Construct - Issue 42

Project

ENERGY SAVING LANTERNS

OLDMEETSNEW INAPROJECT TOCONVERTWESTMINSTER'S HERITAGEGAS LANTERNS TOLEDLAMPS

IMAGES: INDO LIGHTING

After a pilot in St James’s, the three year conversion programme has just started. Matching the atmosphere and appearance of the old gas lamps is achieved with LEDs that create the same brightness and warmth as the gas lighting combined with replacement lanterns and columns that match the originals exactly. The business has worked very closely with lighting manufacturer Pudsey Diamond Engineering on both elements. “There is not enough space in the old lanterns for the new electrical components, and it would be very difficult to retrofit them because you are dealing with materials that are 80 “The columns can be some distance from the gas main, so we might have to dig a 20m trench through solid concrete”

Central London’s historic squares and alleys have an atmosphere that comes in part from heritage lighting columns powered by gas. The City of Westminster currently has 299 gas lamps on its asset register, in historic areas like Covent Garden, St James’s, and Knightsbridge. While gas lighting provides the right ambience for these historic areas, the high energy and maintenance costs make it very inefficient. Gas lamps have a lot of individual parts, and every time a part needs maintenance the lamp has to be disconnected from the mains, taking it out of action for months at a time. Another downside is the carbon footprint: each gas light on Westminster’s list generates 10 times more carbon emissions than the equivalent low energy LED. With all this in mind, FM Conway and WSP, the company’s partner on Westminster’s street lighting framework, recommended converting the gas lamps to LED lamps, without losing the atmosphere of the old lights. “We were confident we could convert them using new technology but keep the aesthetics,” says FM Conway business, client & technical support manager Steve Deakin.

FACTS

Project Gas lighting conversion Client Westminster City Council FM Conway divisions - Lighting - Structures - Traffic Management

Number of lights 299 Carbon savings compared with gas 10 times

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