Lux reports: An LED lighting system at Rainhill train station in Lancashire has reduced energy use by more than half and attracted positive feedback from employees and customers. The station, one of 464 managed by Northern Rail, is on the line where Robert Stephenson’s pioneering Rocket successfully completed the first locomotive trials in 1829, so a key consideration for the lighting project was the appeal and structural integrity of the historic site.

More recently, the station’s old lighting system had been vandalised and was no longer providing enough illumination in some areas.

‘We wanted to install LED lighting at Rainhill to show that new technology could be fitted in a building of historic interest, running new beside old without detriment to the structure itself,’ said Euan Hilton, utilities, contracts and data manager at the station’s operator, Northern Rail.

The chosen supplier for the new lights, together with a control system using motion sensors, was UK manufacturer Dexeco Solutions, part of the Dextra Group (which was named Manufacturer of the Year at the2014 Lux Awards).

The installation is a rare example of a rail operator embracing lighting controls and reaping the benefits. In many cases the complexity of controls, combined with fears about safety, has held the industry back from making the most of possible energy savings.

Dexeco used a different product in each of the station’s four areas: Impervia LED columns with infrared motion sensors on platform columns; vandal-resistant Eco Impervia LEDs with the same sensors on the canopy above the platform; MOD LEDs in waiting rooms and offices; and motion-sensing Amenity Plus LEDs in the toilets.

Installation costs were kept down by matching the new LED fittings to existing fittings. Integral sensors in those new fittings meant the light could be controlled without having to install bus wiring or building management system (BMS) controls. Lights in toilets will turn off when nobody is there, and fittings can also respond to daylight and turn off if they’re not needed. A local company, Picow, was responsible for the installation.

Northern Rail has reported a 56 per cent drop in Rainhill’s overall energy since it activated the motion sensors, which ensure the station’s lights only operate at full output when passengers or trains are present. With unoccupied areas lit to minimum safety and security levels, the new system also reduces light pollution.

Hilton said: ‘Customers have already remarked how the station looks and feels so much brighter and that the waiting room is more pleasant to sit in. Our people have also noticed a big change and were surprised how something such as lighting could change their working environment for the better.’

Novel Energy Lighting can assist with your project today, by providing lighting designs, and supply of LED lamps, fittings, and sensors. Call us: 0208-540-8287, or email for more information: sales@novelenergylighting.com

Lux Magainze report: Energy-efficient lighting has come out top in a survey of green technology investments for businesses.

Over three quarters of businesses (77 per cent) polled by the Carbon Trust said they had invested in energy-efficient lighting in the past year, while 59 per cent had invested in employee training and 57 per cent had invested in energy metering and monitoring.

Almost all businesses surveyed said energy efficiency was an important consideration when buying or upgrading equipment.

However, the survey also highlighted reservations about the transition to the new technology, with only half of respondents (51 per cent) saying they were confident about manufacturers’ energy-efficiency claims.

Hugh Jones, managing director of business advice at the Carbon Trust said: ‘Our survey showed that return on investment is the most important factor for organisations considering investing in energy efficiency and low carbon technologies.’

The survey comes as the Carbon Trust launches the Green Business Directory, which lists suppliers that have been vetted under the trust’s Accredited Supplier scheme.

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Energy efficient controls from LightwaveRF have been used in conjunction with Megaman’s energy saving lamps in a demonstration house at the BRE (Building Research Establishment) in Hertfordshire. The house forms part of the seminal sustainable refurbishment project, the BRE Victorian Terrace, on BRE’s Innovation Park.

The park is a mini-community of demonstration homes and buildings that have pushed the boundaries of global knowledge on delivering sustainability in the built environment.  It features a range of unique and diverse approaches to sustainable design, construction and refurbishment and a host of innovative low carbon products, materials and technologies. The centre is available for events as well as offering the opportunity for networking and providing a basis for a knowledge sharing hub. Visitors will be able to see the latest state-of–the-art technology from LightwaveRF in the remote control of the lighting and heating in the facility and the benefits of using this in conjunction with Megaman’s energy saving lamps.

LightwaveRF products have been used throughout the house and include LED dimmers, mood lighting controllers, sockets, wire-free switches, inline relays for blind control, TRV’s for radiator control and magnetic switches. The LightwaveRF system is controlled via the Lightwave Link which simply plugs into the home broadband router. The LightwaveRF controls are used in conjunction with a variety of Megaman lamps to offer a complete sustainable housing solution with lamps. These include 6W GU10s for ceiling illumination, LED Classics in pendants over the kitchen worktop, 7W GX53 lamps highlighting the wardrobe shelves and Incanda-LED candles in a crystal chandelier to act as an attractive feature in the living area.

One of the world’s leading brands in energy efficient lighting, Megaman is also the UK wholesale and retail distributor for LightwaveRF who provide stylishly crafted, energy efficient wireless home automation lighting, power and heating devices. LightwaveRF is a range of intelligent dimmers, radiator valves, sockets and sensors that are just that little bit smarter. While they look and work just like ordinary dimmers, valves or sockets, they will change the way you control your heating, lighting and power in your home forever.

The LightwaveRF product range can be retro-fitted with no extra wiring required and controlled over an internet connection from a smartphone, tablet or from a hand held remote control making control simple and convenient from the home, office, or indeed anywhere in the world. The collaboration between Megaman and LightwaveRF means that a ‘smart’ home is now within everyone’s reach.

Megaman and LightwaveRF products are all available through Novel Energy Lighting – we supply lighting and home automation products to homes and businesses.

Showing current and forecast smart lighting controls growth.

This new analysis examines the key growth strategies of the major lighting companies, including Acuity Brands, Legrand, Lutron and Zumtobel, and it categorises application areas into commercial and industrial, residential, outdoor lighting, public and government buildings and road vehicles. Its geographical reach is North and South America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and the rest of the world (RoW).

On the basis of lighting type, the study examines LED, fluorescent, (FL), compact fluorescent (CFL) and high intensity discharge lamps (HID), plus the and related controls, which include relays, controllable breakers, occupancy sensors, dimming actuators, switch actuators, blind/shutter actuators, transmitters and receivers.

The smart lighting industry involves the use of lighting control systems that deliver the right amount and/or quality of light when needed. It can allow lighting to automatically perform various operations at set times or under set conditions.

Smart lighting also makes use of intelligent lighting control systems to intelligently control light, based on various parameters including occupancy, movement, colour temperature, amount of natural/daylight and so on. These are the main topics of the new study.

The growth of the market in coming years is expected to be very important, with the revenue growth estimated to reach £33 billion by 2020, at an estimated CAGR of 15.8% from 2014 to 2020. In addition to the major players mentioned, there have been a number of acquisitions, mergers, new product launches, agreements etc., and these are also discussed in the report.

The importance of LEDs

Europe currently has the largest market for smart lighting, especially in commercial and industrial, public and government buildings applications, with the Asia Pacific region second, the report finds. Several new players have emerged in the latter region, which ‘have developed breakthrough products related to smart lighting’. The market is also expected to grow at a modest rate in the developed regions, such as the Americas, according to this analysis.

Wireless is changing the market

 In addition, the report observes that LED based lighting devices, integrated with the various wireless technologies, are finding good opportunities. Wireless networking technologies, it says, are bringing intelligence to a new generation of smart lighting.