We find out how Signify and Liverpool City Council utilised traffic adaptive lighting to drive energy efficiency and sustainability.

Signify has delivered an advanced smart lighting solution for Liverpool’s waterfront area.

The project, completed in collaboration with McCann (Street Lighting Maintenance contractor for Liverpool City Council) with support from LiveLabs, is part of a three-year, UK-wide £30 million programme funded by the Department for Transport that aims to decarbonise the local highway network and UpCiti, that uses connected lighting technology to reduce energy use, lower carbon emissions, and enable smart infrastructure management across the city. The installation covers key routes linking the city centre to the new Hill Dickinson Stadium, home to Premier League club Everton FC.

Investment

Like many cities, Liverpool faces the challenge of reducing emissions and improvingsustainability while continuing to deliver reliable public services. The switch can bring up to 30% in energy savings over the next 10 years. The city also needed to increase safety for pedestrians on match days as routes leading to Everton Stadium experience significant surges in traffic during events, requiring brighter, adaptive lighting for safety and crowd management. In addition, in the past, the council has relied on public reports to identify lighting failures, leading to delays in repairs and potential safety risks. As budgets tighten and energy costs rise, the city is pursuing innovative, efficient ways to invest in the future.

Liverpool City Council partnered with Signify and McCann Ltd to pilot adaptive street lighting, controlled in real time by an intelligent software solution. The system uses Signify LumiStreet Gen2 luminaires which are connected to the Signify Interact City central management system, and which in turn is linked via API’s to traffic count sensors. These sensors monitor the traffic volume allowing the system to automatically adjust lighting levels based on traffic density and thus providing the right light when and where it is needed. The result is improved energy efficiency without compromising safety or visibility.

Monitoring performance

At the centre of the project is Signify’s Interact City lighting control system, which continuously monitors performance and automatically detects faults to minimise downtime and maintenance costs. This proactive approach enhances public safety and streamlines management of lighting assets across the waterfront area. Interact City connects both new and existing luminaires, creating a unified lighting network that reduces energy use and supports future citywide upgrades.

On high demand days, such as matchdays at Everton’s nearby stadium, Liverpool City Council can respond more effectively to increased requirements for lighting, operational efficiency and public safety. Lighting levels can be increased to maintain optimal visibility and support safer public spaces. With each luminaire connected to Signify’s central management platform, the council can proactively manage the lighting network using real-time data and insights. This smart approach helps minimise energy waste by ensuring lighting is only used when and where it is needed, avoiding the inefficiencies of fixed schedules that can create a disconnect between planned lighting and actual conditions.

Fit for purpose

“We’re proud to be among the first UK local authorities to deploy traffic-adaptive lighting at scale,” said Ali Zahran, Principal Street Lighting Engineer at Liverpool City Council. “This investment is helping us reduce energy consumption, improve operational efficiency, and build a more sustainable, future-ready city. The upgrade responds to the evolving needs of residents while supporting the ambitions of a growing city, delivering smarter infrastructure that enhances safety, efficiency, and the overall urban environment for everyone.”

Councillor Dan Barrington, Cabinet Member for Transport and Connectivity, said: “Since the Hill Dickinson Stadium opened, we’ve listened closely to fans who want a safe, well-lit route back towards the city centre and key transport links. The new adaptive lighting along the busiest roads around the stadium means pavements are brightly lit when people need it most, helping everyone feel safer as they move through the area. Because the system responds in real time, we can also spot and fix faults quickly, keeping the route reliably lit on matchdays and beyond. And by adjusting the lighting to actual traffic levels, we’re cutting unnecessary energy use and delivering real savings for the city.”

John McCann, Managing Director at McCann, added on the awarding of the contract: “We’re proud to be working alongside Liverpool City Council and Signify to ensure the city’s street lighting infrastructure is safe, reliable, and future-ready. Delivering this project as part of our maintenance service for Liverpool is a major win for our business as it reinforces our approach to collaboration, innovation, and consistency. This installation is a step in the right direction towards making Liverpool 2040 a reality.”

“Every growing city must ensure that infrastructure is fit for purpose and meets the needs of its residents. Public lighting plays a critical role in creating spaces where people feel safe, while also helping cities manage energy consumption and reduce emissions,” said Simon

Wilkinson, Commercial Leader Public UK, Signify. “Our collaboration with Liverpool City Council delivers immediate benefits through energy savings and improved visibility, while also serving as a blueprint for a safer, smarter, and more sustainable cities across the UK. As one of Europe’s most culturally significant and forward-thinking cities, Liverpool continues to demonstrate its commitment to innovation and enhancing quality of life for its residents through projects such as this.”

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Signify has been appointed by Leonardo UK to help accelerate its carbon reduction as part of the company’s ambitious sustainability strategy.

In support of Leonardo’s sustainability strategy – including a recently approved Science Based Target – and drive to Net-Zero in the UK, Signify has signed a 10 year Light as a Service (LaaS) agreement that includes the full turnkey installation of LED lighting with Interact lighting management software, across 14 buildings at the Yeovil site. The lighting in each building has been carefully designed to ensure a safe and productive work environment for the 3,300 highly skilled personnel across the site.

Signify’s LaaS model is a performance-based contract that guarantees light-level performance for the full duration of the contract. Crucially, the execution of the new lighting system does not require upfront capital investment – instead, Leonardo pays Signify an annual operating fee. This LaaS model enables Leonardo to realise cash-positive savings from the first year. Once completed, the programme is expected to reduce Leonardo’s location-based CO₂ emissions by an estimated 725 tons per year, supporting Somerset Council’s Climate Emergency Strategy.

Leonardo is one of the UK’s leading aerospace companies and one of the biggest suppliers of defence and security equipment to the UK MOD, making a significant contribution to the UK economy. Leonardo’s Yeovil site is the Home of British Helicopters – offering end-to-end helicopter manufacturing, training, and lifecycle services to operators worldwide.

As part of the redesign, the buildings will also see the deployment of Signify’s lighting management system, Interact. The connected lighting system combines energy-efficient Philips LED fixtures with advanced sensors and Interact software. The system will ensure that the LED fixtures are only turned on when an area is occupied. When there is sufficient natural daylight, the LED fixtures will automatically dim to compensate. This maximises lighting energy savings while ensuring a safe working environment.

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This month we quizzed Signify’s new CEO for UK&I, Nico van der Merwe, on changes and trends in the lighting sector

1. How did you get involved in the industry?

 Firstly, looking into my experiences and the skills that I have developed over the years, I have held roles in technical channel development and marketing so my move to the electrical/ lighting industry has been a natural progression. The industry offers similar technologies, go-to-market strategies, and customers, so it feels like I can make a positive impact.

When I joined my previous firm, I realised that the electrical industry has so much to offer given the work we do around connected solutions and automations as at the core of it lies the use of energy. This was new to me, intrigued me, has shaped my career for the past almost 15 years.

Also, I bring a variety of global experience to this role at Signify. I have had the fortune of working in the finance industry, in the auto industry and in the mining and construction industry.

My experience of working in these industries has been in both developed and developing economies. I feel all this varied experience of over two decades has helped me round my thinking about the industry, the priorities and have an outlook of what the future holds.

2. What do you think about the upcoming changes to the RoHS Directive and how could it impact the lighting sector?

The Restriction of hazardous substances (RoHS) in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations affect businesses that are involved with electrical and electronic equipment.

This includes manufacturers, importers, exporters, businesses that re-brand goods, and of course distributors. The regulations limit the use of hazardous substances such as mercury, lead and cadmium in the manufacture of new electrical and electronic equipment placed on the market in the UK.

For the lighting sector in particular, the legislation regulates the use of mercury in lighting products, impacting what products are permitted on the market for installation.

For general lighting purposes, a ban on Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFLni lamps) and on T5 and T8 fluorescent Tubes comes into play from February 2024.

One of the most important changes introduced by RoHS2 is that it has become a CE Marking Directive, enforced under the EU’s New Legislative Framework (NLF)/ the UKCA mark in the UK.

This means that in order to affix the CE Marking on the EEE, the manufacturer must meet the requirements of the RoHS Directive in addition to the requirements of other applicable CE Marking Directives (e.g. EMC or the Low Voltage Directive).

As a major environmental regulation of electronics, RoHS is step in the right direction to ensure lighting products like fluorescent lamps that are hazardous to humankind and our environment are banned.

The question on the sales of fluorescent lighting was never previously under the spotlight due to the lack of the right replacement or alternative.

However, over the years, LED lighting has emerged, with like-for-like replacements that are a cost-effective, mercury-free, sustainable alternative to fluorescents.

While the EcoDesign regulation will have removed many conventional lighting products based on their poor energy performance, such as the ban of fluorescent T8s in August 2024, RoHS is poised now to address the products left behind on the basis of their toxicity.

3. What is Signify doing to promote lighting sustainability and a circular economy?

Signify is a global leader in an industry that has led the wider electrical products for construction and refurbishment sectors on a path of ever-increasing efficiencies and energy savings through continuous invention, innovation, and development.

The advent of LED, a ‘sea change’ in energy efficiency and sustainable decarbonising  products, has been enhanced with the application of Central and Building Management Systems and intelligent controls such as the Signify Interact range which turns high efficiency LED into Ultra efficient lighting systems capable of delivering 80% + savings over traditional platforms.

Sustainability is in our DNA.  It’s our purpose to unlock the extraordinary potential of light for brighter lives and a better world. By changing the way that we create and use light, we can improve lives and have a positive impact on the planet.

Over the past 125 years, Signify has pioneered many key breakthroughs in sustainable lighting, being a driving force behind several leading technological innovations, including LED.

We are now on a new five-year journey out to 2025, focusing on doubling our positive impact on the environment and society under the Brighter Lives, Better World 2025 sustainability programme, going beyond carbon neutrality.

The programme is central to everything we do, everything from products to services. As a result, we were recently included in the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI) for the sixth consecutive year.

More broadly, Signify’s Brighter Lives, Better World2025 program sets bold targets across the areas of climate action, circularity, and societal impact. We understand that making our economy more circular has become more important than ever.

Today society uses 1.7 times the resources than our planet can sustain, and resource scarcity and waste have reached worrying proportions. As Signify, we are committed to responsible consumption and production (SDG12) with products that can be reprinted, refurbished, reused or recycled.

This will help us to achieve our goal of doubling our revenues from circular products, systems and services to 32% by the end of 2025. To date, we have achieved 31% versus a baseline of 16% and are already nearly at our 2025 target.

4. What are the upcoming lighting trends to keep an eye on?

This year bought with it familiar problems for cities around the world. Many countries are still facing a multitude of crises: climate change continues to accelerate, economies are under pressure, and consumers are coping with inflation and skyrocketing energy bills. But a new year also brings a renewed sense of optimism and fresh focus.

Firstly, the EU and UK have passed legislation that prohibits the use of conventional fluorescent lighting. The ban has been a long time coming—not only are fluorescent bulbs outdated and inefficient, they contain harmful materials like phosphorus and mercury.

With the ban coming into effect in early 2023 in EU and 2024 in the UK, the shift to energy-efficient LED is set to accelerate even more than it has over the last two decades.

Secondly, I expect that the switch from traditional lighting to LED will see an acceleration in the public and business space. Though it is not a new concept, the immense energy-saving benefits from LED lighting continue to be either misunderstood or overlooked.

Most people are now aware that LED lighting is more energy-efficient than conventional lighting—at least 50% more efficient, in fact—but the full potential of what can be achieved remains unrealised. For a start, connecting LEDs and managing them via a software-based lighting management system raises increases energy savings to as much as 80%.

Therefore, I feel connectivity that is driven by purpose will be a huge trend for 2023.

Also, city budgets are tight. Whether it’s the strain of post-pandemic regeneration or the global impact of the war in Ukraine, many economies are at breaking point. City decision-makers may have the ambition to develop and improve their infrastructure, but without funding it’s simply not viable.

Luckily, the UK government is starting to take action. Slowly but surely, programs are being established that promise to support infrastructure projects and help cities achieve the goal of becoming sustainable while at the same time improving the health and well-being of citizens.

Take for instance the recent announcement on the Energy Efficiency Taskforce that aims to finance energy reduction and decarbonisation projects. But. these difficult conditions also testified the relevance of Signify’ s extensive portfolio of sustainable and connected lighting solutions.

With climate change, the energy crisis hitting Europe and spiralling inflation creating a perfect storm in the economy, customers in all spheres recognise the urgent environmental and financial need to reduce energy consumption.

5. What are your aims and objective for the year ahead?

 Signify is a company with a rich heritage, a powerful product portfolio, a talented team, and a strong leadership position in sustainability. I am sure we are well positioned to further grow the business and industry while continuing to make a positive impact on society and the environment through our innovations.

The UK and Ireland have exciting opportunities in the market for us and our customers and that what I want to make possible for us in the new role. This objective will also ultimately help drive us closer to the Signify five frontier strategy for growth where we focus on being more customer centric, enable differentiated offers, growth for sustainability, drive digitalisation and be a great place to work.

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Signify has been appointed by NSG Group to install a suite of cutting-edge smart lighting technology at several sites in the United Kingdom. These include The European Technical Centre in Lathom and the Automotive Facility in Redditch, as well as various other manufacturing sites across the UK.

The lighting upgrade comes as part of the NSG Group’s aim to be the global leader in innovative high-performance glass and glazing solutions, which contribute to better energy savings, increase infrastructure for operations, and more closely align with regulations and requirements.

For the Lathom and Redditch sites, NSG Group has signed Light as a Service (LaaS) agreements with Signify that will include the full turnkey installation and execution services with no up-front CAPEX or cost, providing immediate savings, positive cash flow from year one and the reassurance of continuous maintenance and guaranteed high-performance through the duration of the 10 year contract.

Installing LED lighting in the facilities dramatically cuts energy consumption by almost 80%, when compared to the traditional technologies that were previously used. This is expected to save the sites over 170 tons of CO2 each year. As well as these significant energy savings, the new wireless LED luminaires also provide a number of smart factory benefits, including data-driven insights about the site which help in making decisions about its operations.

As part of the redesign, the Interact system, which includes multisite management capability, provides centralised lighting control for all the sites with agreed scenes and schedules to ensure a consistent look and feel and provide increased visibility, flexibility and control of the lights.

NSG Group will also be able to analyse all data collected through the wireless sensors and utilise this to improve working environments, whether in the warehouse or office. The cloud- based platform collects data from all light points via a connected lighting infrastructure and is displayed on a centralised dashboard. This enables better comparison, monitoring and management of lighting across multiple locations for improved efficiency and lower energy usage.

With sustainability at the top of the NSG Group agenda, both Lathom and Redditch sites use Signify’s innovative 3D printed downlights across the estate. These custom luminaires are fully recyclable, reducing waste and contributing to a circular economy. Production requires far less energy and materials, resulting in a 70% lower carbon footprint when compared to traditional aluminum die-casting production methods.

Both Lathom and Redditch sites feature Signify’s fast, secure Trulifi connectivity in the board rooms and selected meeting and conference rooms. Trulifi uses light waves to enable highly reliable, secure two-way wireless communication at speeds far above most conventional workplace wireless technologies.

Lighting plays an important role in human wellbeing, so the implementation of this project demonstrates NSG Group’s desire to invest just as much in its people as in their sustainability goals. The new LED lighting will improve lux levels, reduce glare, ease employee eye strain and fatigue, and offer flicker-free illumination throughout The European Technical Centre’s office spaces.

John Wilgar, Head of Procurement at NSG Group, said: “Saving energy and minimising waste (or ‘muda’ in Japanese) are two of the ways we manage our environmental footprint to help preserve our planet for future generations. The impressive energy savings brought by Signify’s Interact Industry system and the new LED luminaires, as well as Signify’s 3D printed circular lighting products, help us achieve this. Additionally, the IoT connectivity driven by the lights goes beyond just illumination and offers insights to enable us to become a smart factory in the truest sense as we look to improve operational efficiency across our sites. This resonates with our vision of ‘Changing our Surroundings, Improving our World’.”

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