AUSTRALIA’S NEWCASTLE CITY INVESTS IN NEW LIGHTING TECHNOLOGY
The first of what may be many lighting upgrades using innovative LED lighting technology has been completed in Newcastle on Australia’s east coast, just a few hours north of Sydney.
The City of Newcastle engaged lighting consultants to assist in the upgrade of Pacific Park, located close to the Central Business District and offering gardens, sheltered and unsheltered seating, and lots of grassed areas to throw down a picnic rug. WE-EF sales partner Stramac Lighting worked with the council to achieve a first-class lighting installation that provides amenity lighting for the pathways within the park, which link the business area to the harbour, beaches and residential areas.
Gavin Macrae from Stramac said, “The main design consideration was the longevity of the product. The client was very interested in the 10-year warranty offered by WE-EF, given that the installation is right beside the ocean. The other consideration was to eliminate glare or ambient light spilling out onto neighbouring residences.”
Working with WE-EF, the team was able to come up with a design that met required lighting standards and satisfied the client’s needs. The CFT540 street and area luminaire was chosen for the project, a unique circular post top product offering a range of optics. “The client liked the fact that the CFT540 basically has the ability to disappear, as you can see through it and see the sky through it. They used the bigger version of this fitting and their existing poles, which were four metres high and spaced around 20 metres apart.”
The incumbent lighting design featured 100 W metal halide luminaires on top of the poles. This was replaced with the 36 W WE-EF luminaire that met the AS/NZS 1158.3.1 lighting standard P4 category requirements. “It was the first time that the City of Newcastle had used this product,” Mr Macrae said. “But since this installation, they have placed two more orders, both for projects in Newcastle not far from Pacific Park. Again, they were interested in the 10-year warranty.”
Due to the client’s concern about glare, a sample of the CFT540 was placed on one of the poles for a few months to gauge any concern from neighbouring residents. “With no negative feedback, they felt confident in placing the order for the whole job,” Mr Macrae said. “The finished effect is a comfortable ambience,” he said, adding that the colour temperature for the lighting in Pacific Park is 4000 K. “It looks discrete during the day and does its job at night. The park is well-established so some of the poles and lights are in amongst large trees,” Mr Macrae said. “When you drive past sometimes you don’t even spot the lights.”
The new design also provides a better experience for users of the park. “With metal halide products you tend to see a bright light up ahead of you but with the CFT540, the lighting is less obtrusive from a distance and provides a nice, ambient glow when you get to it,” he said.
Completed: 2020
Client: Newcastle City Council (NCC)
Sales Partner: Stramac Lighting
Photography: Jackie Chan