FEATURE LIGHTING & CONTROLS
How data and sustainability will shape the lighting industry
end-of-life the building services team can just remove, shred and re-use them. The material can be recycled up to five times, meaning an increased lifespan of up to 50 years – the Circular Economy in action. Harness the power of data When talking about the future of
lighting, your first thought might go to IoT and smart lighting, and you’re not wrong. In recent years smart, connected lighting for businesses (be that in warehouses, offices or supermarkets) has entered the market and its potential value to project developers is enormous. These developers want to offer the maximum value to their clients, and there is a huge amount of untapped data from lighting that can empower clients to make smarter decisions about their business operations. In an office or retail space, the right
By Simon Greenwood, director of trade and specification at Signify T
he classic trade-off between quality and cost has governed many
decisions in building and retrofit projects for decades. For many installers, the rise of these new technologies can be daunting, far easier to simply stick with the tried and tested solutions. But those who adopt this wait-and-see approach could quickly find themselves left behind. Project leaders and building owners are under increasing pressure to embrace new technologies and meet higher sustainability standards. This is being reflected in the projects out for tender, demanding that installers prove that they can deliver and contribute more to these higher expectations. But today, these conversations of sustainability and data are opening new opportunities for installers.
GREENER PROJECTS, ENERGY SAVINGS Consumers are more conscious of their carbon footprint and are looking for more sustainable ways of living. This drive and, frankly, expectation, of a greener way of doing things is now also being seen from those commissioning new building developments. These project leaders are looking for all the different pathways to reducing energy consumption, and the answer, as ever, is in the lighting. Around 15% of all energy consumption in buildings is for lighting, and with the right lighting systems in place, this can be reduced to just 8%.
12 JUNE 2020 | ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING
The engineers who can offer this proven saving in energy consumption will be the ones to stand out from the pack in the competition to win contracts. What is the most sustainable lighting
solution? It’s the winning combination of LED luminaires with a connected lighting system. Most of us in the industry know that LED can save energy by reducing wattage, but that’s not the end of the story. With a connected LED system, lighting can be used only when and where it is needed, and easily tailored to the building’s unique requirements. In stadiums for example, regulation requires a minimum Lux level on match day to help guide the crowds and provide suitable light levels and uniformity for players and spectators alike – however training sessions need much less. Having connected lights that can be easily controlled via an app makes this personalisation possible and can help save on 80% of their total lighting energy consumption, making it much more sustainable. The demand for sustainability
credentials in projects doesn’t just focus on energy savings during their usages, but at all stages of installation and across the full lifecycle of the product. There is unease with the amount of waste that goes to landfill. One solution is investing in recyclable products – and here, 3D printed luminaires represent the future of sustainable lighting. At
system can track which areas are being used most frequently. Staff can then use this data to make informed decisions on where to move certain stock or even cut back on underused meeting rooms, saving on expensive rent. Further to this, data can be leveraged for predictive maintenance. In high value development projects such as smart cities and manufacturing, the connected system with APIs can identify any faults, flag these to building managers to be fixed quickly, reducing operational downtime. This added value will soon become essential for installers looking to win lucrative projects. Put simply, the future of lighting is connected lighting. When LED came onto the scene it was a
watershed moment for the energy savings it offered. However, just remember how reticent installers and building managers were to try out the new technology. It took time for the industry to try it out, but once they did, they never looked back. Crucially, those that were ahead of the curve won, and won big. Today, we are at a new watershed moment, sustainability credentials and connected lighting systems are the new must-haves. So as building managers and project leads are making these factors a core part of their briefs, so installers must respond. Those who have embraced this next evolution in lighting will win the best projects in years to come, as data and sustainability continues to shape the industry.
Signify
signify.com / ELECTRICALENGINEERING
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