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Wireless based control saves energy28 June 2010Gone are the days when street lighting simply switched on and off under photoelectric or timer control. Wireless based central management systems now open up opportunities for more refined control strategies and even lamp condition monitoring, offering the potential of big savings in terms of energy consumption and carbon emissionsWiMAC’s interoperable wireless based Central Management System (CMS) for remotely managing street lighting has now been specified for some 50 street lighting systems installed across the UK. This means that the electrical supply to between 5,000 and 6,000 street lights per month is currently being controlled by WiMAC technology.
This novel remote wireless CMS is helping local authorities make tangible energy savings as well as reducing their carbon emissions. The system was the first CMS for the recording of non-metered supply to be approved in the UK by the ‘Unmetered Supplies User Group’ (UMSUG). It provides energy consumption data directly whilst settling imbalances when actual delivery of energy does not match contractual agreements.
UK street lighting is non-metered and there’s a standard approach to charging each local authority for the energy consumed. This uses meters configured to switch mechanisms representative of the type of light in use and appropriate to street lighting operated by photoelectric cells or simple timed switching systems. The UMSUG approval now permits a completely different approach, one where comprehensive data is transmitted on a daily basis by each lantern, providing detailed and accurate consumption figures.
With the introduction of the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) and The Climate Change Act 2008 - which has set legally binding targets for an 80 per cent reduction in carbon emissions by 2050 - reducing carbon emissions has become essential for councils up and down the UK. Some Local Authorities have decided to switch off street lights in an attempt to reduce their energy costs and meet the carbon emission targets, which has led to public outcry. A number of councils, however, have decided to embrace technology that incorporates the WiMAC CMS to help them manage their street lighting in a more efficient and effective way.
The CMS which is Internet based and accessible from anywhere in the world, gives local authorities the control and flexibility they have long desired. It allows them to dim street lights instead of switching them off and can be tailored to the relevant lighting class for the road specification. An area of all-night activity can remain fully lit, whilst reduced lighting levels may be implemented for adjacent housing or industrial areas.
The system, which also provides daily maintenance reports for each light, identifying lamps which have failed and lamps that are about to fail - easing scheduling and management of street lighting across local boroughs - is supported by a leading-edge data management centre. The centre includes redundant and backup systems, redundant data communications connections, environmental controls and the most up-to-date security devices. The CMS is also interoperable with a list of leading Asset Management Systems, with more soon to be added.
Current licencees of the system are Zodion and Harvard Engineering. Harvard Engineering’s ‘LeafNut’ system, for example, uses the WiMAC technology to achieve energy savings and carbon emission reductions of up to 100kg per lighting column.
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