FAGERHULT SWEDEN
BANKERYD SKIING AND FITNESS CLUB
Uniform and effective lighting for trail safety
- Year: 2016
- Location: Bankeryd
- Photo: Joel Dittmer
Exercise and fresh air increases our sense of well-being and illuminated jogging trails therefore fill an important function for people. The Municipality of Jönköping is investing in local associations and during the autumn of 2016, all of 15 of the municipality’s sports clubs have received grants to replace the old mercury lighting with LED luminaires. The Bankeryd Skiing and Fitness Club is one of them.
“The preconditions for the change were obvious. LEDs were what was needed, both for the sake of the environment and finances,” says Martin Petersson Dahl, department head at the administration for culture and recreation in Jönköping.
The switch to Fagerhult's energy-efficient post top luminaire Evolume means both longer service time and lower future costs. In Bankeryd, the luminaires have been easily installed on existing posts and the fact that this entails going from 88 W to 36 W per luminaire means lower energy consumption. Moreover, with Evolume CLO (Constant Light Output) as standard, you get the right light from the luminaire throughout its entire service life. The system does need to be over installed to compensate for any future depreciation from the LED diodes, and consequently, both operating costs and the entire facility’s total costs are lower.
Jönköping Energi helped the club with planning and the choice fell on the Evolume 1 with the E5 lens, which has been especially developed and optimised for walking paths and illuminated jogging trails.
“In preparing our lighting plans, it was important that the luminaire would provide even lighting that would cover the entire trail,” says Conny Silverbrå, electrical engineer at Jönköping Energi. “With the E5 lens, the uniformity is good and you also get light beyond the trail. The light actually has better spread to the sides of the trail than what I had expected.”
A new luminaire is not just a matter of sparing the environment and energy savings. Upgrading can also make the trail feel safer and more attractive. The illuminated trail in Bankeryd is close to several residential areas and is used not only by people exercising, but also by children on their way to school. From the club's side, the user experience was essential – having more light for an enhanced feeling of safety and security.
A luminous flux of 3300 lm was chosen for the facility and the light is a pleasant natural white at 4000 K. The luminaires also provide good lighting quality with excellent colour reproduction, which makes red tracksuits look red, blue look blue, and all the beautiful colours in nature are accentuated during the various seasons.
Before and after
To be able to see the difference in the lighting along the trail, Conny visited one of the older facilities with mercury lighting just before checking the final results in Bankeryd.
“There was a tremendous difference. It felt like you couldn't see anything at all at the old facility.”
Now there is plenty of light along the trail, and with no dark zones. It is easy to see any obstacles on the ground and to read off the area for a good overview.
The AGC lenses (Advanced Glare Control) that the Evolume luminaires are equipped with are extra large and mounted close together in a single luminous cluster. This enables luminance to be distributed over a larger area and reduces the risk for unpleasant glare. The light cluster also slightly lights the luminaires so that they can be seen from a distance, and even the surrounding trees and bushes receive nicely balanced light. Besides an enhanced feeling of security and space perception, this means that the eyes can comfortably adapt to the road ahead as one approaches a luminaire and there is also less risk of glare.
Bo Stenholm, the club’s financial manager has this to say:
“The difference is like night and day. The lighting we had before felt more like traditional street lighting that just lit up a series of points.”
