FEATURE FACILITIES MANAGEMENT
REACHING THE HEIGHTS of energy efficiency with LED lighting
When specifying LED lighting it is important to be aware of all of the factors that impact on the performance of an installation. Simon Miles of Carbon8lighting highlights the key issues
T
he use of modern LED technology has undoubtedly reduced the use of
energy in many commercial buildings and going forward this efficiency looks only set to increase. LED lighting has become the light source of choice for many commercial lighting applications and the latest generation of modules are delivering sufficiently high light outputs for many other applications. As a result LED luminaires can be specified with confidence for high bay lighting. The popularity of LED lighting is largely
the result of significantly improved energy efficiency combined with much longer lamp life, the latter having implications for maintenance and other cost of ownership parameters. In the case of applications with high roofs such as factories and warehouses where access to luminaires can be challenging and disruptive reduced maintenance requirements are particularly beneficial. In addition, LED lighting will typically provide better quality light with improved colour rendering compared to the lighting traditionally used in these applications. This has important implications for visually demanding tasks including assembly and picking. The incentive for larger organisations to
implement energy-saving initiatives is likely to be fuelled by the new Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS) regulations. This requires organisations classified as ‘large undertakings’ (one that employs more than 200 people or has an annual turnover in excess of €50 million and balance sheet assets exceeding €43 million) to assess their energy use and the potential for energy reduction. They must submit evidence to the Environment Agency. Clearly, many companies operating in the industrial, logistics and retail sectors will fall within the remit of ESOS.
LIGHT OUTPUT The key difference between traditional light sources such as incandescent or fluorescent and LEDs is that with LEDs the wattage does not correlate to the light output. When specifying LED lighting it is no longer meaningful to refer to the wattage of the lamps; the
10 JULY/AUGUST 2015 | FACTORY EQUIPMENT
quality of the phosphors used is critical in ensuring consistent colour temperature. So quality control procedures that ensure this are clearly important. A good indication of this is whether the manufacturer is able to state a precise colour temperature rather than a range.
ENHANCED CONTROL One of the key constraints on optimising energy efficiency in the types of application described above has been the limited control capabilities of light sources such as metal halide and high pressure sodium that are typically used for high bay lighting. In contrast, LED lighting is highly controllable and this opens the door to many opportunities for improved control that will avoid energy being wasted. In a warehouse for example, aisles between racking are often unoccupied but remain fully lit throughout the day. By using simple occupancy sensors LED lighting can be configured to dim or switch off in unoccupied areas and ramp up to full output as soon as the presence of a person or fork lift truck is detected. This could not be achieved with
lumen output is what counts. LEDs are directional so that less of the light output is ‘lost’ within the luminaire. This means that luminaires designed to work with LED light sources can provide higher light outputs. This in turn means that required illuminance levels can often be met with a lower lumen output.
LIGHT SOURCE VARIATION It is particularly important to be aware that not all LEDs are equal in terms of light output, energy performance and lamp life. Thus, when specifying LED lighting systems the luminaire manufacturer should be able to provide the reassurance that their LEDs are high quality. For example, there have been issues with poor quality LEDs exhibiting variation in colour temperature between individual light sources. This is because the way that LEDs reduce white light involves using a blue LED that excites a phosphor coating; it is the phosphor that emits the white light. This means that the consistency and
LED lighting can easily be linked to photocells to dim the artificial lighting in line with the levels of daylight entering the space, thereby maintaining illuminance levels with minimum energy consumption
standard high intensity discharge lighting because of the warm-up period required for these lamps. Similarly, many shed- type buildings have roof lights that allow significant levels of natural daylight into the space. LED lighting can easily be linked to photocells to dim the artificial lighting in line with the levels of daylight entering the space, thereby maintaining illuminance levels with minimum energy consumption. The right combination of LED light sources, luminaires and controls provides electrical specifiers with a perfect opportunity to help clients improve the quality of their lighting while significantly reducing their energy consumption, carbon emissions and cost of ownership. The important thing is to be aware of all of the criteria that should be taken into account when determining the best solution.
Carbon8Lighting T: 01256 300031
www.carbon8lighting.co.uk Enter 304
/ FACTORYEQUIPMENT
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