Chartered engineer with wide experience in exterior and public realm lighting. All types and scales of project, including transport, tunnels, property development (both commercial and residential) and sports facilities. Particular expertise in planning advice, environmental impact assessment and expert witness.

Design for all types of exterior lighting including street lighting, car parks, floodlighting, decorative lighting, and private lighting. Independent advice regarding light trespass, carbon reduction and invest to save strategies. Asset management, data capture, inspection and testing services available.

www.vanguardia.co.uk

Patrick Redmond

M: + 353 (0)86 2356356 | E: patrick@redmondams.ie

www.redmondams.ie Independent expert lighting design services for all exterior and interior lighting applications. We provide sustainable lighting solutions and associated electrical designs. Our services include PSDP for lighting projects, network contractor auditing, and GPS site surveys for existing installations.

Alistair Scott

4way Consulting Ltd

Designs for Lighting Ltd

BSc (Hons) CEng FILP MHEA Winchester SO23 7TA

T: 0161 480 9847 E: john.conquest@4wayconsulting.com

T: 01962 855080 M: 07790 022414 E: alistair@designsforlighting.co.uk

Providing exterior lighting and ITS consultancy and design services and specialising in the urban and inter-urban environment. Our services span the complete project life cycle for both the public and private sector.

Professional lighting design consultancy offering technical advice, design and management services for exterior/interior applications for highway, architectural, area, tunnel and commercial lighting. Advisors on lighting and energy saving strategies, asset management, visual impact assessments and planning.

www.4wayconsulting.com

Nick Smith

Tony Price

John Conquest Stockport, SK4 1AS

Specialist in: Motorway, Highway Schemes, Illumination of Buildings, Major Structures, Public Artworks, Amenity Area Lighting, Public Spaces, Car Parks, Sports Lighting, Asset Management, Reports, Plans, Assistance, Maintenance Management, Electrical Design and Communication Network Design.

Alan Tulla Lighting

Redmond Analytical Management Services Ltd.

MA BEng(Hons) CEng MIET MILP

www.staintonlds.co.uk

Nottingham, NG9 2HF

T: 0118 3215636 E: mark@mma-consultancy.co.uk

Exterior lighting consultant’s who specialise in all aspects of street lighting design, section 38’s, section 278’s, project management and maintenance assistance. We also undertake lighting appraisals and environmental lighting studies

T: 01642 565533 E: enquiries@staintonlds.co.uk

Alan Tulla

HDip Bus, EngTech AMILP, AMSLL, Tech IEI

www.mma-consultancy.co.uk

Stockton on Tees TS23 1PX

IEng FILP

MMA Lighting Consultancy Ltd Reading RG10 9QN

IEng FILP

www.designsforlighting.co.uk

www.mccann-ltd.co.uk

Peter Williams EngTech AMILP

Williams Lighting Consultants Ltd. Bedford, MK41 6AG T: 01234 630039 E: peter.williams@wlclighting.co.uk

www.wlclighting.co.uk

Specialists in the preparation of quality and effective street lighting design solutions for Section 38, Section 278 and other highway projects. We also prepare lighting designs for other exterior applications. Our focus is on delivering solutions that provide best value.

For more information and individual expertise Go to: www.theilp.org.uk

Neither Lighting Journal nor the ILP is responsible for any services supplied or agreements entered into as a result of this listing

Lighting