Sparks Electrical News January 2017

JSE

-listed MMI Holdings, a provider of long and short-term insur-

ance, asset management, investment, healthcare administration, and

rewards programmes amongst others through operating brands that

include Momentum and Metropolitan. Metropolitan wanted to reduce

its energy consumption, thereby saving on operational costs and low-

ering its carbon emissions. Furthermore, the business also wanted to

reduce its maintenance costs through the appropriate implementa-

tion of long lifetime, low or zero intervention products.

The company also wanted to enhance the lighting aesthetics and

appeal of the architectural lighting at its Durbanville campus. By do-

ing so, the company aimed to ensure the desired impact on its cus-

tomer facilities to improve customer experience.

The challenge

At the front façade of the campus, Metropolitan had five mercury

vapour (MV) 400 W mono white flood lights installed, which con-

sumed a massive 2 kW of electricity per hour. Metropolitan wanted

the façade to be washed in a blue light instead of mono white to

reflect its corporate branding strategy and increase the visual impact

of the building while delivering energy savings through the replace-

ment LED solution.

Accomplishing these goals was complicated by the fact the front

façade incorporated dark marble tile that was reflective, so the SSLI

project team had to ensure that the blue colour wash covered the

complete façade and was not diluted by the dark stone finish. In addi-

tion, the positioning of the LED floodlights had to be the same as the

mono white floodlights being replaced.

The solution

Philips Lighting Southern Africa’s value added partner, Solid State

Lighting International (SSLI), worked closely with Metropolitan to

understand its business goals. SSLI then translated the company’s

objectives into a lighting project that would realise those objectives

through the use of dynamic or mono LED lighting solutions.

SSLI utilised design software as well as reference sites of archi-

tectural installations locally and internationally where VAYA MP LED

lights had been employed, in order to illustrate visual proof of concept

to the client. Additionally, SSLI also did onsite mock-ups to determine

the best beam angles to cover the curved building façade.

Seven 68 W VAYA LED floods with various beam angles were used

to ensure full coverage of the front façade of the Durbanville head

office, which ‘bathed’ the building in a blue wash of light.

Advantages

Each LED floodlight consumes 68 W for a total power consump-

tion of 476 W compared to the 2 000 W that the MV flood lights

consumed per hour – more than a 75% reduction in energy usage.

The VAYA LED flood lights are also low maintenance fittings with

a life expectancy of more than 50 000 hours, thereby meeting all

the client’s lighting requirements.

The VAYA LED boasts a robust design that includes an IP66

rating making it perfect for outdoor use since it is water- and dust-

resistant, and comes with a three-year warranty.

Besides being more cost-effective than the fixtures they

replaced, the VAYA lights are also more versatile. These high

output colour-changing light fixtures are designed for spot

lighting, wall washing, and flood lighting applications. The light

levels achieved by this compact and lightweight fixture make it

ideal for illuminating large-scale exterior facades, bridges, and

monuments.

In addition, the integrated power and DMX-512 control, allow

it to be easily utilised with Philips’ own DMX controllers or even

third-party DMX controllers in order to achieve fine-grained con-

trol of the LED flood lighting system.

Enquiries: +27 11 471 5000

Reducing energy consumption with sustainable lighting

olar Eco Systems Africa’s range of self-sus-

taining solar LED street lighting is available

exclusively in Southern Africa from Magnet

Energy. “These environmentally friendly solar pow-

ered street light poles, which combine enhanced

aesthetics and the latest photovoltaic (PV) and LED

technology, are designed for energy conservation on

streets, highways, pedestrian walkways, jogging paths

and on housing estates,” says Kaylen Reddy, Magnet’s

lighting solutions engineer.

“Globally, solar energy is gaining popularity as a

clean, sustainable and renewable source of energy

that reduces the carbon footprint. This low mainte-

nance system can run off grid, providing reliable per-

formance independently of the national power supply

– an important advantage during power outages.

“These solar light poles significantly improve se-

curity after dark, especially in remote areas with no

access to electricity. As there are no requirements for

major earthworks and cable laying, set up costs are

significantly reduced.”

The latest LED technology of this system has a

particularly high luminous efficacy – up to 112 Lu-

mens per watt. These LEDs consume about 50 W

less power per lamp than other systems available,

and offer about 75 000 hours’ of service life. The

proprietary lens system focuses the light output and

minimises unwanted stray light, which contributes to

improved efficiencies.

Patented PV technology encompasses high out-

put, high efficiency solar cells that provide charging

of up to 300 W per day, without the need for direct

sunlight. These mono crystalline silicon solar cells are

protected by a thick layer of Borosilicate glass, which

aids in keeping the PV module clean, for maximum

poly-directional 360˚ energy yield.

Batteries are housed securely inside each pole – un-

like traditional street light installations where battery

boxes are buried in the ground to guard against theft.

Lead acid batteries provide an minimum autonomy of

two days based on a depth of discharge of 30%.

A micro-controller is used for smart monitoring,

intelligent communication and energy management.

Each light pole communicates directly with the control

centre, providing information that includes the need

for maintenance and security sensors advise of theft

or tampering. It is also possible to monitor every light

pole’s power output to ensure optimum efficiency.

An advanced security option includes a surveil-

lance system that is integrated discreetly into the

mast or head to monitor the environment. High reso-

lution CCTV cameras have built-in sensors for auto-

matic security alerts, with interchangeable lenses to

meet exact requirements. Cameras can be supplied

as a wide angle fish-eye lens type, or for tight angle

facial recognition. This low power consumption sys-

tem has day and night sensors and offers a good

image quality, even in dark areas. There is direct re-

cording to any IT storage device, without the need for

central recording software or hardware.

Solar Eco Systems Africa’s advanced technology

will also soon be incorporated into light poles to offer

internet connectivity. The solar power Wifi pole – cur-

rently at its conceptual stage of R&D - will enable us-

ers in the proximity of a pole to connect to the internet

– a convenient facility, especially for schools in rural

communities. The company will also soon be launch-

ing solar powered cell phone charging poles based on

the same technology.

Included in this range are ‘Noor’ solar pedestrian

light poles that provide uniform circular light distribu-

tion essential for boardwalks, pedestrian lanes, parks

and communal areas. These stand-alone light poles

have a 6,25 m installation height and a light spot

height of 4 m.

‘Shems’ solar street light poles, with lengthwise

aligned light distribution, are designed for outdoor

residential and municipal lighting in areas that in-

clude streets, pavements and bicycle paths. This se-

ries has an installation height of 6,80 m and a light

spot height of 6,26 m.

‘Taqa’ solar highway street light poles provide uni-

form lengthwise aligned light distribution for munici-

pal street and roadway installations. This system has

an installation height of 8 m and a light spot height

of 7,65 m.

These robust lighting poles, with a diameter of 180

mm, are manufactured from steel and are hot-dip

galvanised paint coated for added protection. They

have an IP 65 index protection rating to guard against

the ingress of dust and water.

Enquiries: +27 31 274 1053

SOLAR STREET LIGHT POLES

USE LATEST IN LED TECHNOLOGY

Solar Eco Systems Africa’s range of self-

sustaining solar LED street lighting combine

enhanced aesthetics and the latest photo-

voltaic (PV) and LED technology. These solar

street light poles offer energy conservation

on streets, highways, pedestrian walkways,

jogging paths and on housing estates

TACTILE DIMMER MODULE – DIMS NEW

TECHNOLOGY AND TRADITIONAL LAMPS

ajor Tech’s Tactile Dimmer Module dims LEDs, halogen

and incandescent bulbs independently or simultaneously.

Werner Grobbelaar, Major Tech’s sales manager, says the

tactile dimmer is used with a bell press switch to switch on or dim

lights. “Simply hold down the switch to control the dim-

ming function up or down to the desired lighting level.

Once the level has been set, every time one turns on

the lights, the light intensity will return to its previous

memory setting,” he explains.

Werner says Major Tech’s Tactile Dimmer Module

is compatible with most leading brands. “Major Tech’s

continuous success has always been result of innova-

tive thinking, embracing new technology and promoting

industry best practices. Through innovation we are able to deliver cus-

tomer value into the market, and our V404U5 dimmer is an example of

this,” Grobbelaar says.

Enquiries: +27 11 872 5500

SPARKS

ELECTRICAL NEWS

JANUARY 2017

LIGHTING