As budgetary pressures continue to affect the education sector, schools and other establishments are looking for strategies to reduce overheads. Adding to this, the education sector is being urged to lower carbon emissions, to reduce environmental impact and lead by example to students and local communities.
This notable drive has been recognised by lighting connectivity experts Tridonic, who have seen an increase in enquiries and projects from across the education system. These projects are focused on improving and modernising lighting systems, to reap the benefits that newer technologies can deliver – especially when combined with controls and asset management.
For Tridonic UK, their Building Asset360 market approach sits at the heart of this. Focusing on the operational phase of the building life cycle, Building Asset360 views the lighting luminaire as an asset – much like a boiler – that provides data on its health and performance.
One of the key benefits for schools is that Building Asset360 is suitable for all types of buildings and is designed for a retrofit approach. With a large school and education estate in existence that needs improving, Tridonic has developed a solution that meets these needs.
This approach not only delivers exceptional luminance – benefitting from Tridonic’s 50+ years of experience as a lighting component manufacturer – it also provides valuable data and advantages throughout the entire lifecycle of lighting systems in buildings. The wireless system allows for a seamless and cost-effective retrofit approach, making it easier to save on expenses.
Tridonic Building Asset360 serves as a model to optimise a lighting investment, offering complete transparency of performance not just for the present but for the entire life cycle of lighting assets.
James Huntington, OEM controls and solutions manager at Tridonic, explains more: “Our primary goal is to assist our clients with a proactive approach to lighting asset management, striking the right balance between reactive and preventative maintenance, which we refer to as Intelligent Maintenance.
“The essence of the Building Asset360 solution lies not only in the available lighting data but also in the effortless access to this data through integration with BMS and third-party systems.”
Demonstrating the benefits of Tridonic’s approach, a 50% saving on energy costs was recently achieved through the introduction of a Tridonic lighting scheme at Eastriggs Primary School. The first stage of this was to replace the outdated lighting with energy-saving LEDs and Tridonic’s Casambi-enabled driver technology.
Compliance, ease of use, reduced maintenance and energy reductions were all at the heart of the scheme, while mindfully creating aesthetically pleasing lighting – achieved through the flexibility and controls of the Casambi system, via Tridonic’s basicDIM WIRELESS G2 and basicDIM Wireless User Interface products, creating a nurturing learning and working environment for children and staff alike.
The predictive maintenance and ease of diagnosis also means that facilities maintenance needs have been greatly reduced, which has related benefits to cutting emissions with reduced need for on-site callouts.
Recent university projects include St Andrews and University of Southampton. On both projects, Tridonic worked in partnership with Apollo Lighting to deliver improved lux levels, better efficiency and meet compliance targets.
At St Andrews, a modern transformation was required to the lighting scheme inside the newly refurbished main library. Tridonic’s suite of drivers, LED boards and emergency ranges were all employed to fulfil the objectives of the scheme, which needed to increase lux levels through replacement of the old fluorescent lamps, while reducing energy consumption.
James Huntington added: “Like much of the public sector, educational establishments are under increasing pressure to reduce overheads and carbon emissions. Our Building Asset360 ensures the best value can be achieved from lighting, delivering energy savings while maximising the lifecycle of each and every luminaire.
“It is not surprising that the education sector is one of the fastest growing areas among our client base. With a growing portfolio of experience, Tridonic is able to support clients across the education landscape and deliver energy and cost savings that will help to manage budgets and expectations over sustainability targets and measures.”
