Lighting control in a London school
The refurbishment of an existing building for sustainable use is always a challenge. Older buildings simply weren’t designed with any focus on reducing energy usage and there are numerous questions to be asked about refurbishment from an environmentally friendly perspective:
- Can you reduce energy consumption in order to meet current standards?
- How can you improve heating/cooling, ventilation and comfort, without increasing your energy consumption?
- How can you make best use of the existing structure, e.g. the thermal mass of your building?
- How can you make use of the higher ceiling heights?
- How do you retain the appearance of architecturally important buildings whilst improving energy and comfort?
- Can you make changes with occupants in place? Critical in a commercial environment.
- And I could go on, but you get the picture…
So when one of our customers was tasked with the design and installation of a lighting control system into a prestigious London educational establishment, all these factors and more had to be taken into account. The project involved the refurbishment of an old building, with one wing of the building split into offices and a large open plan space. The client required a maintenance free and expandable lighting control system, which could deliver a high level of reliability. They had already tried other systems and they simply weren’t delivering what they were looking for, until the M&E Consultants recommended KNX as a solution that could meet the rigorous specification.
Absence/presence detection was required to control lighting levels, monitor light levels and to provide constant daylight levels during the academic day. The reduction of energy consumption/energy costs was also a critical factor and the client stressed from the beginning how they needed to clearly demonstrate that the refurbishment was contributing to the reduction of their carbon footprint. The M&E consultant specifically selected KNX as a sustainable reliable solution that could deliver flexibility and future-proof the building to accommodate any changes further down the line.
Throughout the building, standard MK switches were installed along with 1000 lighting controllers on a BUS, IP backbone. Everything is DSI controlled for reliability and reduced maintenance. All of the offices are fitted with presence detectors and MK switches, ensuring flexibility, but guaranteeing energy is not wasted when the room is vacated. The switches control presence on entry to the rooms, while the sensors switch off lighting upon leaving. Both presence and absence detectors control the large open plan area, so that lighting is only used when necessary.
The installation complies with Part L of the Building Regulations (Conservation of fuel and power) and fully complies with the Carbon Trust’s guidelines and selection criteria by clearly demonstrating the potential for substantial greenhouse gas emission savings. It is estimated that the new lighting control system alone will deliver around a 50% reduction in total energy consumption.
The installation needed to be completed out of term time, so the ‘plug & play’ modularity of KNX products ensured that minimum time was required on site for the actual fit and the work was completed with minimum disruption. The client is delighted with the finished installation, and has already agreed to roll out the lighting control system across the entire building, the end result of which will be one of the largest KNX installations in the country.
Client Comment
Fast Installation, Functionality, Comfort for the occupiers, Economics/Energy Saving, Extended lamp life/cost savings, KNX delivered exactly what we were looking for in what was a tricky refurb project.
