120 TECHNOLOGY / PRODUCT REVIEW
STREET
CREDIBILITY
David Morgan takes a look at the LED Iberia street lighting luminaire, a collaboration between GE Spain
and its Lumination Centre of Excellence in the USA
A major player in the global lighting mar- tions can be achieved. The options are the mounted in an ungasketed area, an IP67
ket, GE Lighting supplies a wide range of 90 watt Asymmetric Type III for street light- driver might have been a better choice.
light sources and luminaires. Their lumi- ing, the 63 watt Asymmetric Type IV and the To justify the use of LEDs for street lighting
naire range incorporates an eclectic variety 90W Symmetric Type V. GE have prepared some examples to show
of functional interior and exterior lighting The 60 LEDs in the 90 watt version are that due to the improved light control
products including some road and amenity mounted onto a single flat metal PCB that possible with LED sources and their optics,
lighting. transfers heat directly to the large die cast a smaller number of Iberia 90 watt LED
It is surprising that a company as large as heat sink. Two colour temperatures of LED luminaires can be used to illuminate a
GE with such a long history in the lighting are available at 4100K and 5700K with a CRI given project to the same lighting levels
industry and with a strong capability for of 70. compared to the 171 system watts used by
technical innovation would not have put a The optical system is sealed with a simple the CDM Iberia and thus achieving a total
bit more effort into creating a visually inte- gasket between a formed profiled clear energy saving of 60%.
grated luminaire range with a clear brand cover and the aluminium die cast heat sink. While this is an impressive calculation it
identity. It would appear that all the optical control might be more useful to compare the LED
While some products are housed in generic is via the reflectors with the cover mould- Iberia with the highest efficiency CDM lu-
US enclosure designs, others have a much ing just acting as a protection rather than minaire available on the market from other
more European appearance. It would ap- acting as a refractor. suppliers to see if the savings are quite as
pear that the range incorporates luminaires The heat sink is not particularly well ther- significant.
from a number of GE factories and suppliers mally linked to the main body casting and The reduced maintenance costs for exterior
on different continents without any design nor is there any direct path for heat from LED luminaires with a service life of 50,000
coordination. the LED heat sink to radiate out into the en- hours compared to the lamp changing cycle
The GE Iberia LED amenity lighting lu- vironment. I was therefore concerned that of 12,000 hours for CDM luminaires will
minaire is a combination of a European the LEDs may overheat in this arrangement also play an important part in calculating
designed and manufactured housing with a but from some simple measurements the potential cost reductions. However the
US developed LED light engine and optical heat sink appears to be running at an ac- LED product will still need to be cleaned
system. The die cast aluminium enclo- ceptably low temperature. The overall size periodically to maintain lumen output so
sure utilises components from the original of the luminaire seems to allow the heat to there will be an ongoing servicing cost to be
HID Iberia product that was introduced a dissipate effectively without needing direct considered that seemed to be omitted from
few years ago. The Iberia enclosure was radiation. the GE calculations.
designed and is manufactured at the GE fac- It is understood that the same optical In conclusion the GE LED Iberia is a fairly
tory in Madrid in Spain. The optical system system is also used in the GE LED Area effective retrofit of LED technology into an
for the LED version uses a GE proprietary Lighter but this luminaire was designed as existing luminaire design. The appearance
design developed at the GE Lumination an integrated LED solution where the heat of the Iberia is pleasant if not distinctive
Centre of Excellence in Cleveland, Ohio in sink can dissipate heat more effectively. and it would fit into many urban amenity
the USA. Due to this better thermal management the lighting schemes with its variety of mount-
Unlike other LED street lights that control maximum power of the LED Area lighter is ing options. The optical system is the most
the light output from each LED emitter with almost twice that of the Iberia at 189 Watts interesting part of the product and pro-
a separate lens, such as the We-ef RFL500 for a type V distribution. duces a low glare but efficient distribution
series, the optical system in the Iberia con- The Iberia optical system is fully sealed to with a novel construction. It is a pity that
trols the light emanating from rings of LEDs IP65 but the driver is housed outside this so far GE has not developed a distinctive
with a series of circular profiled vacuum assembly and is mounted directly to the en- and elegant luminaire design to match the
metalised moulded reflectors. While this closure housing. The IP rating for this area performance of their LED optical system.
makes a simple and elegant mechanical de- of the luminaire is only IP44 and the driver
www.gelighting.com
sign, the failure of any individual LED would is only specified for dry or damp locations.
affect the light distribution as well as the The steel case of the Xitanium driver had © David Morgan Associates 2010. David Morgan runs
intensity. It is understood that by changing already begun to rust slightly on the sales
David Morgan Associates, a London-based international
design consultancy specialising in luminaire design and
the number and arrangement of LEDs on the sample that I was given so, perhaps towards
development.
PCB and adjusting the relationship between the end of the ten to twelve year service
Email:
david@dmadesign.co.uk
Web:
www.dmadesign.co.uk Tel: +44 (0)20 8340 4009
the reflector elements three different high life, the driver might not have been in very
The views expressed in this article are entirely those of
efficiency and low glare lighting distribu- good condition. Given that the ballast was David Morgan and not necessarily those of mondo*arc.
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