Lighting the Way to a Greener Future With Sustainable Lighting Solutions
In a rapidly evolving world with climate urgencies, tackling sustainability has never been more important. At Mount Lighting, we are on a journey to address the sustainability of our products and processes. From product conception to post-installation maintenance, we approach sustainability as a principal concern, with a focal point of the business being initiatives such as carbon offsetting and energy conservation. This blog contains the approach Mount Lighting is taking to lighting the way to a greener future, including our Lumecycle retrofit lighting service, Casambi wireless lighting controls system, Cradle to Cradle solutions and UK in-house manufacturing (Made in Britain). Our Lumecycle (TM) Retrofit Lighting Service Since September 2023, the government has banned the use of T5 and T8 fluorescent tubes, ensuring electrical and electronic equipment complies with the revised Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive. While Mount Lighting has always had a lighting retrofit system in place to remove outdated lighting, it is now more crucial than ever for businesses to source alternative lighting solutions. Our Lumecycle retrofit service involves the removal of conventional fluorescent lamps, ballasts or old LED boards with newer, more efficient technology, providing an LED component upgrade solution, including the future-proof wireless controls from Casambi. Beyond the legal obligation, our retrofit lighting service can offer a multitude of advantages, from reduced initial costs to improved lighting functionality. Integrating LED lighting into commercial premises boasts an impressive energy consumption decrease of up to 75%. The long lifespan of LED luminaires also assists with minimising the volume of materials discarded in landfills and are easily replaceable, contributing to our continuous commitment to sustainability through sustainable lighting. It should also be noted that not all projects necessarily merit retrofitting, as in some cases the cost may be prohibitive. Mount Lighting will always look at each project on a case-by-case basis, and will offer a retrofit lighting solution wherever possible. We have already assisted a number of companies with our retrofit service, ensuring they are compliant with the revised legislation – check out our recent lighting retrofit project for SPIE – Spring Nature Campus. Casambi Wireless Lighting Controls System The Casambi wireless lighting control system is a significant revolution in supporting sustainability. At Mount Lighting, most of our luminaires can have the advanced Casambi system built-in, helping to alleviate lighting load by up to 60% through the daylight harvesting feature. The system is adaptable, with various features contributing to creating a fully future-proofed and flexible ecosystem. The system’s functions range from colour alterations to automatic on and off, dimming, tuning, and a selection of other versatile features. It can recognise motion, ensuring lighting is only used when needed. These features combined offer a solution to energy-efficient lighting. Cradle to Cradle The ideal principle of Cradle to Cradle means that a product is designed so that its materials and components can be repurposed or recycled indefinitely. With TM66 (Technical Memorandum 66) introduced by the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) and the Society of Light and Lighting (SLL) and leading the way, we are reviewing our product ranges with TM66 reporting method in mind and making changes where we can improve the report statuses. What this means is that our technical lighting design experts are reviewing each luminaire and marking it against the TM66 report requirements. Any new products that we design will focus on the components from the beginning to be made from recycled materials, to be recyclable or repurposed at the end of life. By doing this, we are creating a framework for the production of safe, circular economy products, which helps to ensure our manufacturing process is as near carbon neutral as possible. Most of our luminaires are modular, with LED boards and diffusers that facility managers and electrical contractors can easily replace without replacing the entire fitting. UK In-House Manufacturing (Made in Britain) At Mount Lighting, we are proud to be affiliated with the esteemed Made in Britain community. What this means is that our own brand products are designed and skilfully manufactured in-house in the UK by our team of technical lighting specialists. In addition, we choose not to ship abroad and use British and European suppliers, making a conscious commitment to reducing our carbon footprint. During in-house production, the team uses state-of-the-art sustainability-designed technology. This includes integrating Tridonic drivers, renowned for their energy efficiency and holding a bronze Cradle to Cradle certification, an industry first, and the intelligent Casambi wireless lighting control system. Sustainable Lighting – More Than Just Solutions With Mount Lighting Eco-lighting is far from just being left at a domestic level and needs to be specified at the beginning of all new and refit construction projects when designing commercial lighting systems. As leading manufacturers and suppliers of Commercial Lighting, the Mount Lighting product range offers a wide selection of luminaires to choose from, all carefully crafted with sustainability at the forefront while maintaining the highest standard of quality. Notably, our Lens-Line stands out as the epitome of environmentally friendly lighting, generating a significant amount of lumen output relative to the electricity consumed at 195 lumens per Watt whilst being able to contribute to UGR19 standards and what’s more, it’s made in-house here in Britain. Could your project benefit from the LUMECYCLE lighting upgrade scheme, or Mount’s advanced energy-saving lighting controls? Find out today!
Lighting Solutions for CAT A, CAT A+, and CAT B Fitouts
Lighting is a fundamental component of all spaces, but artificial lighting can influence the perception of a room. Ensuring you have an appropriate lighting solution for your type of fitout is crucial to utilise an area best, whether that’s overhead and task lighting to support human-centric working environments or using accent lighting to highlight areas of interest. In this blog, we’ll explore everything you need to know about the types of fitouts and the lighting solutions our experts at Mount Lighting can provide. You’ll find answers to the following questions: What is a CAT A fitout? What is a CAT B fitout? What is a CAT A+ fitout? What is a CAT A fitout? When a building undergoes refurbishment or has been constructed, and the shell and core are fitted, the process’s next stage is known as Category A or CAT A. CAT A ultimately transforms the shell and core into a basic yet functional finish. Most CAT A fitouts involve installing electrics for lighting and plug points, air conditioning systems and plumbing for toilets, putting in access floors, and anything a working environment requires. Often a CAT A will be referred to as the ’empty shell’ category A landlord fitout phase. This stage makes the building suitable for commercial renting. The services installed at this point are not tailored to the end user’s needs, but the space is usually geared up to provide flexibility for the next stage when the tenants move in. Our lighting experts are renowned for bringing desolate spaces to life, adding new dimensions to a building’s core. Our team were proud to be chosen as lighting suppliers for a CAT A fitout to a 120-year-old Victorian building, transforming it from a warehouse to a contemporary office, utilising our M-Line Linear Range, Force and Halo suspended lighting and Surfaspot emergency lighting. What is a CAT B fitout? More often than not, CAT B fitouts are typically the most common type. A Category B fitout is carried out in a CAT A space, but it now involves installing everything else that is required to help a workplace function, as well as introducing the design aesthetics and tenant’s company branding. This fitout stage is when the designers can get their creative juices flowing by designing the floor layout, installing internal walls, sectioning out open workspaces, individual offices and meeting rooms and breakout communal spaces. For the team at Mount, getting our lighting design specialists involved in the beginning stages of a CAT B project is essential, helping you to avoid making costly mistakes in the lighting design process and adding significant value. We’ll work with the interior designer and electrical contractor to provide the most sustainable and energy-efficient lighting, Casambi wireless lighting controls, correct emergency lighting layout and calculate lux levels for task areas, ensuring everything is correct and avoiding going over budget. Getting it right from the start guarantees we can stay within the time frame when completing the project. The team has worked on a wide range of CAT B fitouts nationwide, delivering our expertise to partner the right CAT B lighting solution. One of our favourite CAT B projects we completed was the online software development and gaming business on Berners Street and a gaming company on The Strand, where we supplied a selection of bespoke lighting solutions to suit each workspace. What is a CAT A+ fitout? Cat A+ is the middle ground between a CAT A and CAT B fitout, often where a landlord combines the elements of both category phases and presents an enticing option for tenants who want to benefit from moving in straight away and starting work without the delay and expense of carrying out their own CAT B fitout. This ‘plug and play’ concept has many benefits for both the landlord and the tenant. The landlord will receive rent immediately and can command a higher rate with a furnished workplace readily available. The tenant avoids paying for the space that cannot be used while the CAT B fitout occurs. They can move in with everything ready to go. All they need to do is add some branding! On the downside, CAT A Plus can limit the customisation of the space due to restrictions put in place by the landlord. CAT A+ tend to have the same generic format to appeal to a large pool of potential tenants and with the culture of needing ‘resimercial’ workspaces for lots of companies trying to appeal to bringing hybrid or remote workers back to the social workplace. One of the CAT A+ lighting fitouts our team are proud to have worked on was a collaboration with office design company Oktra, supplying a selection of suspended and recessed LED linear M-Line luminaires, to meet the consultant’s design outlines, including manufacturing a bespoke 1200 x 300 LED panel with air handling slots to reduce the cooling load on the air-conditioning system. The luminaires blend in perfectly with the ceiling and help uphold the sleek finish while boosting the functionality of the office. Our team can help customise the lighting of a CAT A+ space even when the new tenants have moved in, using Casambi controls, making it feel more personalised and assisting employees in taking control of their working environment, from dimming to temperature control. To learn more about the benefits of intelligent wireless lighting in boosting productivity and well-being, look at our attracting employees back to work blog. CAT A lighting solutions M-Line Linear Range Our M-Line Linear range is the perfect solution for CAT A spaces, with the ability to create anything from accentuated lighting to show-stopping centrepieces. Due to the modular nature of the product, it can be customised when a CAT A space needs converting to the CAT B stage, making it a sustainable lighting solution. Check out the M-Line range today. CAT A+ lighting solutions T-Line Tubular LED Range With the T-Line range, you can explore infinite configuration possibilities, enabling you to join pieces to form bespoke shapes and geometric
DALI vs Casambi
Lighting control systems are popular for many reasons, with the endless list of benefits it provides their users, from future-proofing a building to modern and attractive designs to the cost advantages it poses. Both DALI and Casambi are popular choices when it comes to choosing a lighting system. DALI lighting control systems have been around since the late 90s and stand for Digital Addressable Lighting Interface. It is an open two-way protocol which provides control and communication for lighting systems. Due to being an open protocol, any manufacturer can use it and most of our lighting range is DALI compatible. Casambi is a newer product and is considered a type of smart lighting due to its offering of wireless lighting control through Bluetooth mesh technology. Both DALI and Casambi systems have their pros and cons, but there are additionally a significant amount of similarities and differences between the two lighting control systems. In this blog, we weigh the two lighting control options against each other, taking a look at the benefits of each lighting control and their similarities and differences, helping you to find a suitable solution for your commercial space. What are the differences between DALI and Casambi? DALI and Casambi share a variety of features, but there are many differences between the two lighting controls which need to be taken into consideration when choosing between the two types. Examples of these variations include: Wired vs wireless One stand-out distinction between the two lighting controls is that, unlike Casambi, which is a completely wireless lighting system, DALI does not provide a wireless option. The control system is wired, meaning lighting cannot be controlled through your smartphone, tablet or other types of smart device. (Please note that DALI+ does exist, which is a version of DALI that uses Wifi networks, which is currently under development). Wired controls often can impose a number of challenges, including the length between a controller and the luminaire, professionally carried out reconfigurations, changes to the building’s wiring, the possible requirement of building reconstruction and more. However, compared to other wired lighting systems, DALI is a relatively simple wiring system, with it being able to be wired next to the normal mains, making installation a fairly straightforward process with minimal segregation. With the Casambi lighting controls, you can control the entire use of your lighting from your device by using the Casambi control app. This is due to the control being configured around Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), which is standard on any smart device, making it universally compatible. However, this isn’t the only way of being able to control the lighting. If you prefer, you can retrofit an existing switch to have Casambi modules allowing complete control or install Casambi ready wireless switches similar to DALI. Due to Casambi not requiring any wiring, installation is a simple process and should you need to add, remove or replace a luminaire; there are no physical restraints. It can instead be simply done through the app. Although wiring a building can often be seen as an expensive route, a single DALI line can reach up to 250 metres, whereas Casambi is limited to 80 metres, providing placement limitations in larger commercial spaces. Additionally, thick walls can occasionally prevent Bluetooth signals. Control of luminaires While one DALI line can control 64 devices at once, Casambi lighting controls are even more impressive, with the Classic version having the ability to control up to 127 devices and the Evolution network being able to control up to 250 devices. Meaning Casambi can be a highly beneficial investment for commercial spaces which require the use of multiple luminaires at one time. However, it is worth noting that with a DALI router, more luminaires can be controlled at once. Although it is possible to fine tune with Casambi, DALI lighting controls provide you with the ability to attune your lighting even more so than Casambi. Examples of the functions include turning on and off, dimming, colour control, colour changing, emergency lighting testing and feedback, complex scene settings and more. What are the similarities between DALI and Casambi? Like with any lighting control system, DALI and Casambi share some strong similarities despite the variation between the two lighting controls. For example, both DALI and Casambi are versatile, with their unique features. Whether you choose DALI or Casambi for your lighting control, both are cost-effective options, helping to provide a return on investment in the long run and cutting costs during maintenance and replacement. Which lighting control system should you choose? As an overall judgement, both lighting systems are fantastic choices should you wish to have flexible control over your lighting and allows you to have control over more than one luminaire at once, which can be highly beneficial for commercial buildings. There is no doubt that the DALI lighting control is certainly impressive, but at Mount Lighting, we personally believe the Casambi lighting controls are first-class and offer a higher level of benefits for commercial premises, providing a fantastic investment. If you are interested in adding a modern and simple touch to your building, consider adding a Casambi lighting control to your space, paired with Mount Lighting’s compatible luminaires. Book a chat with one of our Casambi specialists today.
Visit Spacestor’s London Design Centre
The team at Mount Lighting are excited to announce that we have once again partnered with Spacestor at their newly designed showroom in the heart of London’s design district at 48-50 Cowcross Street, London, EC1M 3HP. This collaboration comes just in time for Clerkenwell Design Week from 23-25 May 2023, where some of the UK’s leading interior design products will be showcased. Lighting Designs to Complement Innovative Workplace Furniture Spacestor is one of London’s key innovators of workspace furniture, designing architectural and space-defining furniture with California and London style combinations. The interior fit-out was envisaged by a global architecture, design, and planning firm. With Spacestor bringing all three companies together, the space has been beautifully designed, ready to captivate the creativity of architects, designers, contractors and more. Having previously worked with Spacestor as their trusted lighting supplier, they approached us to partner with our products and supply lighting designs for their new design centre. Our specialist team worked hard to find the perfect lighting system, one which is entirely symbiotic with their interior design and award-winning workplace furniture. Lighting the Way to a New Landscape for Work The new concept for Spacestor’s award-winning ‘Aeonica’ is being presented as “The New Landscape for Work” with a focus on creating a stimulating, refreshing and highly adaptable workplace, which is synergistic with the modular capabilities of our M-Line Linear LED Range, the Floe-Line Curved LED Range and with the wireless capabilities of Casambi. Our lighting designs, when paired with Spacestor’s furniture, can be entirely customisable to meet the ever-changing needs of the modern workplace. Pairing our M-Line Linear Range and the Floe-Line Curved Range with Casambi intelligent lighting controls focuses on creating a human-centric workspace, tuning to the needs of its users and environment. Casambi allows users to take complete control of remote lighting, adapting lighting to align with a space’s atmosphere, tasks and more, all through occupancy and daylight sensors, dimming and colour temperature control. These features heighten productivity, increase well-being levels in work environments, and encourage collaboration, comfort and convenience. We recently presented ‘The vowelification of the workplace’ at the Casambi Summit Event, where our Casambi expert Miles Cantley, focused on the five key themes (A,E,I,O,U) of the evolving workplace and how Casambi can assist with the future of it. If you want to learn more or co-create your perfect office lighting design with Miles, contact him on LinkedIn or email sa***@**************co.uk. To see the new space, register your interest for Clerkenwell Design Week and join our Mount Lighting specialists and the incredible designers at Spacestors. You’ll have the chance to see unparalleled products in action and meet Casambi specialist Miles in person to learn everything there is to know about Casambi. You can meet with a team member and experience our collaboration with Spacestor at 48-50 Cowcross Street, London, EC1M 3HP or visit Perry Morren at our very own Design Studio on 14 Baltic Street East, London, EC1Y 0UJ. Come and say hello!
Casambi Wireless Lighting Controls – The What, Why, Where and How Guide
What Is Casambi? Casambi is a smart, wireless lighting control system that is used for varying individual or groups of lights for effect and best efficiency. This wireless lighting is revolutionary for utilising space intelligently and creating the desired ambience. The “ambi” in Casambi even stands for ambience. Casambi Lighting can provide your clients the best experience, without spending significant money on third-party providers or ongoing licensing. Wireless controls are an intelligent way of controlling your lighting, a modernised process removing the need for outdated methods, such as the wired light switch. The Casambi control ecosystem also offers several advantages over other alternatives, providing features unlike we’ve ever known in the lighting industry before. Casambi wireless lighting has several features, including the ability to change the colour of the lights, turn them on and off, dim, tune and many other features. But it also has the ability to recognise motion and act in response to it through changing colour temperature and gradient, as well as by creating lighting sequences. Sequences can be set to ‘harvest daylight’ by dimming during sunlit periods or set to circadian rhythms for well-being. How Does Casambi Work? Unlike other types of lighting control systems, which cannot be amended once installed, or Wifi based lighting that requires an internet connection to use, the Casambi app has been developed with Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology in mind. BLE is a standard across smartphones, smartwatches and tablets alike and enables effortless lighting reconfiguration through your smart device. What this means is that any type of environment can be adapted to suit the atmosphere. This blog will open you to the world of Casambi wireless lighting controls, and the benefits wireless lighting provides its users, including the type of projects it is suitable for and how users can control their Casambi smart lighting. Why Use Casambi? The Benefits Of Wireless Lighting Users and Occupants Compared to standard on/off systems, wireless lighting offers many advantages to its users. For example, it enables you to minimise unnecessary energy usage and not impact the appearance of a space with its sleek design. Wireless lighting also plays a role in providing ‘human-centric lighting’, which alone has a number of well-being benefits to those in close proximity and in the frequent use of the software. Examples include enhanced user comfort, increased well-being levels, productivity and alertness, particularly in the workplace and educational centres like schools and universities. Lighting Designers In addition to the benefits Casambi provides its users, it is highly beneficial for designers. Casambi is not limited to specific projects. Being a wireless lighting system means it is suitable for all types of projects, whatever the size, whether a significant historical building or a development site. Other benefits include the Casambi system’s sustainability, such as reduced raw materials, no control cabling, and reduced containment size. Similarly, Casambi’s daylight harvesting feature, which saves up to 60% of the lighting load, is essential for designers, enabling them to meet the City of London planning permission changes. Installers and Fit-Out Contractors Like with user and designer benefits, installers also benefit from the Casambi system during installation. Unlike most other lighting installations, Casambi is relatively simple to install, with no lighting racks and only a power cable required, reducing the need for materials. Where To Use Casambi And What Type Of Projects Is Casambi Suitable For? Casambi lighting control is suitable for all types of business projects, particularly for businesses where physical outlets do not align with their aesthetically pleasing appearance, such as art and design exhibitions or hard-to-access and protect historic buildings, for example, museums. Casambi can be used in spaces of all sizes, including major sites with multiple rooms, thanks to Casambi having the ability to control up to 250 luminaires at once. So whether you need office lighting, university lighting, or lighting in a shop or elsewhere, Casambi is a versatile solution. Casambi is a popular tool in the workplace and educational centres. Human-centric lighting is highly beneficial for employers, mimicking natural daylight and helps drive employees’ bodily functions to respond with a higher level of productivity than warmer, dimmed tones. How Can Casambi Help With The London Planning Permission Changes? With plans to cut light pollution and save energy, the City of London Corporation is cracking down and consulting about the requirement for property developers to submit a detailed strategy. They plan to become carbon net zero for the Square Mile as a whole by 2040, and the Lighting Supplementary Planning Document should help to achieve this. The City wants businesses to adhere to a lighting curfew, where lighting will be turned off or dimmed after a certain point. Casambi can help to reach this due to its features, including setting timers for turning to light on and off or dimming it. Get Your Wireless Lighting Control With Mount Lighting Casambi is compatible with many of Mount Lighting’s luminaires and ALL of the linear LED products including the creative M-Line LED Lighting Systems. The Mount Lighting specialists can offer high-quality Casambi lighting controls systems pre-configured and built into our listings, offering complete ease of site installation for your business. Experience the benefits of wireless lighting with Casambi at Mount Lighting. If you are interested in learning more about Casambi wireless lighting controls, book an education session at our Bedfordshire HQ. Alternatively, you can virtually meet with Miles Cantley, our Casambi expert, via Teams or Zoom. Get in touch with a member of the team today at sa***@**************co.uk or 01582 369 005.
Attracting Employees Back To Work Through Office Lighting Design
Where are you reading this post from now? Are you at home? At work? Perhaps you are in the office? Where once we could assume the majority of workers would be on-site for their jobs, our post-pandemic world has left us with a rather different working landscape. COVID-19 has forced us to adapt to many situations we could not have foreseen, and one of the lasting outcomes of this has been the massive shift in working patterns and environments. According to The Office of National Statistics, levels of flexible or hybrid working have greatly increased, with many now choosing to work both from home and their offices, with as much as 84% of workers now planning to carry out hybrid working. No doubt coming together in a working environment can offer benefits that working from home can not, such as improved work-home life balance, a more structured workday and the benefit of social interaction and in-person collaboration. But with this renewed sense of work autonomy, how can we ensure that people want to return to their offices? And how can we boost their productivity and well-being once back in the workplace? It may surprise you to know that efficient, effective lighting is a huge part of the answer. This blog will shed some light on how our bodies respond to lighting, and how we use efficient, human-centric lighting and wellness design to ensure those dark days are lit a little brighter, and that people benefit from coming back to the workplace. Download our workplace lighting guide What are Circadian Rhythms? There is a significant link between our internal body clock, or “circadian rhythm”, and lighting. Our energy, mood and well-being are driven by these rhythms, which in turn are impacted by not only how much light we are exposed to, but the quality of it. Our circadian rhythms are internal processes that regulate our bodies. They aid us with our sleep-wake cycle and coordinate our physical, mental and behavioural systems. The word circadian comes from the Latin meaning, “around a day”, as these processes work in 24-hour cycles. Not only do they remind us when to wake up and when to sleep, but they also impact our physical well-being and mental health. If these systems are thrown off, our body may not function as effectively as it should. Our rhythms are highly sensitive to many external factors, and everything from sun exposure, exercise and caffeine, to our phone screens, daytime naps and light-night TV can alter our circadian rhythms, impacting our quality of sleep, productivity, and day-to-day functioning. Modern life throws up constant challenges for our bodies, but healthy lighting can be aligned to natural human circadian rhythms to help aid healthy sleep and functioning, and improve alertness. We can certainly use lighting, automated lighting and wireless lighting controls to help attract employees back to work and offer them benefits they would not find at home. Lighting to Enhance Wellbeing in the Workplace Productivity and overall wellness in the workplace can be boosted by providing optimum working conditions for your workforce. Poor office lighting can send confusing signals to our brain, disrupting our internal body clock, and leaving us feeling sluggish, unfocused, and unable to sleep properly. A balance between natural light and artificial lighting can aid healthy functioning. However, sometimes natural lighting is not accessible, so then a solid lighting strategy is needed to restore balance. Differing levels of illumination in different environments all have an impact, and it isn’t as simple as adjusting light brightness. Colour temperatures, timing and the quality of the light all have effects. Some are subtle, and some are apparent, but all these elements work together to provide different effects. Unified Glare Rating (UGR) refers to how bright a luminaire is compared to the background illuminance, as well as the viewing angle for the user. The guidelines from The Society of Light and Lighting, state that office spaces should comply with UGR standard of 19 or below. This is especially important in office spaces, where employees spend many hours a day without natural lighting, often working from screens and needing to focus for long periods. Too high a UGR, or too much glare, can cause headaches and problems with eyesight, whereas too low can cause visibility problems and trouble focusing. Unfortunately, it is not as simple as simply choosing low glare/sub UGR19 lighting and installing it. While the UGR may be low, the actual quality and performance of the light are impacted by the dimensions of the space being lit, how the light is distributed, and properties such as how reflective the surfaces are. In fact, how the lighting interacts with the space is just as important as the strength of the luminaires. Our experts at Mount Lighting have the professional expertise needed to ensure you need not fret about these technical details and can rest easy in the knowledge that we have all the science covered. Our Products for UGR Applications Our products are always designed with your well-being in mind. Our versatile range of low-glare lights conforms to these guidelines and doesn’t compromise on style. Using a specialised microprismatic diffuser, the UGR levels are kept low, and our long-life LED solutions, from suspended lighting to recessed models, ensure that there is a solution to any space or need. As part of our suspended LED lighting range, our M-Line 54 is versatile and stylish, can be crafted to your preferred lengths, and have bespoke shape and colour options to suit any space. Perfect for office spaces, they have dimmable and emergency options or Casambi wireless controls give you more oversight over your lighting- you are totally in control. The Lens-Line range has a low carbon footprint and high energy efficiency, making it our most sustainable linear lighting option. It can be surface mounted or installed suspended and is super efficient at 195 Lumens per Watt. DISCOVER THE LENS-LINE Also available are recessed LED options, which can create an illusion of a larger space
LED Lighting: Green, Efficient & Sustainable
The switch to LED lighting was a “lightbulb moment” for global governments in the mid to late 2000s. Following examples set by Venezuela and Brazil, the EU (which included the UK at that time), Australia and Switzerland began to deescalate the production of inefficient light bulbs in 2009. Last year, EU legislation changed, removing incandescent and halogen lamps from the shelves altogether. But what makes LED lights greener, more efficient and more sustainable than other forms of lighting? Keep reading to find out! This blog examines the three things that make LED lighting the most eco-friendly choice for illuminating modern commercial buildings. A green, efficient and sustainable choice for commercial lighting LED lighting is one of the most energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly lighting technologies on the market today. When measuring the positive impact of these lamps on the environment, you have to consider two factors: Source efficacy – how well the LED produces the desired result Luminaire efficacy – how well the device and fixture work together to produce the necessary lighting The less energy a lamp needs to produce the required lighting standard, the better. With LED lighting, energy consumption depends on the LED device and lighting fixture design. But generally speaking, LED lights last more than 5x longer than fluorescent lamps. 1. Designed to last Did we mention that good quality LED lights last more than 5x longer than other forms of lighting? With a longer life cycle than devices like incandescent and fluorescent lamps, or halogen lights, they are more efficient and eco-friendly for end-users. Because LEDs last longer, fewer lamps need to be produced, and the ones in production don’t need replacing as often. Scaled-back manufacturing means less packaging and lower emissions as there are fewer batches to transport. 2. More energy efficient LED lights waste significantly less energy than standard forms of lighting. They can be up to 80% more efficient than fluorescent or incandescent lamps. Fluorescent lamps convert 95% of the energy they produce into heat, which means they need a lot more power to generate the same quality of light as LED lamps. Contrarily, LED lamps only waste 5% of their energy as heat, while the rest powers illumination. This is great news for your business and the planet, especially in this economy, because the less energy a lighting solution requires, the lower your monthly energy costs will be. SAVE MONEY AND THE ENVIRONMENT! 3. Less harmful to the environment than other standard forms of lighting Some fluorescent lighting contains toxic chemicals and hazardous elements like mercury, which can cause damage to people and the environment if disposed of incorrectly. If they end up in a landfill, these elements can leach out and contaminate soil, water, etc., so they need specialist disposal. LED lights do not contain toxic elements, and most LED lights can be recycled, reducing the carbon footprint of specialist hazard disposal teams and cutting down on landfill areas. In addition to recycling, repairing and reusing luminaire housing is a sustainable solution, as it limits production and reduces packaging and transportation. There are many challenges involved in switching to a circular lighting economy, but the industry has made great strides towards this goal in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDCs). New research and upcoming legislation surrounding luminaire remanufacturing standards can help you switch towards reusing and repurposing luminaires. Mount’s M-Line, T-Line and Floe-Line systems are modular, meaning you can replace the LED boards when the time comes. Discover more below! Enhance projects with LED lighting LED lighting has the power to transform commercial interiors from standard to exceptional spaces. The right choice of illumination enhances other aspects of your design – like furniture and layout – and improves health and productivity amongst your staff. At Mount Lighting, we excel at creating and supplying LED office lighting that breathes new life into every workspace, room and building. Whether it’s a CAT A or B refurbishment, a fit-out for a school, college, hospital or serviced office building or something entirely different, we have an LED lighting solution to suit your project requirements. Are you still using fluorescent lamps on your premises? From February 2023, the production of fluorescent lighting will be phased out in the UK as a result of changes to the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive. Familiarise yourself with the changes and get ready to make the switch with Mount’s lighting conversion service. We will retrofit your fittings with more modern, sustainable, cost-effective LED lighting solutions, including motion sensors and Casambi controls, allowing you to change lighting intensity levels and conserve energy. M-Line The sleek and innovative M-Line LED Lighting System from Mount Lighting is the perfect architectural lighting solution for modern commercial fit-outs. Available in a choice of profiles, mounting options and continuous lengths to suit bespoke requirements, M-Line gives you the freedom to execute your design in any way you want. The only limit is your imagination! We manufacture the M-Line range in-house using the latest in LED technology. It is available as part of our Made in Britain range, which means faster turnaround times and fewer environmental repercussions from imported materials and transportation. VIEW THE M-LINE RANGE T-Line Our out-of-this-world T-Line tubular LED range is manufactured in-house to bring consistent illumination and tailored design features to commercial lighting projects without compromising the environment. Explore infinite configuration possibilities and create geometric or bespoke patterns to match your interior using our variously-shape aluminium joining pieces, available in different RAL colours. Do lighting your way with the T-Line range – made in Britain to the highest manufacturing standards. VIEW THE T-LINE RANGE Floe-Line Bend light and experience lighting in motion with our brand-new Floe-Line range. The sleek curves and rounded edges of Floe-Line will take commercial lighting design to a new dimension. Redefine the shape of decorative commercial lighting with smooth curves and lengths up to 1960 mm to suit any installation. Have your fixtures produced in any colour from the RAL palette. Let your imagination ‘floe’ and make
SwitchDIM Intelligent Lighting Configuration Guide
Looking for information on how to wire up SwitchDIM, or for a SwitchDIM configuration guide? You’re in the right place! What Is SwitchDIM Lighting? Sometimes known as Touch Dim, SwitchDIM is a brand of Tridonic. Cost-effective, easy to use, and effective in a wide variety of situations, it offers simple yet powerful lighting control options for small to medium size projects. This is the simplest option for digital dimming and is operated via a ‘push to make’ or retractive switch, which is then wired to each luminaire in the circuit via a 4-core cable consisting of switched live, neutral, earth and permanent live. The switch controls the switching on and off of the luminaire, and also the dimming. When the switch is pressed and held it will dim down. Another press and hold will dim back up. A momentary push will switch off and also bring back on. SwitchDIM utilises DSI technology, cleverly using mains frequency as a signal transmitter to the luminaire. This allows fingertip dimming control from multiple control points, selectable fade rates depending on the ballast, power-free switching options and protection against control-wire interferences. There are no issues with interference from the switching and the dimming of the luminaire which can affect the switch on. DSI is wired using a dimming pair, run around to each luminaire in the circuit. What Are The Typical Applications For SwitchDIM Lighting? Cases where Mount Lighting recommends SwitchDIM controls Small to medium size projects Offices Single luminaire applications (e.g. Downlights) Warehousing and storage areas Staircases, corridors, walkways SwitchDIM Configuration Guide The easiest method of switching and dimming Tridonic Atco control gear is by using the mains as a control signal. Internal conversion of the mains voltage into digital signals with a logarithmic dimming curve enables eye-optimised control. Thus, SwitchDIM perfectly meets the demands of the most sophisticated lamp management solutions. Multi-point control with push-to-make switches A range of commands can be programmed by simply adjusting the timing of the push interval. For example, a short push-interval will switch on/off all connected PCA, TE one4all or LED one4all depending on the actual operation state. A longer push interval enables the dimming feature which follows a predefined alternating dimming cycle. When an additional ambient light sensor SMART LS II is connected to the PCA ballast the light level or operating range of the ballast can be adjusted to provide ambient light control. Therefore, SwitchDIM provides the perfect solution for intelligent luminaires (picture 3). A SwitchDIM application can be synchronised with a longer push interval greater than 10s, e.g. after commissioning. All luminaires then synchronise and dim to 50% and at the same time harmonise dimming direction. Simple wiring that requires a bridge from the Neutral terminal to one of the interface outputs (D1/D2) The switched line is then connected to the second interface terminal. To upgrade the system to DSI or DALI control involves no major wiring other than to remove the Neutral link. SwitchDIM Technical Data Works with any number of commercially available push-to-make switches. Control-signal corresponding to line-voltage. Dimming rate 3s (from 1% to 100%). Theoretically unlimited control-wire length. Theoretically, an unlimited number of ballasts may be operated on a single SwitchDIM circuit. (However, we recommend a circuit limit of 25 ballasts per SwitchDIM installation). Dimming across multiple phases possible. To reduce voltage stress across input terminals, neutral from mains and to the SwitchDIM input should run adjacent to each other (picture 1) – in this kind of application. It is especially important to ensure the right polarity. What Are The Compatible Switches For Use With SwitchDIM: K4885 WHI – single retractive grid switch grid switching option K3631 – single white plate K3701 – single yoke Alternative – K4878P WHI – single retractive switch marked ‘press’ SwitchDIM Lighting controls are popularly used with many of our products such as: Linear LED Lighting Range Our Suspended Linear LED Lighting Our LED Recessed Lighting Range Need More Information Or Advice? Need more information on SwitchDIM configuration? We’re here to help. Contact your friendly lighting experts here!
Dimming Types Explained
DALI DALI stands for Digitally Addressable Lighting Interface. DALI is a recognised standard employed by all ballast manufacturers that offer DALI ballasts. This system assigns an individual address to each luminaire i.e. 001, 002, 003 and so on, allowing control of each individual luminaire. All luminaires can be controlled from a central desktop PC, and can be manually over-ridden at a wall switch, or can be used in conjunction with a daylight or occupancy sensor. DALI can offer two-way communication between the luminaire and the PC which provides valuable information and reports such as operating status of individual luminaires. DSI DSI is Digital Series Interface and is a more controllable version of digital dimming. This enables the user to group luminaires, operate daylight linked dimming and other controllable options. DSI is a Tridonic name and can be set up with a variety of control options and controllers, some offered by other manufacturers designed purely to work with the DSI ballast. DSI ensures that there are no issues with interference from the switching and the dimming of the luminaire which can affect switch on. DSI is wired using a dimming pair, run around to each luminaire in the circuit. ANALOGUE DIMMING Analogue dimming is known as 1-10v dimming. This is because the ballast produces a 1-10v DC supply that can be increased or decreased by a potentiometer, which can be either rotary or slider control. This DC supply can be increased or decreased by the switch to affect the resistance and hence the amount that the lamp is dimmed. Analogue dimming requires a ‘dimming pair’ of cables to be run around to each luminaire in the circuit. Switch Dim/Touch Dim This is the simplest option for digital dimming and is operated via a ‘push to make’ or retractive switch, which is then wired to each luminaire in the circuit via a 4 core cable consisting of switched live, neutral, earth and permanently live. The switch controls the switching on and off of the luminaire, and also the dimming. When the switch is pressed and held it will dim down. Another press and hold will dim back up. A momentary push will switch off and also bring back on. There are no issues with interference from the switching and the dimming of the luminaire which can affect switch on. DSI is wired using a dimming pair, run around to each luminaire in the circuit. Comparison Table of All Dimming Types GROUP SUB TYPE DESCRIPTION / HOW IT WORKS CABLING REQUIREMENTS CONTROLLER REQUIREMENTS NOTES Mains / Phase Dimming Leading Edge Consists of adjusting the leading edge of the mains power sine wave. Standard live neutral earth Dedicated phase dimming controller such as a rotary dimmer, or a Lutron-style system with phase dimming outputs. Mains / Phase Dimming Trailing Edge Consists of adjusting the trailing edge of the mains power sine wave. Commonly used for LED bulbs Standard live neutral earth Dedicated phase dimming controller such as a rotary dimmer, a Lutron-style system with phase dimming outputs, or a Casambi TED. Mains / Phase Dimming Adaptive Consists of adjusting the mains power sine wave Standard live neutral earth Dedicated system with autosensing of load type, and capability to provide either leading or trailing edge dimmed supply. Analogue 0-10v Consists of a DC voltage control signal between 0-10v, which corresponds to the desired brightness. Used in older drivers, not very common any more. Standard live, neutral and earth, with extra two core cable for positive and negative 0-10v signal, to each group of loads that require unique dimming. Dedicated system with 0-10v output for desired drivers. All drivers connected to that cable will get the same signal. Some systems also provide a relay to power down the driver at 0v to avoid it staying on at low brightness. Theoretically any number of drivers can run from one signal, but voltage drops in long lengths of control cable can lead to inaccurate dimming signals. Future proofing is difficult as cable can carry only one signal. Digital SwitchDim / TouchDim The simplest form of digital control, using an additional mains wiring core to dim up or down Standard live, neutral and earth, with additional live core to driver for dimming signal. Retractive switch to send mains signal to the driver. Digital DSI DSI stands for Digital Serial Interface was the precursor to DALI, developed by Tridonic in Austria, and consists of a digital signal to all connected drivers, with a dim level. This enables the user to group luminaires, operate daylight linked dimming and other controllable options. Not commonly used, as superseded by DALI. Standard live, neutral and earth, with additional two core cable to the driver for the dimming signal. Dedicated system with DSI output. Digital DALI DALI stands for Digitally Addressable Lighting Interface. DALI is a recognised standard employed by all driver manufacturers that offer DALI drivers. This system assigns an individual address to each luminaire i.e. 001, 002, 003 and so on, allowing unique control of each individual luminaire. DALI can offer two-way communication between the luminaire and the master controller which provides valuable information and reports such as operating status of individual luminaires, emergency lighting etc. DALI is an open protocol managed by the DALI Alliance, so any device manufacturer can certify their products to the standard. Standard live, neutral and earth, with additional two core cable to the driver for the dimming signal. Dedicated system with DALI output such as Tridonic SceneCOM or SceneCOM S. A DALI system is arranged in groups of DALI devices, called loops. Each loop can contain up to 64 devices, whether these are lights, switches or other types. Digital DMX-512 DMX stands for Digital Multiplex and is another protocol used for addressing devices and giving them unique control signals. The signal is unidirectional, meaning it only travels in one direction – from the controller or first light, all the way to the last. DMX is an open protocol also. Standard live,
Could better office lighting boost your workplace productivity?
As you read this, take a look around yourself. How many sources of light can you see? Are you surrounded by artificial lighting or is your space predominantly flooded by natural light? How do you feel as you look at the lights around you? How do you feel when you look away from them? As human beings, our life cycles are connected to the light in the world around us. It is through the photoreceptors located within our bodies that we process the light in our surroundings and the light we absorb has a knock-on impact on how we function, feel and perform. Contemporary research and studies are beginning to shed more light on the way that lighting’s colour temperature, intensity and quality influence our general mood as well as our creativity and productivity in the workplace. Flicking The Switch On The Daily Grind The average full-time employee in the United Kingdom will spend roughly 2000 hours of their year in the workplace. That’s a quarter of the year exposed to office lighting and a quarter of a year having your attention span, daily routine and mood influenced by office lighting design. For human beings, there is a significant link between lighting and circadian rhythms (physical, mental, and behavioural changes that follow a daily cycle). This internalised ‘body clock’ regulates our sleep cycle, relaxation, and stimulation. Light levels also directly influence mood and energy and poor lighting is known to fuel deficiencies. The temperature and brightness of lighting can adjust concentration, appetite, mood, and many other aspects of daily life. With such an impact from something humans are constantly subjected to, it’s important to ensure office lighting maximises employee welfare and supports healthy illumination. Baxalta HQ, Staines – Recessed linear lighting Blue Light To Shift That Blue Feeling Light is measured in frequencies. The frequency of visible light is referred to as colour, and the measurement for this colour spectrum ranges from 430 trillion hertz (red) to 750 trillion hertz (violet). Natural light is centred around frequencies all over the spectrum, including those that produce the colour blue. In colour temperature (Kelvins) terms, red is seen at about 1000K (candlelight) and the blues we absorb from daylight begin at >5000K. In an office, natural lighting is harder to control but it will favour an office to utilise what it can. If you want to make a lighting leap with the productivity in your workspace, you will have to harness everchanging natural light. ‘Blue light’ keeps the mind awake. It’s why we can’t sleep when we’re outside and in bright daylight. It’s why phones have ‘night’ modes that remove blue frequencies to settle the woken brain. When we are exposed to brighter light with more blue frequencies, the brain is less likely to grow tired. It’s well-known that people are more active and overall happier in the summer months and this is linked to the longer days and sunshine. Recreating this little slice of summer all year round in an office is just a matter of intelligent lighting design to get your employees feeling a certain way. Cooler light and higher colour temperatures make employees more productive and enhance their mental activity. If we’re talking science, it has a lot to do with melatonin (the sleep-wake cycle hormone) and how in bright light, bodies reduce production and make humans less sleepy. However, as the working day goes on, natural light gradually decreases in colour temperature and becomes much warmer. By using the latest LED technology, managers and employees can take control of the intensity, duration and timing of lighting. Human-Centric Lighting With Employees In Mind Too much or too little light can lead to many issues in the workplace. Dim lighting or a lack of light can lead to fatigue, lethargy, depression and low motivation levels. However, don’t overcompensate because harsh lighting can lead to an inability to focus and painful migraines. Combined or alone, these issues can lead to disruptive downtime and unhappy employees. Bad and unbalanced lighting results in lengthy absences and we don’t just mean physically. Presenteeism is an issue that can be directly linked back to bad lighting and discomfort in the workplace. Once upon a time, contractors and designers would simply light for the job that needed to be done. Now, everyone should be thinking about the person doing the job too. Whether it’s performing activities, relaxing during breaks or moving safely around the building, the mental and physical welfare of the employee should always dictate the lighting. Human-controlled lighting and lighting solutions tailored to the individual needs of people have a considerable capability to enhance employees’ work satisfaction and retention. Not Just A Filament Of The Imagination As bad lighting can lead to so many issues with employees, it’s important to invest time and money in good lighting design throughout an office. A conscious and focused approach to every room and task is the only way to ensure you’ll be maximising efficiency and productivity in your workplace. If you can’t let the natural light in, then select lighting that mimics the soft, natural feeling of daylight and that can adapt with the day. Take control, or let your employees, of how your lighting feels, looks and acts. Blue or cooler lights in collaborative, brainstorming rooms can invigorate employees and boost their brainpower. Warmer luminaires provide a feeling of comfort and allow employees to relax. Middle tones and temperatures are ideal for conference rooms where it needs to feel friendly and inviting but must also keep employees and visitors alert and motivated. Alertness and motivation will boost the core productivity of your business and drive you forward. The benefits of using intelligent LED lighting aren’t solely linked to the individual either. By using intelligent and controllable lighting, your business can save money and look better by saving big on energy usage. Make sure that you involve a lighting designer in your interior design as soon as possible. One of the biggest mistakes during the office design process
Lighting Design: 5 Tips for Interior Designers
The modern commercial environment is driven by appearance which means that lighting design has become much more than just ticking a few lux level boxes. In fact, ceiling lighting design is now an essential part of the commercial design process for refurbishments and new fit-out projects. This contemporary approach to lighting design has never been so exciting in our opinion! No longer is office lighting simply one-level luminance. You can’t just fill every area with a typical ‘General Area’ 500 lux. Restaurants and bars can no longer bask in lowlight until closing time. Instead, these environments need to distinguish themselves with cool layered luminaires that highlight all of the architectural and design features of the room. Bringing your vision to life will involve supporting the aspirations and values of your client’s business and brand with the well-thought-out method of embracing the full array of interior lighting on offer. Here are 5 great lighting design tips for interior designers to help you create magical atmospheres. 1) Lighting Reflectance Lighting is everything in interior design! It improves the aesthetic appeal and creates the mood and ambience of any environment. Colour psychology is the study of colour as a determinant of human behaviour. It has shown that we subconsciously react to various colours and that it can directly influence behaviour, emotion and state of being. For offices, this is great for workplace productivity but in bars/restaurants/hotels it’s just as important for perceptions from visitors. To make sure your lighting is making the most of your colour scheme, you need to actively be looking for LRV. Light Reflectance Values (LRV) are a measurable percentage of visible and usable light that is reflected from a surface when illuminated by a light source. LRV is measured on a scale that ranges from zero (absolute black, absorbing all light and heat) to 100% (pure white, reflecting all light). The reason LRV is a big deal is that lighting can change the way a colour looks and the values of a colour help lighting designers like those at Mount Lighting to calculate the number and type of light fixtures needed to provide a certain amount of light for interior spaces. Colour temperature, brightness, lumen output and CRI (Colour Rendering Index) all affect the way a colour feels. LED lighting is great for ceiling lighting design across all colours and can be used across the whole spectrum. 2) Ceiling Height Is Important In Lighting Design Height has a big impact on the efficiency and appearance of lighting that needs to be considered in ceiling lighting design. In a commercial environment, being able to complete tasks and activities is a key function of lighting and all types of lighting can change the way surfaces and task areas are illuminated. For higher ceilings, some types of luminaires won’t achieve suitable coverage but suspended lighting can not only be adjusted/selected to illuminate work planes, surfaces and task areas but the inclusion of levelled lighting is great for aesthetic design. At Jotun Paints, we provided a solution for high-level lighting with our suspended Halo pendants in sizes from 650mm–1250mm. The result was consistent illumination throughout and an impressive visual with all the different suspension heights and sizes of the Halo pendants. For lower ceilings, recessed luminaires can successfully create the appearance of added space due to their unobtrusive, smooth finish on the surface. Our recessed trimless system is ideal for creating slim, clean and seamlessly bright linear runs of lighting. With our unique plaster-in trim, there’s always a clean finish against the surface for that polished look. Jotun Paints, Scunthorpe – Suspended Halo Luminaires 3) LED Linear With Downlights If you are looking for a more modern way to light commercial space, having downlights is an ideal choice. Downlights help to improve the light quality in every area they are installed and are effective additions for lots of applications. Downlights are best used for task lighting and ambient lighting when used with a dimming switch. When well-placed, they can create a big impact in the overall context of a ceiling lighting design project. The number of downlights that you require is determined by the size of your room and the illuminance you want but with LED linear downlights, achieving consistent and uninterrupted continuous lighting is simple. At Mount Lighting, we encourage interior designers and architects to look beyond the ‘straight-cut’ design of LED linear light and get imaginative, above all, look up – are you maximising the potential of ceilings in your designs? Even if a bespoke linear lighting solution (a great way to create a striking feature piece in reception or lobby) isn’t what you want, LED linear lights are available in suspended, recessed and wall-mounted options so that you can still incorporate them into your space in lots of different ways. With products such as Mount Lighting’s M-Line linear LED lighting, you can bring designs to life without compromise. Straight profiles are subtler but by installing linear lighting in creative ways (e.g. zig zags, at fixed angles, in geometric shapes) you can create dynamic lighting for any application. 4) Shorter Linear is cool Carrying on from using LED linear lighting in a creative way, another top tip to remember is that the size of your lights is also a great design tool. Long runs of LED lighting are perfect for consistent lighting but shorter linear lighting, either interweaved or as a stand-alone pendant, is a great way to make a statement or achieve better coverage as part of a layered lighting design. LED linear lighting definitely makes a commercial environment look more contemporary and the subtle inclusion of shorter runs of LED lighting in stairways or showcasing areas can really strengthen the aesthetic of a room. We supplied custom linear lighting lengths for the company’s walls and ceilings. These runs of light were installed in an intriguing design, creating a totally unique feature that clients and employees would see the moment they entered the space. This fresh and modern use of the
How Did Daylight Saving Time Begin… and Is It Even Necessary Today?
Always a controversial subject, the changing of the clocks to Daylight Saving Time in Spring and Autumn has caused joy and annoyance in equal measures ever since its inception over 100 years ago. There are many who feel ‘robbed’ of an hour of sleep in Spring and then rejoice at the thought of an ‘extra hour’ in Autumn. Of course, nobody is really taking from or adding an hour into our standard 24 at all! The simplest way to explain Daylight Saving Time is that we choose to tamper with the clocks every six months or so in order to make better use of the daylight hours available to us. So, Where Did Daylight Saving Time Begin? Well, although he didn’t propose moving the clocks forward or back, Benjamin Franklin (then an American delegate in Paris) wrote an essay in 1784 titled “An Economical Project.” He had noticed that Parisians were sleeping through the early hours of sunshine in the morning and suggested going to bed earlier and rising earlier to both economise on candles and benefit from the natural light. He even suggested jokingly that church bells should be rung and cannons fired in the street at sunrise! Needless to say, that suggestion didn’t catch on. You probably won’t be surprised to learn that Benjamin Franklin is largely thought to be responsible for the popularisation of the old English proverb “Early to bed, and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.” It took until 1895 for Franklin’s idea to be taken a step closer to what is now a bi-annual ritual. This time it was George Vernon Hudson (an entomologist from New Zealand) who proposed moving the clocks forward two hours in the summer. Despite significant interest, the proposal came to nothing. Fresh Light 10 years later, in 1905, a British builder named William Willett had the same idea when out on his morning horse ride. He noticed that Londoners still had their blinds drawn and were snoozing through the morning daylight. His suggestion was to set the clocks ahead 20 minutes on each of the 4 Sundays in April and switch them back by the same amount on each of the 4 Sundays in September – a total of 8 time-switches per year! He spent a fortune campaigning for his suggestion to be taken up and caught the attention of MP Robert Pearce who introduced a bill to the House of Commons in 1908 trying to make it compulsory to change the clocks. However, this was met with massive opposition, particularly from the agricultural community. Willet died in 1915, without ever seeing his vision come to fruition. Desperate Times Call for Desperate Measures On April 30th 1916, Germany and its axis partner Austria-Hungary introduced Daylight Saving Time (DST) as a means of conserving coal during wartime. Britain followed suit on May 21st 1916. With countries around the globe desperately striving for any advantage they could gain, the practice quickly spread across entire continents. After World War I was over, most countries reverted to the practice of peacetime, leaving the clocks unchanged throughout the year. In this country, however, we persisted with DST – with British Summer Time being enshrined in law during the 1920s. Things were taken even further when the second World War began – this time, clocks in Britain were put two hours ahead of GMT during the summer. This was known as ‘Double Summer Time’ and once again the stated aim was to save energy. Ever since, DST has been enacted, repealed and adjusted countless times across the world. Is Daylight Saving Time Still Relevant Today? As the initial adoption of DST was only really due to the impact of wartime and energy shortages, many people question whether there is really any need for us to go through the hassle of adapting to an hour’s difference twice a year. It has always been a deeply divisive topic, with some people and industries welcoming the change, and others that that feel their whole routines are disrupted time after time. Of course, the extent to which citizens are affected by these time changes varies wildly depending on their location and the roles that they perform, so perhaps it’s not surprising that there should be such a wide range of opinion. As well as those who think the practice should be abandoned altogether, a significant number of people are supporters of an even more radical concept known as ‘Single/Double Summer Time’ (SDST). They suggest that British Summer Time be maintained during the winter months, and that a “double summertime” be applied to the current British Summer Time period, putting the UK one hour ahead of GMT during winter, and two hours ahead during summer! Making Light Work We’ve previously discussed how lighting can impact on productivity in the workplace. Whatever your view on Daylight Savings Time, remember that Mount Lighting have solutions to ensure your workplace is perfectly illuminated. Whether you want to upgrade old luminaires to add smart controls, create a stunning reception area using M-Line, or completely transform a work area by replacing old-fashioned and flickering fluorescent tubes with bright and modern LED panels, Mount can help. Why not get in touch with us today to find out more?
How Lighting Can Affect Workplace Productivity
For years, successive governments (and frustrated business leaders) have wrestled with a vexatious challenge that affects the entire country: workplace productivity. The technology-driven increase in productivity of past decades has slowed dramatically and the UK has fallen behind other developed nations on the productivity scale. While there are many factors that can affect how productive we are at work, one that doesn’t receive much attention is lighting. According to Bloomberg: “The intensity and type of light we live with during the workday can have a major impact on our health, happiness, and productivity.” So, how can you use the power of light to improve productivity? Read on, you’re about to find out! Natural Light It’s no secret that natural light is a boost to workplace productivity. Over the years, designers have found more and more innovative ways to allow natural light to flood through the workplace. Despite this, it’s very difficult (and prohibitively expensive) to ensure every desk or work area can benefit from natural light in a building – and during winter, the shorter days mean many hours spent working under artificial light even for those who are fortunate enough to be near a window. The good news is, with recent gains in understanding the effect that different light sources can have on our mood (and productivity), you can replicate the benefits of natural light for all – at any time of the day or night. Understanding Light Colour Temperature A crucial factor affecting how we react to light sources is Colour Temperature – a term used to describe the look and ‘feel’ or ambience of an artificial light source. This is measured in degrees of Kelvin (K). The Kelvin temperatures of artificial lighting typically fall somewhere between 2,000K and 6,500K. You’re probably familiar with the terms ‘warm’ and ‘cold’ when used to describe the hue or colour temperature of a light source. Confusingly, the higher light colour temperatures are referred to as a ‘cool’ or ‘cold’ – while the lower temperatures are referred to as ‘warm’ in tone! It helps to think of a piece of metal being heated up – it will first of all turn red, then orange, then white, and finally, a bluish-white colour when it is at its highest temperature. Higher-temperature lighting tends to result in higher workplace productivity, and can even counteract the effects of Seasonal Affective Disorder – a condition thought to affect up to 14% of all adult workers, where the lower levels of natural light in the winter seasons can lead to a lower mood. A two-month study by the University of Greenwich found that workers under ‘blue-enriched’ light bulbs reported feeling “happier, more alert and had less eye strain.” The Journal of Circadian Rhythms concluded in a peer-reviewed research article that “bright-light exposure during winter appears to be effective at improving health-related quality of life… Exposure to bright light in the morning and evening in the workplace has also been shown to improve self-reported mood, energy, alertness and productivity in individuals with sub-syndromal seasonal affective disorder [also known as SAD]” The following handy chart shows the different light temperature colours with suggestions for the work environment most suited to each: But what if you have an area that is supposed to be a high-energy brainstorming room at 9AM and a relaxing breakout area at 12PM? Fear not – at Mount Lighting we’ve got the lighting solution for any situation! Did you know our M-Line range can be controlled using your smartphone (or any Windows, Android, or iOS device) to cycle through an almost-infinite variety of colour temperatures and brightness? Whatever your lighting challenge, whether upgrading old units to add smart controls, or completely transforming a work area by replacing old-fashioned and flickering fluorescent tubes with bright and modern LED panels, Mount can help. Why not get in touch with us today to find out more?