Outdoor lighting is being continually adapted in line with the latest technologies to spruce up the exterior of buildings, Integral LED has gone one step further with an unobtrusive solution to minimise light pollution.
Lighting a building after dark has become increasingly popular due to the lower costs of illumination delivered by LED. Promoting a building as a local landmark with exterior lighting at night is an effective marketing tactic for a business. Additionally, highlighting a heritage building within an urban or country landscape raises awareness to potential visitors and guests.
Central and local governments have moved to control the number of external lighting installations through planning regulations. UK manufacturer Integral LED has developed a range of new outdoor luminaires that enables customers to minimise obtrusive lighting, with an aim to equip specifiers with a light unit designed to comply with planning requirements.
External lighting pitfalls
Obtrusive lighting is categorised in three ways in terms of its impact on the environment and inhabitants;
- Sky Glow
- Glare
- Nuisance
Essentially, the ability to focus the beam of light emitted by the luminaire is key to the management of an external light project and to a successful outcome that complies with local planning requirements.
Sky Glow
The orange glow seen in the sky that encircles urban areas, known as Sky Glow, is caused by a scattering of artificial lighting by dust particles and water droplets in the atmosphere. Its effect is to disturb the local character of an environment and detract from the enjoyment of the outdoors.
Glare
Glare is the uncomfortable brightness that occurs when a light source is viewed against a darker background. This is particularly onerous when it falls within the vision of drivers on motorways or pedestrians.
Light Nuisance
Lastly, Light Nuisance is a broad category which includes any extraneous light that strays over boundaries onto a neighbouring property and causes anxiety for the people affected.
Planning permission
Your customers looking to undertake expensive exterior lighting work for a building will be well advised to consult their local planning office. Any project of a size that involves major works or the use of a lighting engineer would initiate this move. Installers of sport centre or carpark floodlights would be recommended to check on the suitability of their system. Lighting for listed buildings is required to be assessed on the basis that they must continue to retain their original character subsequent to a lighting installation.
Exterior precision lighting
Integral’s new generation of LED floodlights have been designed specifically with targeted outdoor lighting in mind, as the precise targeting of illumination is key to compliant external lighting.
“Our aim is to give our customers the tools with which they can light buildings at night or illuminate utility areas like sport centres and playing fields without causing nuisance,” says Ricardo Colombo, Senior Product Manager, Integral LED. “Specifiers and installers are empowered to be compliant, not only by the technology that directs the targeted light beam, but also with the multiple options of lumens and beam angles we offer across the range.”
Product Focus
The Precision Pro features 2-16 banks of LEDs, providing lumen output ranging from 13,000-153,000lm. Each bank of LEDs is focussed with a precision engineered lens that individually targets the beam from each LED. This enables the light to be directed precisely. The range offers a comprehensive choice of beam angles, with certain models able to project asymmetrical beams to illuminate specific areas of a structure. In this way, certain architechtural features can be ‘picked-out’ within a structure. The luminaire range has been recently widened to include models with RGB colour changing facility.
The floodlight is rugged and weatherproof, with an aluminium and polycarbonate body. IP65 and IK10 ratings provide protection from dust and water and is impact-resistance.
For more information
For more information on the external lighting solutions available from Integral LED, visit: www.integral-led.com
