LIGHTING
Whitecroft Lighting’s Helm linear recessed luminaires installed in a hospital corridor.
right quality of lighting also aids the clinical team in carrying out their duties.
n Energy and sustainability Low-energy lighting systems have an important part to play in reducing running costs and operational carbon, while Whitecroft is also increasingly applying circular economy principles to healthcare lighting, by increasing use of long-life and replaceable components that reduce the use of materials, waste, and embodied carbon.
Two valuable recent examples of where
these ‘four pillars’ have been combined to good effect are Southmead Hospital, Bristol, and Peterborough City Hospital.
Southmead Hospital At Southmead, the client was Varsity Health, but it was identified by facility
Whitecroft’s Life P LED recessed picture lighting system has a polycarbonate diffuser, with a selection of images available.
managers, Bouygues, that large areas of hospital corridor lighting had reached the end of their lifecycle, and a new lighting installation, and an upgrade of the emergency lighting system, were required. As well as complying with healthcare environment regulations, the upgraded lighting also had to be built to withstand the rigours of frequent antibacterial cleaning chemicals and processes. It also had to look good to patients, staff, and visitors, and provide the required lighting levels and glare rating. However, experience has also proven
that there is a sensible approach to lighting non-specialist clinical environments, such as corridors, which are essentially just transit areas, apart from ward corridors – so you have to be pragmatic with your engineering and budget. Whitecroft Lighting had undertaken
the previous corridor lighting upgrade, and as a result of our retained knowledge, our in-house design team was able to quickly assess various sections of lighting in situ, and design a gear tray replacement that worked with as much of the existing infrastructure as possible.
Potential for a lot of waste We knew that the existing corridor lighting consisted of a big polycarbonate diffuser with a steel body and plasterboard margin ceiling, which, if entirely replaced, would create a lot of waste for landfill, and huge disruption in a live and functioning hospital. We decided that a bespoke approach would create the best possible outcome for each specific area of lighting, and would also reduce waste materials by 80%. We rapidly replaced 6,500 luminaires with a custom-designed and built linear gear tray, which was mounted with emergency lighting, minimising disruption to hospital staff, patients, and visitors, and saving the client time and money. We also custom built a secondary diffuser to sit behind the polycarbonate body to diffuse glare from the LEDs – which is a more intense light source than the fluorescent lighting. This also afforded the client a quick and easy way to clean and change the LEDs, while the LED lighting increased operational energy efficiency by as much as 72%. Reflecting on the project, there were a number of areas where our specialist knowledge saved the NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board time and money – not least in helping to plug gaps caused by the collapse of former management company, Carillion, which left some unavoidable ‘information blindspots’ on the hospital’s infrastructure.
At Bristol’s Southmead Hospital, the Bouygues FM team identified that large areas of corridor lighting had reached the end of their lifecycle, and a new lighting installation, and an upgrade of the emergency lighting system, were needed.
92 Health Estate Journal October 2022
Peterborough City Hospital Another recent project, this time at the mental health unit at Peterborough’s City Hospital, highlighted the importance of understanding the specialist compliance requirements in a clinical environment such as this. As with Southmead, Whitecroft has
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